Page 1 of Half Baked

Prologue

Poppy

8 Months Earlier

There are a million things I would rather be doing right now. Anything really, other than following the mayor to town hall to talk about my failure. I trail one step behind him, hoping there’s still an opportunity to make a quick getaway. We cross through the town square, narrowly dodging a rogue pumpkin from the bowling alley made of straw.

I should be with my friends right now, basking in all the glory of Fall Fest. Instead, I’m about to be told, in greater detail than yesterday, why my business isn’t as important ashis. Of all the people to win this over me, I’m not sure why I’m surprised it’s Hayden Thompson.

And speaking of that spoiled man child, he is watching my doomed walk with a smile on his face from across the square. He can’t even be a humble winner.

“Fitzy, is this really necessary right now?” I ask again, knowing it’s in vain.

“Poppy, trust me. This is good news.” Mayor Fitzgerald smiles as we climb the stairs to the stately town hall building.

“Good news for… me?”

“Definitely.” He holds open the door for me and we cross into the echoing hall. Our steps are resounding, filling the silence of the empty building. The sound follows us down the hall to his office. “Have a seat.”

I do as he asks, sliding into a chair across from his desk and waiting for him to step around behind it. The mayor leans forward, lacing his fingers together atop the wood structure. With a wide grin, he tells me, “The building is yours.”

“What building?” I blink at him in confusion.

Fitzy chuckles. “The one you’ve been lobbying for this last month. You know, the future home of your bakery. On the wharf.”

“You told me just yesterday that it was going to Hayden. What happened?” Narrowing my eyes in suspicion, I’m hesitant to get my hopes up again. I had believed with every fiber of my being that I was finally getting my big shot. A storefront bakery of my very own. And then the belief was crushed.

“I don’t know the details. You should talk to him?—”

I hold up my hand and stop him mid thought. It’s pointless to go down that path. “That’s not going to happen. Just tell me what you do know.”

“The building doesn’t work for him; something was a hard stop. Not sure what, but he said there was no way it will satisfy his needs. And it’s not that I didn’t love your idea. I just felt a responsibility to… anyway, it’s yours.”

“Just like that?”

“Just like that. I’ve got the paperwork drawn up right here.”

Excitement floods me as he slides a stack of documents across the desk and holds out a pen. The moment is surreal, andmy brain swims with joy, ideas, and disbelief. Like any moment I’ll wake up from this dream.

I spent the last twenty-four hours trying to accept defeat, and suddenly victory is being thrust upon me.

“So, if I sign these right now, am I officially leasing it? Starting today?”

“Yes ma’am.” Fitzy’s eyes crinkle with a smile as he confirms it.

Snatching the pen up eagerly, I sign where he tells me to sign, initial where he tells me to initial, and bob my head as he explains each page. And in no time, I have a completed stack of documents before me. The mayor reaches into a drawer in his desk and dangles a gold key before me.

“It’s all yours, Poppy.”

When he presses the key into my waiting hand, I waste no time at all leaping up and charging from his office. “Thanks, Fitzy,” I call over my shoulder as I rush down the hall towards the front doors. Nothing is going to stop me from getting to my new building in record time.

Nothing except for the towering human I slam into as I round the corner at the bottom of town hall’s front steps. A huff escapes me as I stumble back and his hand reaches out to steady me.

“In a hurry? You look happy.”

“Bite me, Baywatch,” I snap back, impatient to get on my way again. Hayden steps to the side and motions for me to continue on, a low, warm laugh rumbling from him as I go. I don’t look back, and I don’t pay attention to the way my traitorous body heats at the sound that just escaped him.

Chapter 1

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