2011: It's been ten years since the sky literally came crashing down around Yael Malkah and upended her world. Now she's returned to New York to visit her ailing grandmother. With no other family, it's up to her to take care of the family business...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
After working a full week at Malkah Enterprises, Yael's nagging self-doubt had subsided enough to allow her to function, but her nerves were frayed a little more by the end of each day. It was time for some sweet tooth therapy. Pulling eggs, almond milk, and butter from the fridge in her apartment, she eyed the container of rice flour. How was it empty already? She'd bought a five-pound bag last week. Her cell rang, causing her eyes to dart to the clock on the stove. How did it get to be midnight? Far too late to be yet another business call.
Wendy.
"I'm glad it's you," she answered, putting the call on speaker.
"You sound exhausted."
"Four days of nonstop phone calls and questions, meetings and paperwork." She located her favorite mixing bowl in the dishwasher and began tossing in the ingredients for strawberry cheesecake muffins. The trembling she hadn't noticed before in her hands subsided with the familiar routine. "Everyone else seems to think I can do this, but I don't know. Not to mention I'm working twice as hard to prove I can do it. I didn't realize how much this little undertaking was actually going to require of me."
"And what are you doing now?"
Smashing eggs and imagining they were Casey's head, as well as the very unhelpful Peter, she grumbled silently. To Wendy, she said, "Self-medicating." The silence on the other end told Yael the joke was missed. "Baking muffins for my meeting with Casey in the morning."
"Has he been better?"
"He's kept his distance, which automatically makes me suspicious. When he is around he watches me like a hawk. I am going to wow him tomorrow if it's the last thing I do. Assault via muffins and brilliant business savvy."
She attacked her mixture with a wooden spoon before slipping the bowl onto the stand mixer and selecting a low speed. Rice flour tended to be messy.
"You'll be great. Once he sees your genius, he'll wonder what the company ever did without you."
Yael chuckled. "I wouldn't go that far, not yet, but thank you."
"Well, I'll let you get back to the self-medication. Don't turn it into an all-nighter."
"I won't. Bye."
As she scooped the batter into the pan, her mind relaxed, and she was able to rationally go over her selling points and make lists of things that still needed to be done. The massive list only tempted her to dive into another recipe, maybe banana-nut muffins, but she needed to sleep tonight. Facing Casey warranted a long hot shower and at least six hours of rest.
The next morning, Yael made sure she was in the office at nine sharp, a basket of her midnight baking mania on her arm. Strawberry cheesecake and banana nut. Oh well. She was tired but felt more prepared than she hoped for.
Passing by Peter's office, she stuck her head around the corner. "Wish me luck."
"You'll need it." He came to the door and gave her a quick peck on the cheek. "Don't let it get you down if he makes you jump through a dozen hoops first."
