Frankie and I went into the kitchen where he went wide-eyed. “Cap, this kitchen is amazing.”
“My ex was a professional chef and he set this all up when we did the renovation. It’s just sitting here not being used because I’m not a baker, by any means, thus my cupcake dilemma.”
He checked the pantry and made a list of what he needed. “I can’t get started until I have everything, so I’ll go to the store with Ripley and we’ll be right back.”
“Thank you so much, Frankie,” I said.
“I don’t mind at all. As a matter of fact, I’m excited to make something fun in such a great kitchen.”
He went to grab Ripley, and I took a deep calming breath. It was going to be okay. I knew the world wouldn’t have ended if Annie didn’t get her cupcakes, but she’d been let down so many times in her life, and I didn’t want to add to that. She was my sister June’s biological daughter, but she hadn’t been able to take care of her. I was in the process of adopting her with my sister’s consent. Annie had been living with my mother for the last two years, but it was time she had a forever home. I needed to be consistent and show her that she could count on me.
I went back to making coffee, and Frankie and Ripley went to the store.
Chapter 2
Frankie
“I hope I can get everything I need at the store here,” I said.
“Unless you need something really unusual, they probably have it. I haven’t found anything yet that they don’t have for the basic baking we do at home.”
“These shouldn’t require anything special, just normal stuff. I bet we'll be fine.”
I hadn’t been to the store here in River Gorge yet since Margo, the ranches house manager, did the grocery shopping, but I was pleasantly surprised. They had everything I needed. We loaded up the cart and headed to the check out. It took us longer than I expected it to because at least three people stopped Ripley to talk and ask about his goats, or to give him a message for Reed. He’d really found his place here, and I couldn’t be happier for him.
I knew exactly what I wanted to make. I’d made these for a birthday party at my old job and the kids had loved them. The only thing I would have to change was the color to turn them into Valentine’s treats. The store even had some decorating tips I could use. They weren’t like having my own here, but they would work.
Ripley dropped me back off at the coffee shop, and after making sure I didn’t need help, left me there. “You message me when you’re ready to come home and I’ll come get you.”
“Thanks, this should be fun. I love making kids cakes. You can get much more creative when you’re decorating for them. Adults worry too much about it being realistic.”
“I’m glad your getting a chance to bake for someone besides us,” Ripley said. “I know how much you enjoy it. I’ll talk to you later.”
Back in the coffee shop, the morning rush had died down and there was a lull in customers, so I grabbed Cap to let him pick what I should make. “I have an idea and I wanted to run it by you and see if it was okay.” I opened up the pictures on my phone and went to the folder where I stored my cake pictures. “I made these for a birthday party, but I could do them all in pink and red for Valentine’s day. If I do red hearts on the bottom for feet and for hearts on the antennae, we could call them love bugs.”
“Those are fantastic. You really made those?” he asked.
“I did. They’re actually really simple, but my concern is that they’re actually cake balls, not cupcakes. I can turn them into cupcakes if you want, they just won't be quite as cute.”
“Cupcakes, cake balls, I don’t think it matters. The kids are going to love those! Are these all cakes you’ve made?” he asked.
“Yeah, I’ve done some competition cakes, but mostly what I love is wedding cakes. Let me show you my favorite.” I flipped through the pictures and showed him the upside-down chandelier cake I made.
“That’s amazing. Can I look?”
“Sure.”
He spent the next minute or so flipping through my pictures and commenting on the cakes. “Seriously, these are stunning. Like I told you, my ex was a chef, but he could never make anything like that. He actually hated decorating cakes. I told him he was missing an opportunity because there’s no bakery here. People have to either get their cakes at the supermarket or drive into the city.” He handed me my phone and then asked, “Is there anything I can do to help?”
“Nope, I have everything I need. You do your coffee thing and let me get to work. We’ll make Annie some fabulous little love bugs.”
I spent the next hour working on the love bugs. They were really very simple, but they didn’t look like it. While my cake for the cake balls was in the oven, I made red and pink fondant and cut large hearts out for the feet and little hearts out for the antennae. I also made pink, red, and white frosting. By then, the cake was done. I crumbled it up and mixed in some of the white frosting. Then popped it in the freezer to cool. I dug around in the supply closet and found some leftover boxes. They had Cap’s Coffee logo on top and were the perfect size for my little bugs. I spread some parchment paper on the counter, got the cake out of the freezer, and began rolling it into balls. I was almost done when Cap stuck his head in the kitchen. “Hey, it’s time for lunch. Stacy is here to run the register, so I’m going to run and grab something. Can I get you anything?”
“I haven’t tried the tacos from the taco truck yet and hear it’s good. How about a couple of those?”
“Sure, do you want fries?”
“With my tacos?”
“Well, it’s the only food truck in town, so they get to do whatever they want.” Cap laughed.
“Okay, sure tacos and fries, why not? I’m not picky, I’ll eat pretty much anything. These little guys have to go back in the freezer before I can decorate them, so that’ll be a good time to take a break.”
“Great, be right back.”
Fries from a taco truck... Well, like he said, I guess if you’re the only game in town you can do it your way. I finished rolling the balls and slid them in the freezer just as he got back. I wiped off the counter so we would have a place to eat and he spread out the food.
“I got us both pulled pork tacos, and then one order of loaded nacho fries to split.”
I picked up one of the tacos and examined it. The spicy aroma of the food made my mouth water. I took a big bite and moaned. “Damn, this is the best taco I ever tasted.” It had well-seasoned meat with a spicy corn and black bean salsa on top.
“I know, I could eat there everyday it’s so good. So, what’s your plan, Frankie? How long are you staying in River Gorge?” he asked.
“That, my friend, is the big question. I have no idea. I’m torn, to be honest. I’m doubtful I’ll be able to get a good job back in the city. I have no doubt my former boss spun this whole mess to make me the bad guy, so there isn’t really anything for me there. I gave up my apartment when Ripley moved back here and was staying in his condo. But I can’t just live out at the ranch and do nothing long term, so I’ll have to move at some point. I’m going to try to stay closer, though. Ripley is my family.”