Free The Bake-Off by Beth Kendrick Page B

asked.
    â€œSecret Sisterhood Szarlotka.” Linnie paused. “The secret being, the sisters can’t stand each other.”
    Amy let out a surprised bark of laughter. Linnie laughed, too, and for an instant she felt a spark of pride that she could still impress her sister.
    â€œSee that?” Grammy leaped up from the sofa to hug them both, her eyes going misty again. “You girls are going to be BFFs before this is all over. Mark my words.”

Chapter 5
    O n the morning she left for the Delicious Duet Dessert Championship, Amy woke up to the sensation of something cold and wet squishing against her ankle and the sound of the dog snuffling at the foot of the bed.
    She flung her arm over her eyes and groaned. “Did Mooch throw up?”
    â€œNo,” replied a little voice inches from her face.
    Amy’s eyes flew open as her nose brushed against her daughter’s.
    â€œHi, Mommy.” Chloe grinned and gave her a kiss on the lips.
    â€œHi, baby.” Amy struggled into a sitting position, wedging her elbows underneath her and squinting into the dark. “Did you throw up?”
    â€œUh-uh,” Chloe singsonged.
    â€œDid you take off your diaper?”
    â€œUh-uh.”
    Amy steeled herself as best she could. “Then what is down there on my foot?”
    â€œLovey.”
    Lovey was Chloe’s attachment object, a flat pink satin pillow in the shape of an elephant that she’d had in her crib since infancy. As Lovey grew older and stinkier and increasingly ragged, Chloe’s love for him only grew.
    â€œWhy is Lovey so wet?”
    â€œI sucked on him. I need my cup, Mama. I’m thirsty.”
    The poor girl must be on the verge of dehydration, if the sodden stuffed animal draped across Amy’s ankle was any indication. Chloe had always been a champion drooler.
    Amy heard Ben pipe up on Brandon’s side of the bed. “I’m hungry.”
    â€œSo tired,” Brandon mumbled. “Five more minutes.”
    â€œGet up, Daddy! I want Cheerios.”
    Brandon burrowed his head into the pillow and lifted up the blanket. “Climb in, buddy.”
    Both children clambered up and made themselves comfy in the valley of duvet between Brandon and Amy. Mooch took this as his invitation to hop up, as well.
    â€œOne big happy family.” Amy let out an oof as the dog plopped down on her stomach.
    â€œFive more minutes,” Brandon croaked. “Please. They can take my car keys and my wallet. I just need five more minutes.”
    â€œYou better get to stepping—you have to fit a temporary crown at seven thirty,” Amy reminded him. “And then—Aigh!” She yelped as Ben pressed his icy toes into the backs of her knees. “What happened to your socks?”
    Instead of answering her, Ben grabbed his sister’s hand and started jumping on the bed. Both children shrieked with laughter, the dog barked, and amid the ruckus, the alarm clock started beeping.
    Amy and Brandon looked at each other and laughed.
    â€œWhy do we bother setting this thing?” Brandon asked as he turned off the alarm. “We haven’t made it past five thirty in two and a half years.”
    â€œBut someday ,” Amy said in a hushed, reverent tone. “Someday we might oversleep, and when that day comes, we’ll be ready.” She rolled out of bed, pulled a thick flannel robe over her oversize T-shirt, and launched into a groggy rendition of Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believing.”
    â€œUh-huh. Right after we finish grooming our unicorn and pruning our money tree in the backyard.”
    Amy switched on the light and noticed a flurry of dust motes swirling above the comforter. The kids’ bouncing had stirred up every allergen in the bedclothes. “Any chance there’s a live-in housekeeper out there with the unicorn and the money tree?”
    Brandon winced as he stubbed his bare toe on the corner of one of the