Page 20 of Rock with You
She was what mattered.
Damn it to hell, what was he supposed to do without her?
Real life sucked. Carly thumped her forehead lightly against the counter as her latest batch of butterscotch minis smoked on the stovetop in front of her. It had been a week since the ice storm, a really long, lonely, frustrating week.
She’d burned more cookies in that time than she ever had in her life. Somehow, she had to get her act together and get Sam out of her head before she lost the bakery.
“What’s wrong, sweetie?” Her grandma stood in the doorway to the kitchen, arms crossed over her chest. “You look lost.”
“I feel lost.” Carly pressed a flour-coated hand to her forehead and sighed. “The bakery’s not doing well, Grandma. I don’t know what I’m doing wrong.”
“Ah.” Her grandmother motioned for Carly to join her at the table. “You have a gift, Carly. Your baking is absolutely divine. Frankly, my dear, you put me to shame in the kitchen.”
“Grandma!” Carly slapped her hand playfully. “That’s not true, but I did learn from the best.”
“It is true,” Marlene said. “You know I’ve always said you walk around with your head in the clouds. I wouldn’t change you for the world, but I should have spent more time with you when you took over the shop. What do you say we sit down once a week or so and talk about the business end of things?”
Tears sprang into her eyes. “I’d like that, Grandma. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. Now tell me why you’re burning all your cookies this week.”
Carly sighed. “There’s this guy…”
“Oh!” Her grandmother’s gray eyes lit with interest. “I just love a story that starts with ‘there’s this guy.’ Someone you’ll be bringing over for dinner soon?”
“No. That’s the problem. He was just in town visiting. He’s…” She looked over at her grandmother. “He’s a famous musician. He lives in LA.”
“Pfft,” Marlene said. “I don’t care if he’s famous. Would I like him?”
Carly remembered the way she and Sam had sat together with his guitar, the things they’d shared. “Yeah, Grandma. You’d like him.”
“So when do I get to meet him?”
“You don’t. He’s already gone back to California. I got stuck at his place during the ice storm, and we had two really amazing days together, but that’s all it was.” She pressed her thumb into the tension headache brewing between her eyes. “I’ve got to get him out of my head.”
“Easier said than done.”
“Tell me about it. But right now, I’ve got to open the shop, with or without butterscotch minis.” She stood and walked to the oven, where the scorched cookies sat cooling. She tipped the tray and dumped them all into the trash.
“You’ve got plenty of other things to offer,” her grandmother said with a wink as she headed into the store to flip the sign from closed to open.
Carly stood behind the counter, arranging this morning’s batch of cinnamon buns.
“You’ve got folks lined up this morning waiting for you to open,” her grandmother said from the front door. “Well, one folk anyway, and oh my, he’s a looker.”
“What?” Carly’s breath caught in her chest. It couldn’t be…
Her grandmother unlocked the front door and pulled it open, smiling up at the man in the doorway, a man that made Carly’s heart somersault in her chest. He didn’t wear a baseball cap pulled low this morning. Nope, he stood there in his leather jacket and jeans, famous smile on display for anyone who might come inside.
“Sam? What are you doing here?” Because they’d agreed…
But dammit, she was so happy to see him. It was like she’d taken her first full, deep breath since she’d walked out his front door a week ago. Oh, she’d missed him so much, but why wasn’t he in LA?
“Good mornin’,” he said, turning his blinding smile on her grandmother. “Sam Weiss.”
“You the one that’s got my granddaughter burning all her cookies this week?” Marlene asked.
Sam chuckled. “I sure hope so.”