Biscuits

Biscuits
All week long, Paul and Serena woke up at the crack of dawn and drove together to the tea shop to make freshly baked pastries for her business. Although Paul did the bulk of the baking, he taught Serena a lot so she could be more apt in case she ever found herself in this situation again after he'd returned to Las Vegas.

She appreciated his tutelage, but she still posted an ad on the tea shop's website for a third baker. Paul moved with a confident dexterity in the kitchen never wasting a single second.

Serena knew she would never achieve that level of mastery, nor did she want it. Baking was something that always provoked a comforting sense of nostalgia for her. Baking transported her memories to days when she was younger and in her mother's kitchen baking Paul's birthday cakes. The sight of dry ingredients floating in the air with the scent of vanilla and butter comingling to make something delicious painted a vivid picture of Paul's smiles as she, Iris and Ellen all sang Happy Birthday to him.

No- baking was something she would always prefer to do slowly and deliberately and not something she wanted to rush through.

When Tuesday morning finally came Serena awoke in her cottage a little bit past seven in the morning. Paul had already vacated her bed. She could hear him rummaging in her kitchen, chopping things, mixing things and putting pots and pans on the stove's burners.

Serena got up and went straight to the bathroom for a well-deserved relaxing shower after a whole week of showering in haste, not only to give Paul a chance to shower afterward but also to rush to the tea shop for the early morning bakes.

Today she climbed into the shower making sure not to take a moment of enjoyment as the warm spray hit her body for granted. She leaned her head against the aquamarine tiles releasing a long sigh as her eyes closed.

She had all day to do absolutely nothing.

A loud pounding on the bathroom door prematurely jolted her out of her moment of peace before Paul's voice broke into her mind.

"Breakfast is ready, hurry up or I'll go on a flushing rampage!" he threatened. "You have three minutes!"

She heard the door slam shut.

Knowing he would make good on his promise, Serena reached for the bath products and began to cleanse in record time.

When Paul returned a few minutes later, Serena was brushing her teeth as she stood in front of the mirror wearing a white bathrobe. Paul took the toothbrush from her and told her to rinse.

He escorted her to the kitchen and sat her down in front of one of the plates with freshly made bacon cheddar biscuits, a vegetable omelet and a side of hash browns. He dropped a cloth napkin on her lap.

He served each of them a cup of coffee before sitting down next to her following suit with his napkin.

"Let's go to the Apple Orchards today," he blurted out.

Serena grabbed the biscuit on her plate. "We can do that. What time?" She tore off a piece of the biscuit before shoving it in her mouth.

"As soon as we're done eating," he said as he grabbed the fork and began eating.

She moaned. "Why so early?" she asked with her mouth full. "I thought we could take our time today and move at glacial pace after the week we've had."

Paul motioned with his fork to hurry up before taking the white cloth napkin from his lap and wiping his mouth. "I thought we could add a breakfast pastry or a dessert involving apples to pay homage to Apple Bay. Get the apples, come back here and try some recipes out."

Serena wondered why that hadn't occurred to her when it made all the sense in the world. She nodded. "But why so early?"

He replaced the napkin and turned to her.

Serena took a bite of the omelet and looked back at him, nodding as she raised her eyebrows briefly. "Hmm?"

"I also think you and Iris need to clear the air," he stated as he grabbed the fork. "She owes you an apology and I want to check up on Mom."

She sighed dejectedly and nodded. She missed her friend very much but she just wasn't sure enough time had elapsed where they were ready to talk about what happened.