Don't Go Baking My Heart

Reba

The dayof the bake-off brought rain, and Reba was close to using that as an excuse not to go. She should have been up and ready to head to the venue since it was all the way down Chaguaramas, but the weather made her want to stay under the covers.

If she was a little more honest with herself, it wasn’t just the weather making her want to stay right where she was. She had been thinking. Had even made a list for the manager position just like Devon had suggested. She had been joking when she’d said she would do one for them, and yet the devil perched on her shoulder had her doing just that.

She had stuck the two lists in her notebook last night, which, come to think of it, didn’t seem to be on her nightstand. She wasn’t sure where she had left the book, actually. Even so, the one for her and Devon was burning a hole into her brain because the con side was far longer than the pro, but was she going to be a whole wimp and allow that to stop her? When had she ever run from anything that was deemed too risky?

Ugh, this was why she didn’t do relationships. Too much work.

She rolled out of bed, grabbing her phone to check her messages.

Devon: Will I see you there?

Of course, her eyes would fall on that one first. He had been the last person she had talked to last night. She had coached him through the social interactions at Dax’s party. It had been funny, and it had also given her some satisfaction that he had come to her for help. She could have gone to the party with him but hadn’t wanted the added pressure from his boss, who apparently adored her.

Sometimes being this loveable was truly a curse.

She had felt a bit guilty after he had come with her to the food rave, but she hadn’t lied. She had wanted him to open his eyes to things he might not consider fun otherwise. He had been stiff at first, gradually loosening up as the night wore on. Not too much, though. But she couldn’t allow them to give in to that intensity that sizzled between them. Thinking did not include having sex.

As hard as it had been to say goodbye at the end of the rave, she had done it.

So now what? Why was she hesitating to get dressed and on the road? She had promised she would be there to cheer him on, so she really ought to get moving.

She got her ass in the shower, taking her time with her body scrubs even when she didn’t have the luxury of all of that, given the time and the rain, but she would always show up looking her best.

Her mother eyed her as she came down dressed in jeans, sneakers, and a t-shirt, her Sailor Moon hoodie thrown over her arm, her concession to the weather.

“Going somewhere?” her mother asked.

“Yeah.”

“In this rain?”

“I promised someone.”

“That someone your karaoke friend?”

“Yes, if you must know.” Her mother kept looking at her as if she expected her to say more. “What?”

“I found your list.”

Oh, shit. Dammit. Had she left her things downstairs? Wait, her mother had said list. Singular. Which one had she found?

“Oh?”

“Are you going to accept that manager offer?”

Her heart rate piped down a bit. “I don’t know. Where did you find it?”

“It was on the ground by the couch. Looks like it fell out of your notebook. I don’t know the details, but what’s to think about here? Why wouldn’t you take a managerial role?”

None of them got it. How could they? They never made an effort to understand her. To get that just because she enjoyed her current role didn’t make her unambitious. What was so wrong being content with what she did? She hadn’t decided to turn down the role yet, but the fact that her mother thought it should be a done deal was aggravating.

“Who doesn’t want to advance in life?” her mother continued.

“Some people are born for those roles, and some are just not. They thrive in other ways.”

“You don’t even try, Reba. You’re really fine just being an assistant for life?”