The next morning, she woke and went about her routine as normal. While she still felt a little groggy, she was sure it would go away after she had her tea. Now that she was able to focus on the task at hand, her daily pastry production returned to a relatively normal pace, albeit her thoughts still drifted to Jack every once in a while.

It wasn't long before the bakery began to fill with the all too familiar scent of hot, fresh baked goods. She could swear that the aroma made the atmosphere more pleasant somehow, and her customers even seemed to lighten up when they came inside. Sometimes the smell was overpowering for her, which was when she liked to take walks.

When the shop had closed for the day, she might go shopping in town, or visit her grandmother. Ellen was always glad to see her grandchild, as most grandparents are. Later today Elli would have a particularly big announcement for her.

While she knew that Ellen didn't mind Jack being around, she still wondered what the elderly woman's reaction might be.

She sighed.

″I'll just have to find out the hard way.″

She shook it off and went back to work.

Despite yesterday's small fiasco, Elli wasn't about to be defeated by a mere souffle. All of the ingredients were gathered and ready, including some that came fresh from Jack's ranch.

Making souffle is a tricky business, as the pastries are rather infamous for their intolerance of loud noises and, pretty much anything. Elli however was able to make them with relative ease.

It took great patience and alot of work to get it right, and no doubt a few pastries had flattened in the process. Not that she'd give in when that happened, she'd only keep trying until one of them survived.

When the mixture was ready to be baked, she carefully slid the baking pan into the oven. Now came the hard part. There were still cookies left to cook, cakes left to bake, and pastries left to prepare! There was plenty to keep her busy, but she had to be careful not to disturb the souffle.

First things first, she needed some cookies for the display window. Usually she tried to make as many different kinds as she could, starting with chocolate chip, or maybe gingerbread. Then there were the soft and chewy oatmeal raisins, followed by the crunchy peanut butter cookies that had a tendency to crumble if you weren't careful. Chocolate cookies with white chocolate chips were a big trend now, especially with the kids. Meanwhile some of the adults liked the ones with macadamias, so rich you could usually only eat one without starting to feel sick.

Along with cakes, Elli made sure to make cupcakes. There were a couple of display stands that allowed them to be stacked so as not to ruin the decorative icing. With all the time and effort spent on the swirls and sprinkles, that'd be a real shame. Especially given the many different colours the icing came in.

For the customers with the biggest sweet tooth, there was fudge. Elli had to have a strong to whip the mixture in order to prevent it from separating. Ellen had once been able to do this, only over time that strength had diminished, and her fudge started to come out more like maple sugar treats than creamy fudge. Elli didn't mind it that way, as it still tasted the same. Only the texture was different.

The good thing about fudge is that you can make it in many different flavours besides chocolate. Elli was able to pull off even the swirling marble mixtures seen at craft shows, flea markets and tourist stops. Those kinds of bakers offer flavours like rocky road or perhaps a mix of peanut butter and chocolate.

By now the bakery was really starting to smell good. Just then, the bells by the door chimed, indicating the presence of a customer.

Elli poked her head out from the kitchen to see who it was. At first she didn't recognize the person, then she recalled the name that went with that bright red hair.

Nami, from what she'd heard, was staying at the inn. She was probably a bit younger than Elli, which suggested that she must be striking out on her own in life.

″Can I help you with anything?″Nami jumped.

″Just a gingerbread cookie please.″ She gestured towards the tray of fresh cookies in the display window beside the counter.

Elli quickly retrieved a cookie and put it in a brown paper bag while Nami dug in her pocket for change.

″Pardon me for saying so but have we met?″Elli inquired. Nami only shrugged.

″Don't think so.″She handed the money to Elli and thanked her for the cookie. She left before receiving her change.

Elli was puzzled, but went back to work, making sure to wash her hands after handling the money.

With cookies, cupcakes and fudge done, she moved up to the main attraction. What's a bakery without half a dozen cakes on display in the windows or on the counters? Whether you can afford them or not, people will visit a bakery just to get a look at the different kinds of cakes. Though some spoil faster than others, which was where the cooled display helped.

Cheesecake and fruit tarts were the sort of things that really needed to be kept cool to ensure that they stayed fresh. She also liked to store the cream puffs and eclairs there. Unlike a standard refrigerator it didn't seem to make the pastries soggy from having to thaw out. Soggy pastries are probably about as professional ad a freshly flattened souffle. IT might not upset customers that much but all the same you probably would rather avoid it.

A couple more people entered the bakery that day. Barley was looking for a birthday cake for May, and was kind enough to extend a party invitation to Stu. Elli told him he'd be delighted, and would let him know when he stopped by. Stu liked visiting the bakery, particularly at lunch. That was when Elli closed up for an hour to eat, and he knew as well as she did that there'd always be dessert. She'd probably have to take him shopping for a gift later.

Popuri wandered in and ordered a couple of chocolate eclairs. That girl had such a sweet tooth that at times Elli wondered how she didn't bust her corset! The thought was amusing, to say the least. Anne was almost the same way. Fortunately she was more active than Popuri from working at the inn, but she'd given herself a stomach ache on a number of occasions. It made Elli feel bad when her sweets made people sick like that.

When the sun began to set, Elli said goodbye to the last customer and started to close up shop. Sales had been good today, and she was pleased. The more she sold, the less she had to throw away, and today there was just enough left for after dinner.

″Elli!″

Jack managed to catch her before she locked the front door. This time however, she'd been expecting him.