Sweet Dreams (The Bakery Romance Series Book 3) (12 page)

She glanced over at him, noticing the way his dark suit fit his broad shoulders. Misty still found herself questioning the giddy feelings that rushed through her whenever she saw Sterling. The last thing she needed right now was to spend more time with him – what if her feelings continued to blossom? Still feeling uneasy, she placed her name as a volunteer for Wednesday nights. Once that was done, she stepped away from the table, giving Sterling her full attention. “Look, you don’t need to keep an eye on me. I can take care of myself.” Irritation seeped into her soul. Didn’t he realize that she wasn’t a naïve woman and could take care of herself?

“Do you really think you can take care of yourself? Misty, I care about you, haven’t you realized that yet?” The determination in his voice made her wary. She glanced into his handsome face, noticing the warmth in his eyes. Good grief, this man really did care about her and she wasn’t sure if that was a good thing. He didn’t know everything about her past, and she wondered how he would feel if he knew about all of the dark parts of her life. “I can pick you up on Wednesday evening and drive you over to the soup kitchen.”

She shook her head. “No, I’m driving over there by myself.”

He dropped her arm, turned away before looking at her again. His mouth set in a firm line, his large hands balled into tight fists. “Why are you being so difficult?” He gritted the words out, before glancing at Jennifer, who continued to gaze at them from the nursery, smiling widely. “How much help do you think you’d be to Jennifer if some fool cracked your head against the window like he did to Rachel? She had to stay home from work for a few days because she was dizzy and she was scared. Do you really want your daughter to see you like that?”

Misty’s heart slammed into her chest. Sterling’s anger rattled her, plus, he had a valid point. Sighing, she turned away, shame filling her soul. Tears rushed to her eyes again before she blinked them away. He opened his mouth, about to speak, before Misty voiced her thoughts. “I need to go and get Jennifer.”

She rushed away, and while she was signing Jennifer out of the nursery, she noticed him having a conversation with Adrian. She got Jennifer and walked over to fetch Adrian.

Throngs of people continued to walk to the exit when the strong, distinctive scent of heavy floral perfume curled into Misty’s nose. She sniffed, turning to find Latisha coming behind her. She rushed around Misty and grabbed Sterling’s arm. “I heard what happened at the soup kitchen. Are you okay?”

Misty studied Sterling’s worried expression. His lips tensed as he pulled out of Latisha’s grasp. “I’m fine. I’m glad you were gone when that happened.”

Latisha raised her arched eyebrows, her red-painted lips smiling. “Oh, you were worried about something happening to me?”

Latisha’s loud perfume was starting to get on Misty’s nerves. She turned toward Latisha. “Hi, I’m Misty.” The woman turned toward her, frowning. “We met at service a couple of weeks ago,” Misty reminded her.

Latisha barely looked at Misty. “Hi,” she mumbled, all her friendly enthusiasm draining like a popped balloon.

Undeterred, Misty tried again. “I was worried about what happened last Wednesday, too. Since they’re short on volunteers, I decided to volunteer on Wednesdays.”

Latisha’s mouth dropped so wide open that Misty could see the stud pierced into the girl’s tongue.

For some reason, Misty wanted to put the girl at ease. Her short skirt and heavy makeup did little to endear her to the church members. She sensed she was only volunteering for the soup kitchen to get close to Sterling, and she wished there was some way she could connect to Latisha. She gestured to Jennifer. “Do you like kids?”

Latisha glanced at Sterling, but, he was already in deep conversation with Adrian again. What in the world were they talking about?

“This is my daughter Jennifer. Jennifer, this is Latisha.”

Latisha smiled as if the effort hurt her mouth. “Hi.” She barely looked at Jennifer, her eyes again focusing on Sterling.

Misty decided she’d tried to endear Latisha enough for one day. “Well, I guess I’ll see you on Wednesday at the soup kitchen,” said Misty. Latisha mumbled something before hurrying away.

