you sign here," Eli said, pointing to the signature line where he needed the couple to sign stating they had chosen their cake. When they were through, he pulled the paperwork back toward him, looking it over before continuing. "Okay, it looks like everything is in order here, and we have you scheduled now. You will be hearing from us in a couple of days, and we’ll be emailing you information about the cake. If there’s anything you need or think of after you leave, don’t hesitate to reach out to us.
Eli looked up from the writing in the schedule book, and the couple nodded. "Five-tier, semi-naked buttercream wedding cake with handmade wafer paper flowers and bronze ganache drip. The flavors you picked are chocolate Bailey’s and vanilla. Again if there are any changes, we do ask for a ten day advance notice for wedding cakes. Do you have any questions?" Eli looked between them.
They shook their heads.
"Great." Eli stood up from the chair. "We look forward to serving you, and thank you for your business." Eli held out his hand and both women took turns shaking it. "You can go back through that door”—pointing to the doors the couple had come through—and that will take you back the same way you came in. Congratulations again."
They thanked him again before leaving. When it was just him in the room, Eli straightened up ready for the next clients.
He headed back to the kitchen and left the tray before going to his office to input the order into the computer. He was just finishing up when Jace’s voice had him looking up.
"Jack and Colt are still here. I thought you could take a second to meet them."
"Okay. Let me finish up and I’ll come out." Eli turned back to the computer and proceeded to finish inputting the rest of the order. When he was done, he got up from the chair and stretched before going to meet with the new clients.
They had two tasting rooms since taking meetings or having tastings in the main cafe would have been too loud.
He entered the smaller of the tasting rooms, with an apology, "Sorry I wasn’t here earlier, I…" Eli’s words stalled in his throat, and all he could do was stand and stare. Jack, hotel Jack, was sitting at the table. He recognized the man right away. Of course he did; the alpha had featured in almost all his dreams recently. "Um…hey. Yeah, so…" He looked away from Jack and took a deep breath. If the man was in need of a cake, then Eli wasn’t going to be the one to stand in his way. He was a baker, he could give the man a cake. "You need a cake for a party. Yes?" Eli nodded, looking down at the form. "In a week. Is that correct?" he asked even though the information was right in front of him. Gods, he sounded like a babbling idiot.
"Uh, yeah…that’s right. Cake. And this is my brother, Colt." Eli looked up and found Jack’s cheeks flushed. "I mean, I’m Jack, and this is my brother Colt."
He couldn’t help the smile that appeared on his lips. Okay, so maybe he wasn’t the only one out of sorts. He finally met Jack’s gaze, and he saw the man’s discomfort.
Yeah, there was no way he was nearly as uncomfortable as Eli was. Like what were the odds?
The silence stretched between them before the other man, his brother, finally said "Jack?"
Jack looked away, and Eli took a second to compose himself, then asked, "Do you have any questions for me?"
Jack’s eyes returned to him, and he shook his head. "No."
Eli looked over to Jace. "If that is all, I’ll be going back to work," he said, all the while trying to keep his eyes off of Jack.
Jace handed the form to Eli before he turned to leave, and he looked it over. "So, yeah… Looks to all be in order," He plastered a smile for Jack and Braeden. "Thank you for coming in."
Colt was the one who replied. "I know it was last minute. Thanks for fitting us in. I’ve heard such good things about your store."
"Of course, it’s no problem," Eli managed to get out. He stood frozen as they left the room.
Jace walked them out, and when he returned, Eli hadn’t moved.
"I know Jack was hot, but you...." Jace frowned "Eli you have a weird look on your face. Is everything alright?"
Eli whirled around. "Fine. Fine."
Jace laughed. "I