WHISKING IT ALL
CHAPTER FIVE

Kate's mouth dropped open when she stepped into the kitchen the next day. She'd seen the smoke damage around the doorway behind the counter, but even Alexis's warning hadn't prepared her.

The kitchen was a goner.

When she heard footsteps she glanced behind her to find Alexis and a man she didn't know, presumably the insurance agent, who let out a low whistle.

"Alexis sent me pictures, but they did not do this place justice." He held out his hand. "You must be Kate. I'm Charles."

"Nice to meet you. I just wish it was under better circumstances."

Charles shrugged. "That's pretty typical for my business. We're ignored until we're needed."

Kate chuckled despite her concern over the bakery. "Is there anything you need from us right now, Charles? Or do we just let you look around?" She lifted her shoulders in an embarrassed shrug. "I'm kind of new at this."

"I'll check things out, so you ladies feel free to wander as desired. You can even go across the street if you want to hang at the cafe, and I'll come get you when I'm done."

They decided to go across the street to the cafe. Kate still had her latte, but she could tell that Alexis needed to get away from the bakery, so she bought her employee a coffee.

"I'm sorry," Alexis sighed when she joined Kate at a table, coffee in hand.

"Why?"

"If I had been there, if I hadn't come here first, I could've stopped it."

"Or you could've been hurt, or worse," Kate pointed out. She leaned forward and waited to continue until Alexis met her eyes. "It's just stuff, Alexis. Sure, it sucks. It'll set us back. But ovens and mixing bowls can be replaced. You can't."

Alexis let out a loud exhale. "Thanks, Kate. And you know I'll do whatever I can to get us up and running."

"I know. Look, Alexis, I gotta tell you something-" Before Kate could explain her dilemma with the shop, she heard the jingle of the bell above the door, and Rick's familiar voice rang out.

"Alexis!" he called out, holding his arms out for a hug. "Are you ladies okay?" he asked, looking at Kate after he released Alexis. He placed a tentative hand on her shoulder, and when Kate stood, he wrapped his arms around her shoulders.

Kate looped her arms around his waist and leaned into his embrace with a sigh, smiled as she inhaled and smelled his familiar scent. Whatever brand of soap he used lingered just enough that she started to relax.

"You okay?" Rick murmured, resting his cheek on the top of her head.

Kate nodded against his shirt, and took a few moments to enjoy his embrace before she took a step back. She wasn't okay, not really, but it wasn't the time or place to talk to him. She owed it to Alexis to tell her first. "I'm better now," she admitted, lifting her gaze to his. When he just lifted an eyebrow, she reached up and pressed her palm to his cheek, ignoring stares from the other patrons. "I promise."

Rick slid his hands to her waist and gave her a quick squeeze before letting go. "Okay. Give me a call later?"

Kate nodded and, when Rick left, she sat back down. She leveled a glare at Alexis when she noticed her smirking. "What?"

Alexis just shrugged and lifted her coffee to her lips. "Nothing. I just didn't think you liked PDA, is all."

"Funny," Kate shot back. She leaned forward, her elbows on the table, and cleared her throat. "Hey, so, I need to talk to you. About the bakery," she added.

"I'd move into the bakery if it would help put in more work," Alexis insisted through tears when Kate finished explaining her situation. "Tory can volunteer every spare moment she has."

"I know. I'm so grateful for both you." Kate swiped her fingers across her own wet cheeks. "There's a very real chance that it wouldn't work anyway, though. A lot will depend on what we'll get from insurance."

Alexis ran her fingers through her hair. "Crap."

"Yep."

The bell jingled and Kate looked up out of habit, stood when she recognized Charles approaching them, his face unreadable. "You're done already?"

Charles nodded. "I am. We could go to my office to talk, unless you're okay here?"

"This is fine with me," Kate said. She glanced at Alexis, who nodded, and sat back down. She opened her mouth to ask him what he determined when her phone rang, and she felt her face flush, apologized to her companions, and dug it out of her purse. She sent the unknown number to voicemail, and switched the phone to silent.

"Well, that was good news," Alexis said as they left the cafe later. She glanced at Kate when she hesitated. "Wasn't it?"

Kate tilted her head in thought. "I think so. It was certainly more than I expected." They went back across the street to the bakery, and Kate surveyed the destroyed kitchen, her mind racing to attempt to strategize the best use of the insurance money.

