The car backfired, as if to say no way in hell.
Damn it. She’d been trying to be herself, trying to live her life on her terms. Instead, she’d nearly lost her dream job, she’d embarrassed herself and her sister on live TV, and she could only imagine what Dalton was going to say when she finally talked to him.
Tre might think it was time to put the Talbots dresses to rest once and for all, but all of a sudden Harmony wasn’t so sure. Things sure as hell went smoother when she was pretending to be someone else.
* * *
Chapter 20
* * *
Two days later, Harmony was ready to quit everything and join a cult. In a cult, she wouldn’t have to think about anything. She’d just mindlessly take orders from some guy on a power trip. How hard could that be?
Now that she thought about it, it would probably be really freaking hard. She’d have to take orders from a man, and that really went against everything she believed in. Plus, all the cult members she’d ever seen on TV wore really bad shoes, and there was no way in hell she was giving up her Louboutins.
Were there any female cult leaders? She figured they’d be more understanding of her little shoe obsession. Then again, cult leader didn’t seem like a job that a woman would want. After all, womankind didn’t need to twist the truth or use the Bible to brainwash men—all it took was a bikini wax and some spiked heels.
She put the finishing touches on some creole cream cheese tarts. For the next few days, she was trying out new recipes and watching back seasons of Food Network Star. Being in front of the camera was more about personality than cooking. Yes, she needed to know how to bake, but she also needed to know how to schmooze the audience.
The front door opened, and she heard the now familiar footsteps followed by rumbling that heralded the arrival of Tre and his rolling suitcase. His apartment was being renovated, so he was staying with them for a while. Plus, he was helping get Harmony ready for her one and only shot at TV fame. Which she really hoped was going to be better than the last day of TV infamy had been. There was nothing quite like logging onto Twitter only to realize that her vagina was trending …
Surprisingly, Dalton had taken it pretty well, but she kept waiting for the other shoe to drop. And she still hadn’t told him she loved him. Then again, he hadn’t said anything about his feelings for her either, except that one time. A girl was only prepared to suffer so many tragedies in the space of two days before she lost her mind completely.
Her phone rang. She checked the screen. She couldn’t help the smile. “I was just thinking about you.”
“I’m always thinking about you.” Dalton shuffled some papers on the other end. “Sorry about tonight. I’m swamped. The contractor just informed me that his head electrician just quit, which somehow translates to more work for me. The hotel rooms aren’t ready, so now I need to find a place for a hundred and fifty-two people to stay.” He shuffled more papers. “Sorry, I don’t mean to dump on you.”
“Poor baby. You can dump on me anytime.” She missed him. It had been all of one day, but she still missed him. “Too bad you’re so busy. I have some really effective relaxation techniques. They involved whipped cream and my tongue.”
“Wow.” He took a couple of deep breaths. “I am definitely going to take you up on that later.”
“Work faster. I want to see you.” Being with him was so easy.
“Okay, I’ll be right there.” Dalton’s voice was muffled, like he was partially covering the phone. “Sorry, babe, I have to go. But I wanted you to know I was thinking about you, so I got you a present. It should be there soon.”
“I love presents.” Every girl did. But that wasn’t why she was with him. She wanted him and not what he could buy for her.
“I miss you.” He hung up.
Her phone buzzed with a text. It was from Dalton. “Love you.”
She smiled to herself. She loved him too. Only she really should tell him in person first instead of via text.
Tre came into the room followed by his suitcase. “Whew, I’ve had a day. It’s so good to be off of work. Can I tell you how much I hate rude people?” He parked his bag by the sofa and melted onto a barstool.
“I’ll fix you a latte and you can tell me all about it.” She put two tarts on a napkin and set it in front of him. “Tell me what you think.”
“I think my ass is going to be the size of a billboard if I don’t stop eating all of these carbs.” He picked up a tart, sniffed it, and then bit into it. “Yum. These are really good … only, they need a little something like fresh raspberry or blackberry. The cream cheese is tart, ha ha, but it needs something just a bit acidic to push it over the edge into world’s greatest.”
Tre was a foodie, which totally worked in her favor.
“Good to know.” Harmony made notes on her iPad.
He put the tart down. “Before I forget, the blackout brownies were a hit in first class, but the pear sandies received mixed reviews. Most people liked the flavor but thought they were a little dry.”
Tre had used today’s first-class cabin to taste test her recipes.
Harmony pulled up the pear sandies recipe and made some notes to add more moisture to the dough.