All On My Own

by Gary Delafield from the May 21, 2012 issue

Tagline: Katie was an excellent baker, but hopeless in the romance department. Until a really cute guy just happened to find his way into her shop...

In a Nutshell: Katie owns a bakery. Her friend is intent on setting her up, but Katie says she's too busy with her new business. However, one of her new regulars is "tall, dark and dreamy." The friend gives Katie two tickets to a play and suggests she ask him to go with her. He ends up asking her instead.

Observations: Ooh, I was worried that this story wouldn't be good. The last story that had a male name attached to it wasn't so great, but this one was terrific.

One part I really liked was when Katie "blew out a quiet breath as she watched him check out the pastries in the display case." I could totally picture this. I also liked that her reaction was subdued. It fit her shy character perfectly.

I also chuckled at the name of the play, "Kiss Me, Kate." LOL Cute.

When the black moment occurred, I laughed:

Katie tried to make her shrug appear casual. "A customer left them for me. I'm probably not going, but if you'd be interested...?" She hoped she didn't seem too obvious.


"Wow. Thanks!" He picked up the tickets. "Are you sure?" At her nod, he slipped them in his shirt pocket, then paid for his doughnuts.


Katie's heart sank.

I thought it was a fantastic black moment. Katie's been working so hard to get a date with the guy and she finally overcomes her fear and asks him (sort of) and he misunderstands! As a reader, my heart sank, too! But then the guy turns around and asks her to go with him. I didn't think it was very nice of Mark to let her finish the transaction before letting her in on his little joke, but Katie seemed to forgive him, so I did, too.

The last thing I wanted to point out was the surprise that crafty Sarah, the friend, had orchestrated it all from the very beginning. Sarah had suggested that Mark visit the bakery. Then, once the relationship had been established, she swoops in with those theatre tickets. Heh heh. Who doesn't like a good plot twist?
Masterful.