Sterling was still in deep conversation with Adrian. Misty approached and took Adrian’s elbow, interrupting their conversation. Sterling grabbed Misty’s arm. “Hey, I still needed to talk to you.”

“Why?”

He sighed, taking her fingers into his. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

Misty nodded. “I’m fine.”

“You were crying—”

“I’m fine. I think Adrian and Jennifer are ready to go now. I know Jennifer is going to want lunch soon.”

He blew air through his lips, dropped his hand from her shoulder and looked away. Misty wondered if his feelings were hurt because she wouldn’t confide in him. “I’m okay. Really.”

“Okay. I’ll talk to you later then.”

As Adrian, Misty and Jennifer walked toward the exit, Misty wondered why Sterling looked so worried.

Chapter 17

When Sterling arrived home from church, he quickly removed his tie, threw it into his closet, angry. What was Misty’s problem? She insisted upon volunteering at the soup kitchen in that bad neighborhood but then refused his help to escort her over there. He dressed into his battered-looking house clothes, turned the TV onto the ball game, still upset about Misty’s attitude. What was wrong with that woman?

Hearing a motor, he glanced outside and saw her arrive home from church. Adrian walked into the house unescorted while Misty unstrapped Jennifer from her car seat. Her petite figure looked nice in the orange dress she’d worn that day. Her smooth skin reminded him of the color of dark chocolate he used to bake his cakes. Her brown eyes sparkled with warmth. He blinked, still staring. His heart skipped when she looked over at his house and caught him spying on her through his window. Jennifer saw him and waved and he focused on the child, waving at her until Misty made her go into the house.

He turned away from the window, still wondering about what was going on in Misty’s mind. Anxious, he worked off his energy by kneading dough. Once he’d covered the dough to rise, he turned on the burner. He dumped the ingredients for the filling he’d be using for his lemon tarts in to the small pot. If his plan worked, he would know more about what was bothering Misty by the end of the day.

*

Smiling, Misty rinsed the dinner dishes. The pot roast and vegetables that Adrian had prepared in the slow cooker had been excellent! Adrian rounded out the meal with mashed potatoes and gravy and a sweet tangy pitcher of lemonade. Jennifer ate two helpings of the meal, and Misty enjoyed how her daughter continued to thrive over the last week. Once she’d placed the last dish into the dishwasher, a knock sounded at the door. Wiping her hands on a dish towel, she wondered who’d be visiting them on a Sunday night.

She opened the door to Sterling Richards. He sported a pair of denim shorts and leather sandals. She eyed his muscular calves as he stepped into the house. “Hi, Misty.”

“Hi, Sterling. Are you here to see Adrian?”

He shook his head. “I’m here to see you.” He jingled his keys, glanced around the spotless house. “Did Adrian talk to you?”

Misty frowned and closed the door. “No.”

Adrian appeared in the living room, holding Jennifer’s hand. “Hi, Sterling. I didn’t tell Misty about your plans. I thought you could do that.”

“Hi!” Jennifer rushed over to Sterling, her voice filled with excitement. Sterling scooped up Misty’s daughter, planting a kiss on her cheek.

“Hey, cutie.” He touched her braided hair before setting her back on the floor.

“Come here, Jennifer.” Adrian spoke from across the room. Jennifer walked over to Adrian. “Let’s go into your bedroom so that I can read to you. I got some new books that I wanted to show you then we can watch a movie.”

“What plans is he talking about Adrian?” Before Adrian could leave the room, Misty couldn’t resist asking her question.

Sterling rushed to explain. “You just finished dinner, right?”

Misty nodded.

“Well, I wanted to take you out for some dessert.”

Misty shook her head, already not liking his idea. “I don’t want any dessert. Besides, Jennifer’s had enough sweets today and I don’t want to give her any dessert right now.”

