Free Already Home by Susan Mallery Page B

control her marriage had become.
    She returned to the oven and pulled open the door. The timer dinged just as she drew out the tray and set it on the waiting cooling rack.
    Across the room, Violet groaned. “What are those? They smell amazing.”
    â€œA brownie-cookie with a melted chocolate center.”
    â€œI’m going to gain weight working here, aren’t I?”
    â€œIf I’m doing my job right.”
    Violet grinned. “Tell me when they’re cooled. I want to taste one and make sure they’re okay. For marketing purposes.”
    Jenna laughed. “Thanks. We wouldn’t want to risk serving our customers anything that wasn’t good.”
    â€œExactly.”
    Jenna slipped the second batch into the oven and shut the door. Precisely two minutes after the cookies had come outof the oven, Jenna used a spatula to transfer them from the cookie sheet to a second cooling rack. She glanced at the clock. They were less than five minutes to the grand reopening.
    What if nobody came? What if all the changes didn’t make a difference? What if she failed?
    The swirling thoughts made her want to pound her head against the wall. Instead she forced herself to breathe slowly. Everything was going to be fine, she reminded herself. Her new plan was in place and it was based on making customers happy, rather than being everything she wanted the store to be. Even as she hovered, twenty dozen sugar cookies waited to be decorated for today’s class on decorating with spring flowers.
    The table by the register held fifty brightly colored lunch-size paper bags Violet had bought at the dollar store. Inside some were the nonperishable ingredients for the sugar cookies. The others held the same for the brownie-cookies. Recipe cards were attached. Everything was premeasured in sealed plastic bags. All that was required were eggs and butter.
    Next to the bags, stacks of mixing bowls, cookie sheets and cooling racks partially blocked printed schedules of the cooking classes for the next two weeks. Later in the week there would be a ribbon-cutting ceremony with members of the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce stopping by.
    They’d done what they could do, she reminded herself. What happened now was up to the good people of Georgetown.
    â€œIt’s time,” Violet said as she walked toward the door. “Oh.”
    â€œWhat?”
    â€œThere are people waiting outside. I hadn’t noticed.”
    People waiting, as in customers? Jenna walked toward the front. Sure enough, there were five or six women standing on the sidewalk. As soon as Violet unlocked the glass front doors, they walked in.
    Several of them held flyers or coupons in their hands. They looked around eagerly. A couple inhaled, then groaned.
    â€œWhat are you baking?” one older woman asked. “It smells wonderful.”
    Jenna smiled. “A brownie-cookie. I just pulled some out of the oven. Have a taste.”
    She handed out the samples.
    â€œDo you have the recipe?” another woman asked. “I came in for the sugar cookie class, but these are delicious.”
    â€œWe have recipe cards,” Jenna said, pointing to the front of the store even as she wondered if she recognized the woman. She might have been a retired teacher from her elementary school.
    â€œWe also have the ingredients ready if you want to buy those and make them at home yourself,” Jenna added. “You’ll need eggs and butter, but we’ve taken care of everything else.”
    Violet walked over with a few of the bags in her hand.
    â€œHow clever,” a customer said. “I want one of each.”
    â€œMe, too.”
    A third woman eyed Jenna. “That apron is adorable. Are you selling those?”
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    By six o’clock, Jenna’s feet hurt and her back ached. She also felt a weird stretching sensation in her face, which came from having spent the whole day smiling. It was all pain she could happily