Page 5 of Stolen Goods
“Grace—” Addy stopped herself with a wince. While she would always think of her sister as little Gracie, or at least Grace, she was supposed to call her by her middle name now. Lee. That happened about a year ago when Gracie decided her name was too oppressive, or sexist, or something about the patriarchy… Addy couldn’t remember. Anyway, to the public, she was Lee now. Addy coughed. “I mean, Lee, is good. She’s great! We’re great. I’m just really into this cake.”
Edie rolled her lips into her mouth, cheeks puffing with contained laughter.
Thank God it was contained.
“You know, it’d be good for you to learn a thing or two from your sister,” Edie chided softly, half-serious, half-teasing.Oh, God, not you too, Addy thought, fighting back an eye roll. “When’s the last time you got out of town?”
Ah yes, because Gracie was this small town’s world traveler. Everyone loved when she came back from her adventures—going to college in San Francisco, volunteering in Africa, studying abroad in France, taking a summer break to backpack through Southeast Asia. Grace was a local hero. She was the one who got away, who was doing big things, glamorous things. Edie had been that girl once too, a model on the cusp of making it big, before she accidentally got pregnant and moved back home to raise her new family.
But what, did Addy want to know, was so bad about staying near home? Helping take care of her parents? Keeping a steady job for nearly a decade? Of course, in those solitary moments where she let her mind wander, she often found herself wondering what the streets of Paris looked like at night or if wishes made at the Trevi Fountain really did come true. But in those dreams, she wasn’t alone. There was romance in the air. A thumb brushing against her palm. A body snuggled close to her side. Lips pressed against her neck.
She’d leave this town.
She’d go somewhere.
She’d explore.
She just, well, wanted to find someone who would go with her first.
Addy found her boss’s level gaze. “I went to Charleston three weeks ago.”
Edie snorted. “And when’s the last time you left the South?”
What’s so wrong with the South?she thought indignantly.We’ve got hospitality, chivalry, sweet tea—and praline pecans!
“Does Epcot count?”
This time, Edie did burst out laughing as she dropped her face into her hands, shaking her head. “Addison, Addison. If I didn’t depend on you so much, I’d fire you, just to see what you’d do.” Addy’s stomach leapt into her throat before her boss kept going. “But I’m selfish, and I don’t know what I’d do without you. So maybe think about a vacation instead? I don’t want you to burn out.”
“I will,” Addy said.
“Promise?”
“I promise.”
Edie eyed her for a few moments longer, then slipped her hand into her purse. She pulled out the shop keys and tossed them toward Addy, who caught them smoothly with a grin across her lips.Buttercream, I’m not done with you yet.
“Anderson wedding on Saturday?” Edie said as she made her way toward the back door, running through a final end-of-day checklist in her mind.
“Yup. We should be all set.”
And thank God for that.
The Anderson couple requested a black wedding cake.Black!Addy had never been so depressed while baking a cake in her life. Even now, she shivered, turning toward her fluffy pink frosting for solace.
“And the Cooper wedding on the same day?”
“And the Bryants’ next week. And I think the Shermans’ the week after. All good.”
“And that Avengers birthday cake—”
“Already got the designs approved by the parents.”
“And—”
“Go home to your family. Everything is under control.”
Edie took a deep breath and turned to face Addy, stalling with her hand on the knob. “See? What would I do without you?”
