Vicki Batman ~ The Great Fruitcake Bake-off: Excerpt 4!

 

 

 

 

Blurb:

To defend her five wins, Samantha Greene, has to find a new entry for The Great Fruitcake Bake-off and teams up with new neighbor, Dixon Roberts, only what they discover is baking a award-winning entry can be complicated, bad guys are plotting to take the crown, and ultimately, first prize isn't just about a ribbon.

Excerpt:

"I am not entering this year." Standing firm, I crossed my arms and pinned an unbreakable stare on Bethany, my co-worker and long-time friend who lived in the same apartment complex as me. We'd arrived early for work and were piddling over coffee in her cubical like we always did before getting to the nuts and bolts of company business. I added, "Period."

 

She rolled her eyes in that I'm so not believing this fashion and tweaked the Santa garland decorating her cube's walls. "Why not, Samantha? You should be proud to be the five-time winner of the Great Fruitcake Bake-off. You're a-a..." her words trailed off as she searched the ceiling for the ultimate in descriptive, "legend."

"Is being a legend in the fruitcake world a good thing?" I let loose a long exhale, dropping my arms to my side. "It's exhausting. Finding the perfect recipe, then bake and exhibit it. The tension cuts into my holiday enjoyment. Besides, shouldn't somebody else win?"

 

Bethany's fists went to her hips. "Sam, we're talking fruitcake here. It's not groundbreaking like, like the Declaration of Independence or...the Pyramids."

I set my hand to my breastbone. "I'm shocked to hear you, my very best confidant since dance school days, say that. Fruitcake is the cake of all time. It dates to--"

She bobbed her head. "I know, I know. To the sixteenth century."

I raised my finger. "It gets a bad--"

"Rap." She sighed, a soul searching blow of breath which told the world I've heard this issue before. "You always say that. You also always say you love participating; yet, you're not defending your title this year." She bore a laser-like glare into me.

I tossed my hands skywards, sending a plea to the heavens to find an answer. "I've used up all of Grammie's recipes. I don't know where to find a new one."

"You could start over with the first confection you entered five years ago, couldn't you?"

"I suppose, but it seems like cheating...in a weird way. And I don't cheat."

"You are a shining example of excellent values." She plopped in the ergonomic lime green chair and spun about to face her desk. She drummed her fingers from the littlest to the index and considered. In a flash, she brightened. "I've got it! Why not check online and find a recipe? A new creation to bake. There has to be one somewhere."

"They don't call you brainchild for nothing." I rubbed a finger along the divot below my lower lip. A tiny speck of excitement blossomed within me. I could do this one more time, that is, if I found the perfect recipe. If.

 

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