“I’m so ready. Bring it on.”

Sara flipped through them. “Ahh. This one. Okay…you’ve got two hours. Go for it.” She dropped the fake order on the desk and left Kelly scrambling. “The clock is ticking.”

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Eighteen

The long blasts from the oven timer pulled Kelly from her concentration on the four three-tiered mini cakes she’d just finished. With a Red Hots theme, she hoped the chocolate cinnamon combination held in proper balance once the frosting had been added.

She swept the back of her hand across her forehead, pushing her bangs from her face, then put down her piping bag.

Sara rushed in, shouting, “Time’s up. Step away from the dishes.”

“I’m ready,” Kelly said. Lacing her fingers, she gave them a good stretch. It was crazy how this competition changed everything. If anyone had asked her just one week ago what her three best recipes were, she’d have rattled them off without hesitation. But now with all this on the line and knowing hundreds of thousands of viewers nationwide would be watching, she found herself constantly second guessing what the judges might like best.

She took a knife from the drawer and sliced a sliver of a wedge from one of the pretty cakes she’d just plated. The combination of the red frosting between the dark chocolate layers was flawless, and the white frosting on top was the perfect consistency, still holding its peaks. She inhaled the scent. Sweet and spicy. So far, so good. She took a bite, hoping for the best—the flavors mingled in a delicious union. She closed her eyes and smiled. Nailed it.

“Try it, Judge Sara,” Kelly said, barely being able to hold her enthusiasm.

Sara pushed her fork into the cake and took a bite. “Oh. My. Goodness. This is amazing. I hope you wrote down this recipe.”

“I’m going to. It is good, isn’t it?”

“Too good.” Sara took another bite. “Oh, yeah. Those cinnamon candies are perfect in the dark chocolate. Just enough spice.”

Kelly relaxed. “It’s anybody’s guess what’ll be thrown our way. It could be something as classy as an award ceremony dessert or a two-year-old’s Halloween party.”

“I think it’s safe to say since it’s the Valentine’s Day show that it won’t be Halloween, but it could be a kid’s Valentine’s challenge. We hadn’t really brainstormed about that. Like the funny cards we all used to exchange in elementary school.”

“True. Or it could be a timed event for something in an hour. You know hard that is.”

“I saw one episode where they had liquid nitrogen cool things in a hurry.”

“You’re right. I remember that. I hope that’s available.” It wasn’t going to do her any good to worry over things she had no control over. “I’m just going to have to trust they will.”