He took her hand while Adrian and Jennifer exited the room. “I spoke with Adrian after church and she said she’d babysit Jennifer while you and I went out, so Jennifer’s not coming with us. I wanted to spend some time with you alone.”

She jerked her hand away. “I don’t think that’s a good idea, plus, like I said, I don’t want any dessert.”

He turned away from her, sighed, shoved his hands into the pockets of his shorts. “Do you really dislike me that much?”

No, I like you too much and that’s a big problem.

She wasn’t sure what to say. She certainly couldn’t tell him that her heart skipped every time she saw him. She didn’t want to tell him that whenever she saw him interacting with Jennifer, she couldn’t help but compare him to Nate, knowing that Sterling could provide for her daughter in a way that Nate probably never would.

She approached him, touched his back. She hated that she’d made him upset when all he’d done was be nice to her since she’d arrived in Miami. “I’m sorry, Sterling. I don’t dislike you, and I want you to know that I appreciate all that you’ve done to help me since I moved in with Adrian.”

He faced her and she stepped back, caught off-guard by the determined glint in his wonderful brown eyes. “Why don’t you want to come and have dessert with me? I like you, Misty, and I want to know more about you.”

“I’m not sure if knowing more about me is a good idea.”

He scratched the back of his head, a puzzled frown forming on his handsome features. “Why do you say that?”

Her past swam before her eyes, things about her life that Sterling wouldn’t like to hear. “It’s just…well, it’s complicated.”

“I’ll bet everybody would say their life is complicated. Does anybody really have an easy life with no problems?” She wasn’t sure what to say about that. “Let’s go.” He checked his watch. “I’ll probably have you back before Jennifer goes to bed. We won’t be gone for long.”

“Well…” she chewed her lower lip, thinking. It would probably be a good idea to go out with him this once. Once he got to know her better, his attraction would fizzle like the bubbles in a flat soda. “Okay, I’ll go.” It was the least she could do since he’d been so kind to her. “Just give me a minute so that I can change.”

She walked toward her bedroom. As she passed Jennifer’s room, she heard Adrian’s clear voice, reading to Jennifer from a special Braille Dr. Seuss book. As Jennifer became more comfortable around Adrian, Misty had thought of activities for them to do together since Adrian had insisted on helping Misty care for Jennifer. Misty had found a company on the internet that provided books that were in Braille and print. Misty had been excited to see Jennifer’s new books arrive. She’d seen that the Braille bumps covered the pages on a special clear, tape-like material, allowing both the blind and sighted reader to read the book at the same time. Jennifer giggled at the story, and Misty figured her daughter would soon be reading books on her own.

She entered her bedroom, in a rush to find something to wear since she didn’t want to keep Sterling waiting. She found her white cropped pants in the back of her closet. These would look perfect with her new peach-colored sleeveless top. She dug in her closet and found her white sandals. After she dressed, she slipped the sandals on her feet, pleased that she’d painted her toenails that morning. Before she joined Sterling, she entered Jennifer’s room, closing the door behind her. “I’m leaving. We won’t be gone long.”

Jennifer walked over to Misty, giving her a hug. “Bye, Mommy.”

“Bye, Sweetie.” She kissed her daughter’s chubby cheek.

“I hope you have a good time.” Adrian said with a smile.

Misty looked at her cousin. “Oh, we’ll have a talk about this later. Sterling told me you knew about this.”

Adrian flicked her wrist in the air, as if shooing Misty away. “Just go. I’m sure you’ll have a good time.”

She entered the living room and Sterling’s full lips broke into a wide smile when he spotted her. “Misty, you look nice.”

“Thanks.”

They left the house and walked to his car. He unlocked the doors and opened her car door for her. She entered the vehicle, still trying to calm her racing nerves. Was she really making a mistake by going out with Sterling?
Lord, what have I gotten myself into? I’m attracted to this man, but, something’s telling me that a relationship would not work between us.