Although Aunt Theresa had mismanaged many financial aspects of the bakery, she hadn't skimped on coverage. If Kate did the math right, the insurance would pay almost enough to completely rebuild. She'd have to go shopping to price everything out, of course, and get Alexis's help to make sure they didn't miss anything, but she was optimistic that they could get the bakery back up and running without too much delay.

Until she got into her car and spotted her briefcase in the back seat, and her conversation the previous day came rushing back to her mind.

She muttered a curse and slapped her palm against the steering wheel in frustration before starting her car and driving to the bed and breakfast. She made a mental note to text Lanie once she was settled in her room; Lanie had agreed to analyze the finances once the amount was determined. Without more information and advice, she was still lost as to what the best course of action would be: sell, keep, or close.

Her phone pinged with a new text, and Kate pulled into her usual spot in front of the B&B, and tugged her phone from her jacket pocket.

What's the damage?

Kate smirked. It was almost spooky how Lanie could read her mind. She shot off a quick response, suggested they talk that evening, and was about to shut off the screen when she noticed a new email with an unfamiliar sender and intriguing subject line.

Ms. Beckett,

I recently visited your bakery, and am interested in speaking with you about a potential partnership with Black Pawn Baking. Please let me know of your availability to discuss this opportunity.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Meredith Harper
Acquisitions
Black Pawn Baking

Kate set her phone down and leaned her head back against the headrest.

An email from a national brand.

A partnership.

It could be just what she needed to be able to both keep the bakery and her job.

"Ms. Beckett?"

Kate looked up from her phone at the sound of her name, and she stood, lifted her bag to her shoulder and ran her palms down her blazer. "Yes?"

The receptionist who had originally greeted her nodded down the hall. "Meredith is ready for you. Follow me."

Kate glanced around as she followed the receptionist, taking in the pictures of desserts adorning the walls. She couldn't help but smile at the bright cookies and cupcakes; the decorating skill was something she lacked, although Alexis more than made up for it.

They stopped at an open door, and the red-headed woman behind the desk stood with a smile.

"You must be Ms. Beckett," she said once Kate shook her hand. "I'm Meredith. It's great to meet you."

Kate sat and placed her bag on the empty seat next to her. "Please, call me Kate. Thank you for taking the time to meet with me."

"Of course. Shall we get right to it?"

By the time Kate left the Black Pawn Baking office two hours later, her head was spinning with numbers and possibilities. Being backed by a national corporation would take an enormous amount of pressure off of her, but something didn't feel right. And Kate couldn't quite put her finger on what it was.

She missed her parents; they'd been gone for several years, and she wished she could call them and ask their advice. She didn't think the Black Pawn deal was necessarily bad, but she couldn't shake the feeling that it was less of a partnership and more of a buy-out.

When she got back to her car she wrote down a few notes, then she pulled up her maps app, found a nearby coffee drive thru, and headed back to Southbridge.

Kate's phone rang when she was twenty minutes outside Southbridge, and when she answered without looking, she was surprised to hear Rick's voice come through the speakers. She'd only been in town for a couple of days, but aside from their brief encounter at the coffee shop and talking that night, she didn't expect that he'd have time to see her.

"Do you have plans tonight?" Rick asked after a shared greeting. "Wanna come over for dinner?"

Kate grinned at the trace of nerves in his voice. Aside from the first visit when they'd discussed the supply contract, and a subsequent one when they signed it, Kate hadn't been to his farm. "I'd love to. Can I bring anything?"

"Nope."

She heard a grunt and a thud, and she chuckled. "You okay?"

Rick let out a sigh. "Yeah, sorry. I was trying to multitask. Don't worry about bringing anything, unless it's things for staying overnight," he added, his voice lowering to a throaty husk.

Kate felt her cheeks flush. It had been a few weeks since she'd last been with him, and every ounce of her body wanted to feel the touch of his hands - and the rest of his body. "Sounds good," she managed around the lump in her throat. "What time do you want me?"

"Oh I want you all the time," he teased, "but how about five?"

Kate glanced at the clock. It was just after two; that would be plenty of time. "Sounds great. I'll bring something, how do you feel about wine?"

By the time she pulled up to the large house just before five, she was on edge with the anticipation of seeing him again. She parked next to his truck and shut off her engine, grabbed her bag from the passenger seat, and approached the door. It opened before she could knock, and Rick appeared, a wide grin on his face that she mirrored.

