Page 16 of Cakewalk

“What’s a cider donut?”

“Only the best fall tradition ever,” he replied. Turning to the girl behind the counter, he ordered them both a couple of donuts and a cup of hot cider. He handed Gigi hers and waited as she took her first bite of the cinnamon- and sugarcoated goodness.

“Holy cow, this is yummy!” she said, almost jumping up and down as they exited the tent. She looked so cute, with the pastry in one hand and a to-go cup in the other, cinnamon and sugar smeared across her pretty pink lips. Holden told himself he needed to stop staring. If he didn’t, he was likely to lean in and kiss the mess right off her. “I wish I could make something this good.”

“I bet you could. I’ve never actually made them myself, but my mom and Aunt Viv used to do it every fall, and I don’t remember it being an overly involved process.”

“Holden, that’s very kind of you to say, but you’ve experienced my baked goods,” she said, her sweet southern voice sounding defeated. The ache Holden felt earlier returned, and he longed to be able to fix this. He had no idea why—no one had made him feel like this since Hannah.

“I have…experienced them, as you put it,” he said, nodding his head in the direction of the other end of the festival, indicating which way to turn. “And those scones were not the worst thing I have ever put in my mouth.”

Gigi looked at him with wide eyes, a slightly embarrassed look on her face. He could see a little bit of a blush spreading across her cheeks as she fought back a little giggle at his words.

“Okay, that came out dirtier than I intended,” he said, trying to recover. “I just meant that I spent years in London, and the Brits aren’t known for their food.”

“Nice recovery,” she retorted, still holding in a giggle.

They walked side by side, embracing a companionable silence, arms lightly brushing every couple of steps. Each time they made contact, Holden felt a zing rush through him, even with the layers of clothing separating them. His first reaction had been to pull away, to ever so slightly direct his steps to the right so that there were more than a few centimeters between them. But he couldn’t bring himself to do it. He liked the feel of her so close to him. Her presence was oddly comforting—like when you’ve been outside for so long that you don’t realize how cold you’ve gotten until you’re back inside by the fire. Gigi was that fire, and he was drawn to her like a moth to a flame.

“Oh, look!” she said, pointing to a booth with a bunch of oddly-shaped little jars. She grabbed his hand and pulled him over to it. Her fingers were a bit cold from the fall air, but the feel of her hand in his sent a heatwave through his body. When they reached the booth and she let go of him, he missed the touch almost instantly, making him wonder what he needed to do to get her to hold it again.

The banner loosely draped on the front of the table read “Hunnie’s Honey.” The table itself was covered in all sorts of jars filled with the amber substance, each jar looking a little different from the last. Holden picked up one that looked like it had a twig in it, trying to figure out exactly what was inside there.

“Hi there!” a brunette said, approaching them. She looked to be about thirty and was every inch the Vermont hippie, with her hair in two braids, well-worn jeans, a flannel shirt, and Birkenstocks. “I’m Hunnie! Welcome to Hunnie’s Honey!”

“Hi!” Gigi said, showing off a bright smile that Holden hadn’t seen yet. “This is so cool. Do you make all this?”

“I do! My family’s run a honey farm for more generations than I can count, and this is just my spin on it!”

“Is that a twig in there?” Holden asked, holding up the little jar that looked like an upside down V. He didn’t want to sound too skeptical. They were here to show Gigi that anyone could learn to make something new, and this little hippie might just be his golden ticket.

“It’s rosemary,” she told him. “You can infuse honey with pretty much anything, and getting creative with it is half the fun.”

“These all sound yummy,” Gigi said, that illuminating smile still spread across her face. It lit her up in all new ways, and damn, was she pretty. If he’d thought there was something pulling him toward her before when she was sullen, now seeing her like that, there was no denying it. His own desire stirred deep within him, and if it wasn’t for a bit of unease at feeling such a thing, he’d be having a much harder time resisting the urge to hold her. “Do you have a favorite?”

“That’s a toughie…but right now I’d say the elderberry,” Hunnie told her.

“I wish I could do something this creative,” Gigi lamented, letting the smile fall from her face. “I’m kind of a disaster in the kitchen.”

Holden opened his mouth to comment, but Hunnie beat him to it.

“Oh please, you totally could do it!” Hunnie responded. “I’m not saying it’s without a learning curve, but there’s no reason you couldn’t figure it out.”

“That’s so sweet of you to say, but I’ve recently tried to take up baking, and it’s not going very well. I mixed up a couple of ingredients this morning and about made everyone choke,” Gigi told her, a strangled little laugh at the end.

“Baking is hard. I once mixed up the salt and sugar, and boy, were we all in for a rude surprise on that first bite!”

“I mixed up the baking powder and the baking soda.”

“I’ve done that too!”

A feeling of relief washed over Holden as he watched the exchange between Gigi and Hunnie. He tried to hide his smile as he listened to this complete stranger tell her all about how she had made the exact mistake Gigi had this morning, and how her family now laughs about it. A sense of hope filled him, wanting to make sure that Gigi heard every word that Hunnie was telling her. When the idea came to him that talking with some of the vendors here about their process might help Gigi find some inspiration, he’d never thought that the first vendor they came upon would be this helpful. Had he known what a gold mine Hunnie’s Honey was going to be, they would have made a beeline for here and gotten donuts later.

“Really?” Gigi asked.

“Yes!” Hunnie exclaimed.

Jackpot…