Read Online Baking Love by Lauren Boyd - Free Book Online Page B

bowling.”
    Mark glanced up at the monitor. “Three, huh?”
    “Yeah.”
    “Don’t sweat it, man.”
    Eric retrieved his ball and returned to the lane.
    “Out with it,” Jess hissed at Mark.
    “I don’t think I should say anything.”
    “Oh, I think you should—and hurry up. Eric will be back in a minute.”
    Mark sighed. “Fine, but don’t tell him I told you this part.”
    “Fine.”
    Mark met Kate’s gaze. “Eric kicked Matt out of his wedding because Matt harassed you at the Wynnfield Tavern. Eric told him their friendship was over.”
    “Whoa,” Jess whispered.
    Kate stared at Mark, unseeing. Eric did that for me? Why? I could understand if Matt had harassed Cecilia, his fiancée—but me? I’m just his friend.
    “Keep this on the down-low,” Mark quickly added.
    Eric took his seat. “What are you guys talking about?”
    As Kate waited for someone to answer, a new thought popped into her head. If Mark is attending to Eric on his wedding day, how will he also be attending to Eric’s wedding cake? “Wait a minute,” she said. “Mark, if you’re going to be Eric’s groomsman, how are you also going to help me and Jess with his wedding cake?”
    Surprised filled Eric’s face. “How’d you know Mark is going to be my groomsman?”
    “He just told us,” Jess replied flippantly. “Yeah, Kate, how is that going to work?”
    Eric glared at Mark. “Did you tell them anything else?”
    “Uh,” Mark stuttered.
    “Eric,” Kate interrupted. “What time do you need Mark on your wedding day?”
    Eric met her gaze and stared blankly. “What? I have no idea.”
    “Well, what time does your wedding start?”
    “I don’t know, Kate.”
    He’s getting frustrated, which makes two of us. “You don’t know what time your own wedding starts?” she asked in disbelief.
    “Why don’t you know?” Eric snapped. “I mean, how are you planning to deliver the wedding cake to the reception site if you don’t even know what time the wedding starts?”
    Damn, you’ve got me there. “No one gave me a time when we met at the bakery, and I haven’t had a chance to ask Loraine since then.”
    “Why not? You were both at the pre-rehearsal.”
    “I saw her twice, and both times, I got distracted.”
    “How in the world did Loraine Prescott distract you?”
    Stop putting me on the defense. “Not that it’s any of your concern, but the first time I saw Loraine, she was showing me how ridiculously far the cake table will be from our van—from your wedding cake. The second time I saw her, she was appointing me to stand in for Cecilia as your bride. So let’s just say the opportunity never presented itself.”
    “Ah.”
    “What’s your excuse?” Kate crossed her arms over her chest. “Why don’t you know what time your own wedding starts?”
    “I don’t need to know until the day of, or maybe the day before.” Eric paused. “What’s wrong with the placement of the cake table? You can’t carry a cake that far?”
     “It’s nothing I can’t handle.”
    “Then why did you mention it?”
    “Because it’s the truth.”
    “Hope you don’t drop anything.”
    Kate’s arms flinched. No, I can’t kiss him—and I can’t strangle him, either, so I’d better leave him alone. She took a deep breath. “Would you please try and remember if you’ve heard anyone say what time your wedding starts?”
    Eric sighed. “I don’t know. Maybe five o’clock.”
    “Five o’clock,” Kate repeated. “We’ll go with that. Thank you.”
    Jess turned to Kate. “Mark should have enough time to help us with the wedding cake beforehand.”
    “Yeah. We should be fine.”
    “Now that I think about it, I remember something else,” Eric piped up.
    “Do we want to hear this?” Kate muttered.
    “We’re taking photos before the wedding.”
    You’ve got to be kidding. “You’re doing what?”
    “Isn’t it bad luck for the groom to see the bride before the wedding?” Jess asked.
    “If we take photos