"Hi," he panted, and Kate raised her brows at his breathlessness.

"Did I interrupt something?" she teased, stepping inside and leaning back against the door when he shut it.

Rick chuckled and took her bag. "Nope, I was just upstairs," he explained, wrapping his free arm around her waist and tugging her into him. He bent down and brushed his lips to hers. "I'm glad you're here," he murmured against her mouth. He kissed her again, harder, his arm tightening around her and his tongue slipping through the seam of her lips.

Kate moaned when his tongue touched hers and she listed into him, her arms looping around his neck as he dropped her bag to the floor. She winced when it fell with a thud, but the wine was surrounded by clothes and it didn't sound like it broke, so she pushed the worry from her mind and focused on his fingers in her hair, his strong thigh nudging her legs apart.

She gripped the collar of his flannel shirt, kept him close as she sank onto his leg. When his hand slid between them and he brushed his fingers against her, she tore her mouth from his with a gasp.

"Oh God," she breathed, her hips rolling, desperate for more. "Do we need to eat right away?"

Rick lifted his head from her neck and he gazed at her with dark eyes. "Are you talking about dinner?"

"Yes."

"Are you hungry?"

Kate drew her bottom lip between her teeth and, when his gaze dropped, smirked. "Not really," she admitted. "At least, not for food."

"Me neither." Without warning he swept her into his arms, one arm tucked beneath her knees and the other around her back, and she tried to look around as he carried her through what looked like a living room. She tried to look around, but she couldn't take anything in before he was kicking his bedroom door shut behind them.

Rick chuckled when Kate slid back under the covers a short time later and snuggled into his side.

She felt a shiver run down her spine when his arm circled around her shoulders, keeping her close. "What's so funny?"

"Nothing." His fingers trailed along her arm. "You just seemed really anxious to get me naked," he teased.

Kate pinched his side. "You're the one that almost ripped my shirt," she pointed out, propping her chin on his chest so she could gaze up at him. They'd both pawed at each other with an urgency she hadn't felt in a long time, and even though she was starting to get hungry after two very quick rounds, she had no interest in leaving his bed.

She was about to suggest they continue their carnal reunion when his stomach growled, and she grinned when his face turned a deep red. "Maybe we should work on some actual food?"

Rick ran his hand over his face and groaned. "I was hoping it wouldn't growl," he complained. He nudged Kate off of him and slid out of bed. "You stay here," he told her when she moved to follow. He pulled out a pair of sweats and a long-sleeved shirt and tugged them on, then leaned across the bed to smudge a kiss to her mouth. "I just have to put the food in the oven, then we can continue."

Despite his instructions Kate followed him out, and she bypassed her shirt when she spotted his flannel just outside the door. She put it on and fastened the middle buttons, smiling at the way it enveloped her, made her feel like he was giving her a never-ending hug. She took a long sniff; it even smelled like him.

As she made her way back through his house, following the noise to the kitchen, she took time to examine her surroundings. Rick was a no-frills kind of guy, she'd learned, didn't like to waste any time or energy on things that didn't matter in the long run.

And his personality came through in his house: Kate saw several pictures of him and his mother, and with people she recognized from town. He also had a handful of photos of various attractions from around the world, including Paris and Australia, and she couldn't help but wonder when he found the time to travel.

A large built-in bookcase took up the wall opposite a plush sectional, with a television in the middle, surrounded by books from a variety of genres. She couldn't help but be impressed by his collection. It was an eclectic mix of authors, everything from a complete Jane Austen collection to a recent Patterson.

"I thought I told you to stay in bed," Rick murmured in her ear, his hands sliding under her - his - shirt to rest on the flare of her hips.

She smiled and leaned back into the solid wall that was his torso. "We skipped the tour," she pointed out, covering his hands with hers. She turned in his arms and wrapped hers around his waist. "Can I see your house?"

Rick took a step away from her and picked up two wine glasses from the nearby coffee table, handing one to her. "Sure. You're already familiar with my bedroom," he teased, holding out his hand, "and this is the living room."

Kate noticed something on the opposite wall that seemed out of place, and she ignored his extended hand in favor of approaching it. When she skimmed it, she turned back to him, her finger on the frame. "What's this?"

Rick's smile faded. "Oh, nothing," he said with a shrug.

