tasting.”
“It’s delicious,” Melanie said, scooping up the last of her piece and licking the fork, even though it was inappropriate. Her mother would have had kittens if she’d seen.
“Eh, it’s kind of boring, though,” Tennyson said, setting hers down.
Of course Tennyson would say that. Of course.
“It’s not boring. It’s traditional,” Melanie said, knowing that she was playing with fire but not caring. Her sister not coming for the tasting had frustrated her, and she didn’t feel like putting up with more of Tennyson’s crap today. The woman had already forced her into paying too much for a dress in Dallas by making her feel self-conscious about her wardrobe. Tennyson wasn’t going to bully Emma into a cake just because she didn’t like traditional.
Donna nodded. “Nothing wrong with a classic choice for cake. Okay, the next piece is strawberry with a berry puree and a fondant icing. It’s a versatile cake, but you will also have to consider strawberries are a common allergy.”
“Better,” Tennyson said, referring to the cake.
“But it’s true lots of people are allergic to strawberries. I know of two people offhand,” Melanie said.
Tennyson had the audacity to roll her eyes. Something ugly erupted inside Melanie. But she flattened her mouth and turned to Emma. “What do you think, sweetie?”
Emma made a thinking face. “I like it, but strawberry has never been my favorite.”
Donna seemed to make a mental note and moved on. “Next is a white-chocolate raspberry.”
“Not a fan of white chocolate,” Emma said, taking a small bite before setting the cake down. “Not what I want.”
Melanie thought it was pretty dang good, but she’d been going without her daily Snickers minibars for four weeks now. She’d probably think a Twinkie cake would work well. She polished off that sample piece, too.
“This next cake is unusual in that it pairs both vanilla bean and dark chocolate. There is a rosemary blackberry compote in the vanilla, while the dark chocolate has layers of an espresso mousse. It has a nuttiness without having nuts, and it’s definitely a different feel for a wedding cake. It’s one of the more expensive cakes, but worth every dime because the guests will be raving.” Donna nodded for them to taste.
Tennyson immediately brightened. “Now this is good. I love that it’s not as sweet and has great texture.”
Melanie wanted to roll her eyes. She would bet a thousand dollars that Tennyson O’Rourke had never baked a cake in her life. She’d probably heard these things said on the Food Network, and when Donna said unusual and expensive, she’d latched on to it because those were Tennyson’s requirements for everything. “I don’t know. Rosemary is a strong flavor.”
“But not in this cake. There is only an essence,” Donna said.
Melanie took a bite and had to admit it was good. But she still liked the traditional white better. It was so versatile as a cake, and besides, everyone liked vanilla.
“The next sample is a pink champagne wedding cake made with Chambord, featuring a passion-fruit compote. The texture is light, very summery, and one of my favorites in taste and appearance.” Donna tapped the plate with the light-pink confection.
“Ooh, I like this one,” Emma said, taking one bite. Then another. Her eyes lit up.
“It’s really nice,” Tennyson said, nodding.
They moved on to a lemon cake with lemon-curd filling, a praline cake with salted-caramel filling, and finally a vanilla lavender cake with blackberry compote and brown sugar buttercream frosting.
“This last one is a bit more intense and flavorful. It, too, is on the expensive end of the wedding cakes offered, but with berries and fresh flowers, it can be a stunning choice.” Donna pressed both hands onto the table and looked at Marc with a quirked eyebrow.
Marc moved over to the table. “These are the samples Donna selected. So what are our thoughts?”
Emma tapped her fork on the plate she was holding. “I’ve tasted a lot of good ones, but I really love the blackberries in this one.”
Tennyson nodded. “Pretty spectacular.”
Melanie shrugged. “I still like the first one. Almond buttercream is classic.”
“And boring,” Tennyson added.
Melanie narrowed her eyes. “What do you even know about cake?”
“Plenty. I’ve worked with caterers for decades, and I’ve sat at some of the best chef tables in the highest-starred restaurants in the world,” Tennyson said, her eyes sparking with fight. “Why do you always go for the most basic choice?”
“Because sometimes basic is basic for a reason. People like regular ol’ wedding cake. That’s why wedding cake is, duh, an actual flavor. God,