***
Rachel turned off the timer and pulled another batch of shortbread out of the oven. She’d been making all kinds of cookies for the first drama club program of the new year. Not that it was exactly the new year. Christmas day had officially ended nine hours ago and she’d been baking for the last three of them.
She looked around the kitchen at the cookies. Most of the baking would end up in zip-lock bags, stacked in the commercial freezer that Tess used, ready to be taken out in the second week of January.
She’d been baking because she had a lot of things to think about, things that required careful consideration and an open mind. Instead of going for a long walk, a horse ride, or a swim, she preferred to bake. It cleared her mind, filled her tummy, and if she was lucky, helped her come up with a solution to her problem.
But so far, after three hours of sifting flour, creaming butter, and rolling out cookie dough, she still hadn’t come up with any answers to her six-foot-two problem.
John had left Tess and Logan’s home before sunrise. He’d wanted to be home before Bella woke up, which made perfect sense to Rachel. She could understand him wanting to keep their personal lives separate to their professional relationship, she really could. But she wasn’t Bella’s teacher anymore, and she most definitely didn’t want to feel like a billionaire’s dirty little secret.
She had standards. Standards that she’d conveniently pushed to one side last night. She didn’t regret what had happened. John was an amazing man, but he wasn’t her amazing man.
“What did you expect?” she muttered to herself. “A pledge of allegiance, a proclamation of his utter devotion, a promise of something more than friendship?” She would have taken any and all of those options. But John Fletcher had tiptoed out of her bedroom like a thief in the night, hightailing it back to his own home before he was caught with his pants around his ankles.
A loud bang came from the front yard. She jumped and nearly dropped a baking sheet on the floor.
Tanner was supposed to call her if someone came up the driveway. She looked at the clock on the wall. It wasn’t like him to break protocol.
Rachel frowned. She was even beginning to sound like John. With a curse, she left the baking sheet on the counter and grabbed her cell phone and a sharp knife. She hit speed dial and waited for Tanner to answer.
“Sorry, Rachel. I’ve been speaking with John and wasn’t able to call you. Tess and Logan are home.”
The front door flew open and Tess yelled, “Surprise!”
Rachel dropped the knife and headed into the living room. She was so glad to see her friend that she nearly burst into tears. “You’re home early.”
Tess’ smile disappeared. “What’s wrong?”
“Something smells great,” Logan looked between his wife and Rachel. “I’ll get our bags out of the car.”
“Then go and see Dylan,” Tess said without looking at him. “He’s been texting you all morning.” She wrapped her arm around Rachel and led her into the kitchen. “You’ve been baking?”
Rachel sniffed back her misery. “It’s for the drama club. I bought all of the ingredients from Safeway, so you’ve still got plenty of food in the pantry.”
Tess waved away her shopping efforts. “I’m not worried about that. You only bake this much when you’ve got things on your mind. Did something happen to John or Bella while we were away?”
Rachel shook her head. “They’re fine.”
“How are your parents? I know how hard Christmas lunch must have been. Did they have another argument?”
“No more than usual. Dad cut the turkey the wrong way. Mom made too much noise when we were washing the dishes. I didn’t stay long.” Rachel’s parents were always arguing. It was a running joke in her extended family that one of them would have to die before the bickering stopped. She’d moved out of home early to get away from the constant stress of not knowing what would set them off. Each time she went home, it got harder to return.
“So what is it?”
Rachel picked up a peanut butter cookie and bit into it. “I slept with John.”
Tess stared at her. “What?”
“I slept with John and I don’t know how he feels about us. About me.”
“How do you feel about him?”
She left her cookie on the counter and sat down. “He’s the most amazing man I’ve ever met.”
Tess sat beside her. “Have you asked him how he feels?”
“Not yet. I’m worried about what he’ll say.”
“You think he was using you?”
“No. He wouldn’t do that.” She glanced at Tess. “I have a confession to make, but before I tell you, I want you to know that we respected your property.”
“You slept with him? Here?”
“I’m sorry. We didn’t plan it. He brought around a present that Bella had made for me and it just sort of happened. It was spontaneous, and wonderful, and he left without telling me how he felt.” She pulled some tissues out of a box. “What am I going to do?”
Tess looked around the kitchen. “The first thing we’re going to do is tidy up in here. And then you’re going to talk to him.”
Rachel blew her nose and straightened her spine. “Okay. I can do that.”
“Good for you.”
“You’re not angry with me?”
Tess smiled. “I could never be angry with you. You’re my friend. You’ve got me out of more than one tricky situation before. John would be a fool not to fall head over heels in love with you.”
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” Tess picked up a bowl and walked across to the sink.
By the time they’d finished stacking the dishwasher, Rachel felt a whole lot better. John wouldn’t have slept with her unless he cared about her.
All she had to do was work out how much he cared, and then she’d be happy.