"Nothing?" she echoed. "Dear Mr. Rodgers," she read, "thank you for your submission. Unfortunately, we will not be purchasing your manuscript at this time." She turned back to him. "Manuscript?"

Rick shrugged again. "I wrote something ages ago, and thought it was good enough to be published. I was wrong."

Kate gaped at him. She had so many questions: what the manuscript was, how many publishers did he send it to, whether he'd ever tried again. The date on the letter was eight years prior, when they were both in their early twenties, and she couldn't help but wonder whether he would have pursued a career in writing if his manuscript - whatever it was - had been accepted.

"Why did you frame it?" she blurted out.

Rick sighed and joined her at the wall, his gaze on the letter. "I let it inspire me," he said after a long moment. "Rejection sucks, but after I realized I wouldn't get published, I decided to move on with my life. So I started working at the dairy." He reached out and took Kate's hand, ran his thumb across her knuckles. "It reminds me that a 'no' doesn't mean failure. It just means 'not now,' or 'not this.'"

Kate squeezed his fingers and stepped closer to him, tiled her face up to look in his eyes. "That's really wise, Rick," she said, her voice cracking with unexpected emotion.

Rick quirked the corner of his mouth in a crooked grin. "Yeah, I know."

Kate scoffed and shoved his shoulder. "Ass," she teased.

"Yes I am." He slid his hand under her shirt and squeezed. "Speaking of ass…" His voice trailed off as he captured her mouth with his.

She moaned when his tongue curled around hers, but before he could take their embrace any further, she stepped back and took his wine glass. "Wouldn't want them to spill," she explained when he raised his brows. He followed her to the couch, and once she set the glasses down he gripped her waist and tugged her into him again.

He sat on the couch, pulling her on top of him, and she straddled his lap, fully aware that his sweatpants were the only thing between them and round three. And, judging by what she felt in those pants, he was growing more and more excited about having that round before dinner.

"Rick, this is amazing," Kate said around a moan, her eyes closing at the burst of flavor on her tongue.

Rick hooked his ankle around hers under the table. "I'm glad you like it. To be honest, I was a little worried you'd think that a casserole would be cheating. Since it's a one pot thing."

Kate swallowed and stared at him. "Are you kidding? I would never think that. Besides," she added, spearing a carrot with her fork, "I don't cook very often. You literally could have made boxed mac and cheese and I would've loved it."

"Oh, I never make it from the box," Rick said. "Always from scratch. Maybe I'll make it for you next time."

She glanced at him. "Next time?"

He flashed her a grin. "Yeah. Assuming I don't scare you away, of course," he added.

"You could never."

The doorbell interrupted their easy conversation, and they shared a glance before Rick stood. "I'll be right back."

Kate followed him through the living room, and was about to step into his bedroom so she could put her pants on when she heard who Rick greeted.

"Meredith?"

Kate froze. She had a fleeting thought that it could be a different Meredith, but when she heard the familiar voice respond and saw the woman she'd just met that morning step through the door, she froze.

"Hi Rick," Meredith Harper said with a smile, her voice dripping with a fake sweetness, trailing her hand across his chest.

"Uh-"

Meredith's eyes landed on Kate, and her smile faded. "Kate? What are you doing here?"

Kate lifted her brows, but before she could respond, Rick stepped in front of her.

"Um, she's here for dinner," he explained.

Meredith's gaze flicked to Kate's bare legs, and Kate was suddenly very aware that all she was wearing was Rick's flannel, mostly unbuttoned, and barely reaching her mid-thigh.

"Dinner, huh?" Meredith asked, the sarcasm obvious as she shifted her attention back to Rick. "I had no idea you two knew each other."

"Meredith," Rick interrupted, "not to be rude, but we actually are in the middle of eating. Why are you here?"

Meredith reached towards Rick again, but when he moved out of her way, she just shrugged. "I came up to check out Kate's bakery tomorrow. We talked about us investing in her, and I know there was some fire damage, so I wanted to see it for myself."

Rick turned his focus to Kate. "You're going to sell to Black Pawn?" he asked, incredulous.

Kate shifted her weight to her other foot. "Thinking about it. But, Meredith, that doesn't answer the question. Why are you here, at Rick's house?"

"Oh." Meredith stepped back up to Rick's side and looped her arm through his. "I decided to come up tonight so I could pay a visit to my husband."