She stopped and turned. Andrew was standing there, smiling.

“Hey.”

She stopped and smoothed her apron. “Hey there. I was just heading back over to the bakery.”

“If it’s not a sight for sore eyes,” her mother shouted.

Kelly stood there dumbstruck by Mom’s animated response. Yes, she’d told Mom they’d had a nice visit, but that didn’t change the fact that he’d broken her heart. She was her daughter. Even if Kelly was having trouble staying mad, Mom shouldn’t.

Kelly watched them hug. She felt the grimace on her face as she folded her arms. She quickly replaced it with a half-baked smile.

“It’s great to see you, Mrs. McIntyre.”

“You look good,” Mom said. “So grown up.” Mom flashed her a he-did-look-good glance.

“Have a cup of coffee with me,” Andrew said to Kelly.

Mom was already racing toward the empty booth next to Andrew with two mugs. “Here you go. You have a few minutes to spare, don’t you, Kelly?”

“Thank you, Mrs. McIntyre. Oh man, I’m going to need a piece of that cake too.”

“Of course, you are. Kelly’s practically famous for that around here.”

“I am not,” Kelly said, rolling her eyes and sitting down. “Moms. You know how they are.”

“Quit being so modest. You’re the best daughter a mother could wish for,” Mom said. “She just won a big contest. She’s headed to the big RBA event. Flying and everything.”

Guilt hung in Kelly’s throat. She was tempted to tell her parents the truth and swear them to secrecy right now. But just as quickly as that thought popped into her mind, she could picture Mom whispering to every customer who ventured into the Main Street Cafe, and at church on Sunday, the secret she was sworn to keep. Yeah, it would be around town so fast she’d be disqualified before she ever got on the plane to New York.

He looked impressed. “Kelly, that’s great. Why didn’t you say anything?”

“It didn’t come up?” She shrugged, taking a sip of her coffee and trying to act as if it was no big deal.

“My baby girl’s first plane ride,” Mom gushed as she slid a whopping piece of cake in front of Andrew. “It’s so exciting.”

“It is,” he agreed. “When do you leave?”

“Tuesday.” She jumped to her feet. “And I’ve got so much to do before I leave town. It was good to see you. Enjoy your cake.” She didn’t wait for a response. She rushed over to the empty teacart and raced through the door to The Cake Factory, stopping only to whisper “Mission accomplished” to Sara as she passed by. Sara gave her a thumbs up and continued filling a box with pastries for the customer at the counter.