"You should enter the pastry competition."

"Pastry competition?" Robin responded with a laugh, glancing over from where he was cleaning plates in the sink. Holly hummed in agreement from the kitchen table where she was packaging her finished necklaces in to small white jewelry boxes.

"Yes, at the upcoming winter market. You could also get a table beside mine. Sell some of your baked goods."

Robin let out a snort in response.

"Maybe..." he added. "I'll think about it."

"Don't laugh. I'm serious. I think you could do really good." Holly said, with a laugh."You could bring some pastries to card night and see what the guys think. Don's usually a judge, and Kalavee's partner is the one who leads it."

Don had quickly become a close friend to Robin since Robin began joining him on his doctor's calls around Adel. Doctor Don even introduced Robin to some of the other older gentlemen in town, inviting Robin to their Thursday night card games. Although feeling a bit out of place at first, Robin began to look forward to those evenings. Kalavee and his partner Liam often brought leftover food from Liam's restaurant to enjoy during the games. Even before Holly's suggestion, Robin had been wondering if he should also start bringing some of his own treats to get their professional thoughts on his cooking.

"Wouldn't that be cheating?"

"Eh," Holly mumbled, shrugging as she stacked another finished jewelry box on the pile of white jewelry boxes that began to consume the entire kitchen table. "If anything, it's leveling the playing field. This is a small town, and the people in the winter baking competition have been doing it for years. They've had plenty of time to perfect their entries to suit the judges' tastes."

Robin hummed as he dried a plate. "Well, then that's a great idea. Thanks for the intel, Holly."

"Always," Holly said, giving him a wink.

Robin let out another snort as he rolled his eyes, turning back to the sink with a shake of his head.

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Author's Note:

Hey All!

Sorry for the short chapter! I need to plan for this story, so I am posting this shorter chapter to have more time to do that.

Thanks for reading!

xoxox

Miss Ivy