Chapter 18

Sterling placed his key into the ignition and started his car. As he pulled into the street, he resisted the urge to turn on his jazz music. He wanted Misty to talk to him and he figured having the music blasting wouldn’t encourage conversation. “So, what’d you do after church today?” He enjoyed the pleasing lilt of her lovely voice while he drove through the city of Miami. Palm trees danced in the evening breeze as he whizzed by tall buildings and people strolling down the street. While she spoke, he realized she told everything that both Adrian and Jennifer had done after church. She chuckled when she told of one of Jennifer’s antics, and he glanced at her when he stopped at a light, noting that she seemed at ease. Maybe once he got her to the ice cream parlor, she’d be more likely to answer the questions that had been burning in his brain since church.

He pulled into a parking space down the street from The Miami Creamery. They got out of the car and as they strolled toward the place, he took her hand. She looked down at their clasped fingers. He held his breath, wondering if she would object. He breathed with relief when she didn’t pull her hand away. He opened the door to the brightly-lit, crowded room. A bright red juke-box sat in the corner, crooning music from the seventies. The tables were littered with people. He spotted one table in the corner that was unoccupied. “Misty, do me a favor and grab that table for us. I’ll get the ice cream.”

“Okay. But I’ll need to let you know what kind of ice cream I want.” Her dark eyes twinkled and he touched her face. “Trust me. I already know what to get for you. Go ahead and get the booth before somebody else gets it.” She rushed over to the empty booth and he stood in the line to get their ice cream.

He headed to their booth several minutes later, holding his banana split and her mega-sundae made with cookie-dough ice cream. Seeing her sundae, she beamed, and a small dimple appeared in her cheek. “How’d you know cookie-dough was my favorite?” She dipped her spoon into the concoction that was coated with caramel syrup and nuts. With her small frame, he doubted she’d finish the gigantic sundae, but he wanted to be sure she had enough ice cream to last for a while. He planned on sitting at this table with her for a long time – until he found the answers to the questions that continued to burn in his brain. She slipped the ice cream into her mouth, closing her eyes and moaning, grinning playfully. “This is the best sundae I’ve ever had! You haven’t answered me. How’d you know this was my favorite flavor?”

He hadn’t answered because he’d been staring at her, mesmerized, for the last few minutes. He still thought it a miracle that she’d agreed to come with him to get ice cream. He slipped his spoon into his banana split. “When I was talking to Adrian after church, I told her about my idea and she mentioned that you loved cookie-dough ice cream.” Actually, he’d asked Adrian if she could keep Jennifer if he took Misty out to dinner tonight. Adrian had wisely advised that Misty might be more apt to accept his invite if it were something less formal than dinner. He’d wanted to take her to a fancy restaurant and Adrian had said it’d be best to start with ice cream and then see how things went from there.

The music continued to blare in the background as the sound of voices in the crowded creamery surrounded them. This wasn’t the most romantic of places, but, due to Adrian’s advice, Sterling now realized that if they were in a romantic place Misty would probably be less likely to open up to him. She tapped her foot to the rhythm of the music, humming while enjoying her ice cream. She stopped eating, eyed his full bowl. “Aren’t you going to eat your banana split?”

He glanced at his puddle of vanilla ice cream, bananas, nuts and cherries. He shoved a bite into his mouth, barely paying attention to the swirl of vanilla and bananas on his tongue, still wondering how to get Misty to talk to him about what had been bothering her earlier. He finally thought of something to say. “So, are things going pretty well at your job?”

She nodded, continued to eat her treat. “Yes, things have been going great. I’ve been really busy.” She continued to speak about her boss Carmen, and different things she had to do with contracts and making appointments. “I really like my job and Carmen even encouraged me to continue my education.”

He enjoyed another bite of ice cream. “Are you planning on going back to school?”

