I stayed away from the bakery after that, as much as it pained me, and got my baked goods—mediocre as they were—from the grocery store. For one thing, I didn’t want to see Bryce, and for another, I didn’t want to run into René, once he was well again, until I was ready to sign off on the shop.
By April, the job was completed, and I prepared the documents for René to sign on a Sunday afternoon in the diner. We’d already done a walkthrough, everything kept strictly business despite his attempts at more, then I’d left him to do a closer inspection on his own after that.
That day had been the first time I’d seen him in person since he’d been sick, aside from walking down the street or in a store somewhere. It wasn’t that my desire for him had diminished. I just didn’t think it was a good ide
