Mrs. Lewis went back inside to speak to the children. She saw Miss Polly sitting beside them.“Ah, you must be Miss Polly, the children's chaperone,” Mrs. Lewis shook the lady's hand. “I'm Mrs. Lewis.”“Lovely meeting you, Mrs. Lewis,” she smiled as her eyes roamed around the room. “I hope the twins weren't any trouble.” “Nonsense, they are little angels,” Mrs. Lewis grinned. “Then you really don't know the twins, Mrs. Lewis,” Miss Polly giggled. “It is getting late, and I need to go home and get lunch started soon. Kids, are you ready?”“But the Master haven't bought any of our treats as yet,” Nola complained. Mrs. Lewis gave her the five-dollar note. “I'm sorry, sweetheart, I'm afraid the master doesn't carry much cash on him either so this is all he could find.” Mrs. Lewis made an excuse for Aiden. She was ashamed to tell them what he really said. “OK,” Nola sighed. She accepted the money. “You know what, Mrs. Lewis? It's all good. I understand,” she beamed. She opened her bag

The next morning, Katherine still couldn't believe that the children made almost fifteen hundred dollars. She checked it over and over in her head. She made them 240 strawberry-filled cupcakes and 240 lemon squares. That's a total of 480 cupcakes, so if they had sold them at $20 per dozen, they should have made $800, not $1480. “Tell me again how you two made so much money?” Katherine asked while she sipped on her camomile tea. “Mom, we already told you, we're business people, and we know how to make deals,” Nathan beamed. “Don't worry, Katherine. The children sold them fair and square. We met a nice man who bought the remaining cupcakes for twice their value,” Miss Polly added as she placed a plate of scrambled eggs and toast in front of Katherine. “Yeah Mom, don't worry, we didn't steal it if that's what you're thinking.” Nola grinned. “Oh honey, I would never think that of you,” Katherine sighed. She was still on edge about the impending bad review from her disgruntled cus

Katherine and the twins arrived at the fair around 3:00 in the afternoon. The place was beautifully decorated and had different rides and attractions. Vendors and patrons crowded the venue, and sounds of laughter and excitement filled the air. "I can't wait to go on the rollercoaster," Nola clapped with glee. She and Nate had never been on one before, and they were eager to try it out today. Nola's eyes lit up, and her smile broadened as she saw the ride dipped and rolled in the air. She couldn't wait to experience the happiness that the ride must bring. “I'm excited to try that slingshot ride over there,” Nathan stated as he pointed in the direction of the ride, where people were screaming with their hands either in the air or over their faces. Katherine couldn't tell if they were screams of joy or screams of pain. She gulped when she saw the ride shoot out like a slingshot and the people were thrown about like rag dolls. “That ride looks pretty scary, don't you think, Nate?” Kath

Things were going swimmingly for Aiden that evening. He and Katherine were sitting on a bench under some palm trees enjoying popcorn and snow cones. He felt like he was on top of the world with every word he and Katherine exchanged. "Can I ask you something?" Aiden inquired after taking a drink from his snow cone. "Sure," Katherine replied, as she indulged in the salty, buttery snack. "Why did you choose baking as a career choice?" Katherine paused at the unexpected question. She took a breath before answering. "Well, it wasn't my first choice," she began. "You see, my parents wanted me to become a lawyer, but after a summer road trip in my final year in high school, I realized that wasn't what I wanted." She looked at Aiden, who now seemed more intrigued. "I met someone who taught me that doing what I loved, rather than doing what was expected, is the key to happiness." She smiled as she remembered all the things she learned from Nile. "That person sounds very smar

Katherine’s hands trembled as she painted her lips with the red lipstick Taryn loaned her. All the makeup that was applied to her face was actually courtesy of her best friend. The only thing Kat owned that could be considered makeup was her cherry blossom lip balm. “More,” Taryn commanded. “Don’t you want him to cower at your luscious lips?”“No, I’m not a harlot.” “Gimme that,” Taryn grabbed the lipstick. “Here, just pucker up,” Taryn held Kat’s jaw and applied more red. A knock sounded at the door. “Thank God,” Kat sighed, feeling thankful for the interruption. "Katherine, are you decent?” It was Katherine's mother. “Come on in, mom,” Kat said. Her mom entered with a smile on her face. “Wow! Honey, you look amazing.” “Thanks mom,” Kat smiled. “I haven’t seen you dolled up like this since —” her mom trailed off. “Anyway, the kids are ready to go.”“Thanks for getting them ready mom, I just need a few more minutes to get my hair styled,” Kat replied. “They are very impati