She shrugged. “I don’t know. I have my associate’s degree, but, I think getting my bachelor’s may be what I need to do.” She shook her head. “I’m living with Adrian right now and she doesn’t charge me much for rent. Plus I have Jennifer. I guess since I’m raising my child by myself, and I’ll want my own home someday, then, it’d probably be best if I had my bachelor’s degree so that I can make more money on the job.”

“When you were getting your associate’s why did you stop? Why didn’t you just continue to get your bachelor’s?”

She sighed. “I got pregnant and had Jennifer, plus, Nate…” She shook her head, dropped her spoon, and the utensil clinked into the empty bowl. Shocked, Sterling couldn’t believe that she’d finished the entire sundae. Goodness, this woman could eat a lot of ice cream at one time!

He gestured toward her empty bowl. “Did you want more ice cream?”

She shook her head, patted her stomach. “No, I’m stuffed, but eating all that ice cream made me thirsty.”

“Would you like a soda?”

She shook her head. “No thanks.” She stood. “I’ll just go and get a glass of water.”

He dropped his spoon into his half-full bowl. “I’ll go get it.”

“That’s okay. You’re not done eating.”

There was no way that he was letting her get her own drink while out on a date with him. “I don’t mind getting it.”

“But—”

He took her small hand, squeezed her slim fingers. “Let me go, okay. I’ll be right back.” He went up to the counter, purchased a large bottle of water, and returned to the table. He still wasn’t done talking to her and there was no way he was leaving yet. He plopped the bottle onto the table. “Now, you were telling me something about Nate.”

She unscrewed the top off of the bottle and guzzled the liquid. It took her a few minutes before she responded. “When I enrolled in the community college, Nate didn’t like it.”

He frowned. “How come?”

“He was always making snide comments about my books, my schooling...” she shook her head. “He even accused me of dating people that were in my classes.” She stared at her water bottle, as if lost in thought. “My educating myself really took a toll on our relationship. We argued more. Just thinking about it makes me tired.”

“So, Nate didn’t go to college?”

Misty shook her head. “He dropped out of high school and hasn’t been in a classroom since.” She shuddered. “I just want Jennifer to know that it’s good to educate yourself and I don’t want Nate giving her negative ideas about going to school.”

Sterling nodded. “I can understand that. I’d imagine Nate was probably jealous and felt threatened that you were trying to make a better life for yourself.”

She shrugged. “I suppose. It’s hard to know what’s going on in Nate’s mind.”

Sterling figured there was hardly anything worthy going on in Nate’s brain, but, he kept his thoughts to himself. He didn’t feel like talking about Nate anymore, so, he changed the subject. “I was surprised when you volunteered to work in the soup kitchen since it’s in a dangerous area and all.”

She shrugged her slender shoulders. Taking a straw from the nearby dispenser, she un-wrapped it and rolled it between her fingers, as if releasing nervous energy. He realized she probably didn’t want to talk about her reasons for volunteering. “What did you mean when you told Adrian that she knew why you had to volunteer?” He knew he was probably being too nosy right now, but, it proved unsettling to see Misty crying after church. If there was anything he could do to make her feel better, then he’d do it. But, he knew he couldn’t do anything until he knew what was wrong.

“I don’t want to talk about it.” Her mouth hardened into a frown and he realized his nosy question had changed the mood of their date. He took one of her hands into his, removing the straw from her slim fingers.

He softened his voice and continued to hold her hand. “Misty, you were upset this morning and I just want to make you feel better.”

“But—”

“Don’t interrupt me. Just hear me out.”

She tried to pull her hand away, so he released her from his grip. “You don’t like it when I hold your hand?” he asked quietly.

She looked away, focusing on a group of teenagers occupying a nearby booth. One of the youths bellowed with laughter, and Misty looked as if she wanted to say something about the youths, but she remained silent. She finally answered his question. “I…I don’t mind your holding my hand, but…”

“But what?”

“I just don’t think that this is the right time for me to be interested in somebody.”

