“Oh, so that’s why she was acting strange about the starter this morning,” Charlie said. “But why wouldn’t she have just said something?”
“We don’t always know how to ask for what we want,” Faye replied. “Look, Cassie. You’re a smart, tough young lady and you’ll figure out what to do about this, and Makewell’s. I know you will. And I know it will not involve backing down and apologizing to Brett, or rolling over and letting anyone ruin your family business.” Faye glanced at her watch. “Now, I need to get going. I have some Christmas shopping to do, and then Jake’s dog will be wanting her romp around the yard.”
Just the mention of Jake’s name, even in her bleak mood, lifted Charlie’s spirits. But only for a second. A boycott. This was not good. She thanked Faye for coming in, and then reluctantly returned to the laptop and the streaming. She fast-forwarded past all the innocuous stuff—mostly, she and Walter discussing the Starlight Bread—and then, a long tract of time when it was just Walter working in the bakery, which must have been during her hike with Jake. Charlie pressed play again as a shadowy figure appeared at the door, then came into focus. Then, on-screen Walter was telling her someone was there to see her. She was used to watching herself on camera, but this was different, and her mouth went dry.
“How about you don’t tell me how to run my bakery?” On the screen, her voice was harsh and cold. It made her wonder how anyone at all believed she was Cass. Her sister never spoke to anyone like that.
The on-screen conversation went on. “You’re like a stranger these days, Cass,” Brett was saying. “Like an imposter. Like someone has taken over your brain. I’m here because I love you, and up until recently, I thought you loved me, too!”
“Well, that’s on you, Brett. I think I’ve been very clear about my wishes for you to give me some space—”
“I have been giving you space. But I never imagined you were going to cheat on me!”
“Cheat on you?! Brett, we are broken up, don’t you get that? We are no longer together, and that means I am free to do what I want.”
“I don’t understand why you’re doing this to me. You’re breaking my heart, Cass—”
“Please, just stop it. Stop it with the guilt trip. I can’t take it anymore.” Charlie, sitting in the empty bakery watching all of this, knew the worst was yet to come.
“Of course you don’t understand, Brett.” Charlie’s voice was thick with frustration. “This sort of thing is beyond your comprehension. All you understand is this small life, and this small town. You think this place is perfect, and what you don’t understand is that it’s possible for people to want more than just a predictable life in a predictable place. You don’t think it’s possible for people to outgrow each other, to maybe even outgrow where they’re from and want more. You just want us to stay here, never change, never be anything except who everyone in Starlight Peak thinks we are. I’m so tired of it! Don’t you understand that? I’m sick and tired of seeing your face every single time I turn around—and I want you to leave me alone.”
Her face was partially obscured because she had turned slightly, but Brett’s was in focus at this point, and the camera picked up every nuance of his anguish. Damn it. This was bad. Not only had she told off Brett, she had insulted everyone in Starlight Peak, a town full of people with a very deep sense of loyalty and affection for the place. You didn’t call Starlight Peak small and boring and not expect there to be consequences. Besides, it wasn’t how she really felt about her hometown, and she felt terrible for saying it.
Charlie started fiddling with the program’s settings, looking for a way to take the video down and permanently delete it. But nothing she tried worked. Walter would know, but she didn’t want to call him in on his day off.
Finally, she gave up trying to delete the video and closed the program. She put her head in her hands for a moment. She could not fix this. Not right now. She had damaged the bakery’s reputation and failed at handling Cass’s life the way her sister had asked her to. What was done was done. But she could try to make it right from now on.
She picked up the sheath of orders she still had to deal with and started sorting them. For four more days, until the swap was over, Charlie would focus only on the things she could control. She would stop worrying about Austin and Sweet & Salty and trust that Cass had it under control—the way Cass was trusting her to keep things under control at home. She would busy herself filling outstanding orders, be friendly to everyone who came in the bakery, and do her part to streamline things at Woodburn so when Cass returned the family business would have a decent chance of staying afloat if Makewell’s did indeed move into town. To that end, she linked the bakery’s e-mail—because at least Cass was not so stuck in the past that the bakery didn’t even use e-mail—to the website she had created and started working on an online order form. By the time she was done, a few customers had started to arrive. She was careful to keep the friendly smile on her face as she packaged up orders and rang up tallies.