Chapter 16

CHAPTER 16

DOM

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 4:45 P.M.

"I'm so sorry, Xander." I follow my brother into our room and shut the door. I really messed up. I've been distracted this entire time, mostly by Cage and his kisses. But we also talked about Mom's apple-cheddar strudel in front of Lucinda. Did she leak the information to the other contestants? "This is all my fault."

"I know." His voice is calm as he puts his bag down and faces me. "I saw you."

My heart trips over itself. "What?"

His expression is stony, except for his eyes. They're filled with pain. "I saw the two of you this morning. Embracing."

My stomach lurches, and I press my hand against my chest. "You saw us?"

"Why, Dom? I trusted you."

What can I say? Nothing will make this better. And then reality catches up to me. How can we be talking about the same thing? If Xander saw me embracing him . Kissing him . He would be freaking out a bit more. "Wait, who did you see me with?"

His eyes narrow. How is it that he has the same eyes as Cage…has to be Cage, yet he's so different. "Erik. You were hugging him. And then his bakery won the competition. I don't think that's a coincidence."

I laugh incredulously because all of this is weird as shit. "Why would I hug Erik? I don't even know him. I didn't even know the name of his bakery."

He shrugs. "I saw you too together."

"Maybe Erik got the recipe from you. You're the one obsessed with him."

"Can you just go away?" he asks, turning his back and shutting me out. "I need time to think."

Not gonna lie. It stings. "Fine. Whatever. It's always about you anyway. No one cares what I want. So go ahead and devise more conspiracy theories. I'm finding out what's going on."

I try to slam the door on my way out, but hotel room doors don't work like that. As I stomp down the stairs, I dash my tears away. How can Xander think I would intentionally give Mom's recipe away? That I would betray him or do anything to hurt him. My chest aches at the thought.

But I've been distracted lately. And I almost messed up more than once. During the final round, I'd known the recipe by heart, so muscle memory kicked in, and my mind wandered to other things. Cage kissing me. The feel of his short beard as he trailed kisses down my neck. I almost messed up because of it, catching myself before I added the cumin.

The lobby is still packed, and I stop at the edge of the crowd. I don't really have a plan. Maybe I should find this Erik and confront him. But he wasn't the one who used our recipe. Should I look for Mars Catering? How hard could they be to find?

I stroll around looking for a blond man I barely remember, but my eyes also search for my Xander lookalike. The one who goes by Cage. Are there actually two of them? Or just one who changes personalities at the drop of a hat?

A woman with red hair catches my eye. She looks familiar. I follow her through the crowd, ducking around people to keep sight of her. When she turns and waves at someone, a smile lights up her face and tugs the memory loose. I suck in a breath. It's the woman in the picture. She's older, of course, but still beautiful. How is she here? Alive. I'd assumed by the way my mother acted that she'd died.

My head spins as I get closer. I want to talk to her, but I'm also terrified for some unknown reason.

Her eyes catch mine, and I feel like I can't breathe. She tilts her head, a sad look on her face.

"Hi." I raise my hand in the air and drop it just as quickly. Way to be awkward, Dom .

She covers her mouth with her hand and smiles. It reaches her eyes and warmth spreads through me. "Hi, sweetie," she says, her voice soft with a Southern lilt. "Are you okay?"

I nod. "Yeah. Doing fine."

There's so much I want to ask her. Do you know my mother? Why do we look so much alike? Are we related? None of that comes out. I stare at her. And yell at myself to stop staring at her.

"I'm sorry things didn't work out. But you and your brother did an amazing job today. I'm so proud of you."

I blink back the sudden tears. "You watched us?"

"Of course, sweetheart. I wouldn't miss it."

"Callie, can I talk to you for a minute?" The older lady from the other night places her hand on the woman's arm.

"Of course." She gives me a quick smile. "I'll see you later, okay?"

I nod again. I want to race over to them both and demand answers, but I'm not sure I'm ready to hear them. My mind is working on the puzzle. The picture with Mom. The tornado. Everything that's happened so far. Is it all related, or a bunch of coincidences?

And will I get to see her later? I really hope so.

I give up looking for Erik. It doesn't matter. Xander needs me right now. That's what I need to focus on.

He's packing when I get back to the room. I sit on his bed and watch him neatly place clothes into his suitcase. His room is clean. Everything is in its place. Mine looks like a tornado hit it. I sigh.

Xander slumps beside me. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have blamed you."

I knock my shoulder into his. "I'm sorry too."

The room is quiet. Unlike Chicago, there are no sirens blaring. Horns honking. Wind blowing against the windows.

"I get caught up in my head," Xander says, picking at the lint on his pants, "but I care about you and what you want. I know you wanted answers about Mom and that lady in the picture. In fact?—"

Bam. Bam. Bam .

We glance toward the door. And before we can question who it is, Paxton yells, "Open up, guys. It's important."

We hurry into the main area, and I let Paxton in. His hands are shaking, and he glances at the door and back at us.

"What's wrong?" I ask.

He sinks into the couch and covers his face with his hands.

"Paxton?"

After rubbing his eyes, he stares at his hands and looks up at us. "I think I just saw a ghost."