He smiled. “So, you admit that you are interested in me?”

She folded her arms in front of her. “I didn’t say I was interested.”

“Calm down, Misty.” She unfolded her arms and he took her hand again. He mentally sighed with relief when she didn’t pull away. “I’d like to be more than just your friend.”

She glanced at their clasped hands, a dubious expression lining her pretty features. She didn’t say anything, so, he continued to speak. “You must know that I care about you. I’ve met your mother. I’ve visited your home. I’ve helped you when you were sick.”

She shook her head. “I only accepted your help to drive to my mom’s house because Adrian insisted. I could’ve driven home myself that day.” Her voice had taken a steely edge.

He dropped her hand, still trying to figure her out. “What is it with you?”

“What do you mean?”

“You don’t like it when I help you. Is it just me, or, do you refuse the help of others too?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“You don’t like me to help you. Why?”

“I don’t need help.”

He sighed, glancing at his puddle of melted ice cream. Maybe this whole trip to the creamery had been a bad idea. He closed his eyes, frustrated.
Lord, I have no idea what to say to this difficult, stubborn woman. Am I wasting my time?
Suddenly, a memory swept through his mind. He recalled his father showing him how to bake bread. He’d only been around eight at the time, and his father had shown him how they’d needed to let the bread rest and rise. His dad had covered the large glass bowl with a towel and Sterling had not wanted to wait for the dough to rise. He kept lifting the towel every minute, and his father had said he was too impatient to wait for the bread to rise. “You’re such an impatient boy,” his father had commented with a chuckle. His patience had always been practically non-existent. He’d hated waiting for things to happen and had wanted to make things happen on his own. He’d recalled asking his dad if there was anything that they could do to make the bread rise quicker.

The answer came to his mind. He was rushing Misty. She was working full-time, helping Adrian when she could, raising her daughter alone, plus, she had knuckle-headed Nate trying to reconcile with her. Was she used to helping others, while not receiving any help of her own? Was this a foreign concept that was hard for her to handle?

He didn’t attempt to take her hand again, but, he decided that he did need to speak. “Look, we’re neighbors, and I’m Adrian’s friend and I’m glad that I’m your friend, too. I care about my friends and I just wanted to make sure you were okay earlier today. If you don’t want to tell me what was wrong, then I understand. I won’t ask you about it again unless you’d like to talk about it.” He stood, figuring it was time to take her home before she missed Jennifer’s bed time. “Come on, I guess we’d better be heading back.”

“Wait.” She pointed to his recently-vacated chair. “Sit back down.”

He returned to his chair, giving her his undivided attention.

“Adrian’s always on my case about being stubborn, so, well, I guess it just takes a little getting used to,” she explained.

“Okay.” He wasn’t sure if there was anything else he could say about that.

She took a deep breath. “Look, I was upset at church because when they were talking about the soup kitchen and needing volunteers for the ministry, I just knew I had to do it. I know what it’s like to be hungry and have nothing to eat.” Her voice softened. “When I was five, me and my sisters were separated and placed into foster care.”

“Misty, that’s awful.” He thought about her mother living in the run-down neighborhood. She appeared to love her children, which prompted his next question. “What happened?”

“My mother…she had a drug habit when she was much younger. The authorities found me and my sisters at home unsupervised. We hadn’t had anything to eat in two days, so they placed us in foster care. The foster home that I was in…well, they didn’t always feed us enough. I remember being hungry a lot and the foster mother locked the refrigerator so that we couldn’t get into it to get food. I used to love going to school because since I was a foster child, I got a free meal for breakfast and lunch through the school system.” His heart softened when a tear rushed down her cheek. She swiped it away, staring at the napkin dispenser on the table. “Even before my mother was arrested, she often took us to the soup kitchen to get a meal. I’ve served in a few soup kitchens in Lehigh Acres, so, it’d just be natural for me to want to volunteer here.”