hers. It was Liza’s. “Thanks for your vote of confidence, Zach,” she said. “I’ll see you later, okay?”
“Great. I appreciate all you’re doing, Liza.”
Meg forced a smile. “Glad to be of help.”
As she walked back to her car, Meg realized that being Liza was the easy part of this assignment. Managing her feelings for Zach was the true challenge.
Just being with the man, no matter what they did, brought her both pain and pleasure. In some ways, she and Zach clicked far better than she and Martin did. That thought stirred a new wave of guilt. And reminded her to be on guard.
She couldn’t let her emotions control her behavior or usurp her carefully planned life. Not when she and Martin had a future together.
Zach stood at the counter of Cake Heaven, staring at the amazing creations displayed in the huge glass case. He’d had no idea cakes came in so many shapes, sizes, and flavors.
Maybe looking at cakes would prove a distraction. He still reeled from the loss of the Patterson account, and the insurance company was tossing up roadblocks. On top of that, his neck and shoulders felt like he’d been in a fistfight. And lost.
And he needed major distracting where Liza was concerned. Even with today’s challenges, he couldn’t get her off his mind. Each time he took a break, there she was, front and center. To Zach’s dismay, his attraction to Liza grew stronger each day. He forced his attention back onto the cake display.
“May I help you?” A woman in a bright-red pantsuit topped with a white apron hurried toward him, drying her hands on a tea towel. “What do you think of our cakes?” she asked, gesturing to the display case.
She was plump with rosy cheeks, black curls, and a warm smile. Zach figured if he worked at Cake Heaven, he’d be plump too. Just looking at these high-calorie desserts could accomplish that.
“My fiancée is on her way,” he said. “We want to buy a cake for my grandmother’s eighty-fifth birthday party.”
“You have lots to pick from,” she said. “We only display a few of our cakes, but if you look through the books on the table you’ll see photos of many more. I’ll let you browse awhile. Just holler if you need me. My name’s Gilda.” She smiled again and padded off to the kitchen.
A moment later the front door swung open and the tinkling bell announced a customer. Zach turned and watched Liza breeze in. Just seeing her again brought an unexplainable surge of delight.
Liza’s auburn hair curled softly around her face. She’d changed into jeans and a lemon-yellow knit top with an enticingly low neckline. Zach felt a rush of pleasure just looking at her.
Get a grip
, he told himself. He’d come here to choose a cake for Gram, not to ogle Liza. Besides, it wasn’t appropriate to ogle your good friend. Especially not while harboring un-friend-like feelings toward her, which Zach harbored plenty of these days.
As Liza joined him she glanced around the showroom. “Wow! I’ve never seen so many cakes.”
“According to Gilda, this is just the beginning.”
“Who’s Gilda?”
“The lady I spoke with earlier. She suggested we look through those books for more ideas.”
“Why don’t we, then?”
“Fine with me,” Zach said. In truth, his head still throbbed, and all his body wanted to do was stretch out and sleep. He’d hoped they could choose one of the forty or so cakes displayed in the case. But since Liza had sacrificed part of her evening to help, and since she loved to consider every option, he’d be a good sport.
They sat down, and Zach passed Liza a book and opened one himself. After thumbing through several pages he said, “Do you believe this? Alligator cakes, ostrich cakes, cakes shaped likethe Eiffel Tower. Look at this one. An entire snow fort built of cupcakes.” The possibilities boggled his brain.
“My book has a palm-tree cake, cakes shaped like cars, and…” Liza stopped and giggled. “Would you look at this
“Great. I appreciate all you’re doing, Liza.”
Meg forced a smile. “Glad to be of help.”
As she walked back to her car, Meg realized that being Liza was the easy part of this assignment. Managing her feelings for Zach was the true challenge.
Just being with the man, no matter what they did, brought her both pain and pleasure. In some ways, she and Zach clicked far better than she and Martin did. That thought stirred a new wave of guilt. And reminded her to be on guard.
She couldn’t let her emotions control her behavior or usurp her carefully planned life. Not when she and Martin had a future together.
Zach stood at the counter of Cake Heaven, staring at the amazing creations displayed in the huge glass case. He’d had no idea cakes came in so many shapes, sizes, and flavors.
Maybe looking at cakes would prove a distraction. He still reeled from the loss of the Patterson account, and the insurance company was tossing up roadblocks. On top of that, his neck and shoulders felt like he’d been in a fistfight. And lost.
And he needed major distracting where Liza was concerned. Even with today’s challenges, he couldn’t get her off his mind. Each time he took a break, there she was, front and center. To Zach’s dismay, his attraction to Liza grew stronger each day. He forced his attention back onto the cake display.
“May I help you?” A woman in a bright-red pantsuit topped with a white apron hurried toward him, drying her hands on a tea towel. “What do you think of our cakes?” she asked, gesturing to the display case.
She was plump with rosy cheeks, black curls, and a warm smile. Zach figured if he worked at Cake Heaven, he’d be plump too. Just looking at these high-calorie desserts could accomplish that.
“My fiancée is on her way,” he said. “We want to buy a cake for my grandmother’s eighty-fifth birthday party.”
“You have lots to pick from,” she said. “We only display a few of our cakes, but if you look through the books on the table you’ll see photos of many more. I’ll let you browse awhile. Just holler if you need me. My name’s Gilda.” She smiled again and padded off to the kitchen.
A moment later the front door swung open and the tinkling bell announced a customer. Zach turned and watched Liza breeze in. Just seeing her again brought an unexplainable surge of delight.
Liza’s auburn hair curled softly around her face. She’d changed into jeans and a lemon-yellow knit top with an enticingly low neckline. Zach felt a rush of pleasure just looking at her.
Get a grip
, he told himself. He’d come here to choose a cake for Gram, not to ogle Liza. Besides, it wasn’t appropriate to ogle your good friend. Especially not while harboring un-friend-like feelings toward her, which Zach harbored plenty of these days.
As Liza joined him she glanced around the showroom. “Wow! I’ve never seen so many cakes.”
“According to Gilda, this is just the beginning.”
“Who’s Gilda?”
“The lady I spoke with earlier. She suggested we look through those books for more ideas.”
“Why don’t we, then?”
“Fine with me,” Zach said. In truth, his head still throbbed, and all his body wanted to do was stretch out and sleep. He’d hoped they could choose one of the forty or so cakes displayed in the case. But since Liza had sacrificed part of her evening to help, and since she loved to consider every option, he’d be a good sport.
They sat down, and Zach passed Liza a book and opened one himself. After thumbing through several pages he said, “Do you believe this? Alligator cakes, ostrich cakes, cakes shaped likethe Eiffel Tower. Look at this one. An entire snow fort built of cupcakes.” The possibilities boggled his brain.
“My book has a palm-tree cake, cakes shaped like cars, and…” Liza stopped and giggled. “Would you look at this
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