Fake It Till You Bake It(17)

“Right. Okay,” he said slowly, his brain still whirling, his hand still tingling. They still maintained eye contact.

The bell above the door jingled. “Donovan, I’m so sorry I’m late,” Ella said in a rush as she came in. “I needed to make sure my paper was perfect before I turned it in, and I fell asleep without setting my alarm. It won’t happen again.” Her torrent of words stopped when she spotted Jada. Her eyes widened in recognition. “Hi. Nice to see you again. What are you doing here?”

Donovan marshalled as many brain cells as he could. “She’s our newest hire. Ella, can you show her around for a bit? I have to do … something, yeah, something, in my office.”

He left her with Ella and escaped. He didn’t run. If his gait was a little faster than normal, it was just a coincidence. He definitely was not running.



* * *



An hour later, Nicholas stuck his head into Donovan’s office. “I’m done with the latest batch of s’mores cupcakes. I think I’m almost there with the recipe. The marshmallow isn’t overwhelming the chocolate and graham crackers anymore. I’m going to need you to do a taste test.”

Donovan spread his hands apart. “A hard job, but someone’s gotta do it. Hey, Nich—”

“Can you hold that thought? I want to give Ella the heads-up, too. The last time I didn’t tell her about a new flavor taste test, I didn’t hear the end of it for two weeks.” Nicholas disappeared before Donovan could object. His business partner returned less than thirty seconds later. He shut the door behind him and leaned against it, crossing his arms. His eyes squinted in confusion. “Um, who is that out there with Ella?”

Donovan sighed. “Our newest employee.”

Nicholas blinked. “We’re hiring?”

Donovan nodded. “Yes, especially when she’s Mrs. T’s granddaughter.”

“Oh, okay. Sure. I guess your meeting with Mrs. T was fruitful.” His head tilted to the side. “I only got a quick look at her, but she’s fine as fuck.”

Donovan held up a hand, studiously ignoring the flare of … something vaguely greenish temporarily blurring his vision. “One, no, you’re not dating an employee. Two, you’re sure as hell not dating our boss’s granddaughter.” He hesitated. “Three, she’s also the woman who came in the other day, you know the one who had a lot to say about the shop.”

Nicholas’s mouth gaped open. “Noooo. Tell me more.”

Damn gossipmonger. “There is nothing more.”

A hard knock sounded on the door. Nicholas moved out of the way as Donovan told the newcomer to enter.

A second later, August walked in. “Why is there a strange woman behind the counter with Ella?”

Nicholas closed the door. “Good timing. I was about to get the scoop.”

“There is no scoop,” Donovan said through clenched teeth.

“You mean hiring the woman who talked shit about the shop doesn’t count as scoop? I don’t know about that,” Nicholas said.

“You hired the woman who talked shit about the shop?” August chimed in, his puzzlement clear.

“Yes,” Nicholas said eagerly. “And we’re not allowed to date her because he already put in his claim.”

Donovan’s teeth ground together. “There is no claim. She’s a grown woman who can do what she pleases. Regardless, you need to keep your hands to yourself.” Nicholas could and had charmed the panties off countless women. Undoubtedly, Jada would respond to Nicholas’s approach better than she had to Donovan’s brusque, argumentative, combative demeanor. Which wasn’t his usual state. He was usually thoroughly logical and calm. Not that it mattered what his state was. He wasn’t interested in her. She wasn’t interested in him, and even if those statements weren’t true, they still wouldn’t date. Jumping into a relationship would only distract him from his goals.

“So she works here now?” August asked, still clearly confused. “You sure that’s a good idea?”

“Yes.” Donovan quickly explained the situation, ignoring the way his business partners’ facial expressions cycled between amusement, confusion, astonishment, understanding, and in Nicholas’s case, utter giddiness. “Don’t worry. She’ll report to me, and I’ll train her.”

Nicholas nudged August with his elbow. “Told you. He already put in a claim.”

Donovan glared at his best friend. “Get out of my office.”





Chapter Five


Jada hung back while Ella helped a customer. She didn’t know what else to do. She was so out of her element.

Ella kept staring at her like she was a bug under a microscope, only pausing her inspection when she had to help customers. Two men she assumed were Donovan’s business partners and teammates, based on their physiques, had taken one look at her and disappeared around the same corner as Donovan had earlier.

Jada was mostly just trying to stay out of the way. She didn’t want to drop the merchandise or accidentally give the wrong product to a customer or any other of the limitless possible calamities running roughshod through her brain.

If her gaze kept sliding to the hallway, where her erstwhile boss had fled like the hounds of hell were chasing him, well, that was simply because he was the only person she knew here. It wasn’t like she missed or anticipated their antagonistic banter or anything.