I woke up ready to go. My shower was quick, and I put on my favorite shirt that had a picture of a cat curled up with a book. I almost didn’t, but if the cat had a problem with it he could deal. Nothing was going to destroy my good mood.

I swung open the door with force and a bright smile and stepped out onto the balcony into a sun-filled room. The shop down below was different, but not as drastically different as I was hoping for. The bookshelves were against the three walls and several others created stacks like in any bookstore. A table was in front of the rightmost wall with a chair sitting behind it. The store had piled a stack of ten books on one end of the table. From here, I couldn’t read the cover of the top book. The glare from the sunlight was too much.

“So a normal bookshop day… Maybe…” I said to myself. I headed down the steps taking two at a time, praying that he hadn’t touched Betty. As I came around the corner, there she sat right where she belonged. A sigh escaped my lips before I could help it.

“The coffee machine was only gone for one day,” said the cat. He jumped up to the counter from the other side.

“One day was too much,” I answered with a smile. My normal mug of dark blue and stars was cleaned and ready to go. I still couldn’t get over the fact that things cleaned themselves here. Or at least were loaded into the dishwasher and then put away. I needed to figure out how the cat did it and I made a mental note to follow up on that. “What do you want to drink today?”

His green eyes studied me before he answered. “Your choice. Something fancy in a teacup.”

I pulled out one teacup from below the counter with its saucer. It was a light blue color with light pink roses dotted over it. Gold rimmed the edges. The cup was in pristine condition. I set it carefully on the counter. “Hmmm, how about a flat white with a dash of chocolate on top? Or maybe a little hazelnut with the espresso…”

My mind started racing with a couple different combinations but hazelnut sounded so good this morning, I kept coming back to it. First, I dribbled a little hazelnut syrup into his teacup, then my mug. I followed it with two shots of espresso for his cup, then another two for mine. Last, was the steamed milk, and I topped both cups. To give his a little more flare, I sprinkled a little cocoa powder on top.

“Here you go, fancy.”

He sniffed the cup and licked a small bit of the foam off. “Should it be stirred?”

I nodded. “Most people stir it after the barista gives it to them all pretty…” Several teaspoons were in a cup under the counter and I grabbed one. “Do you want me to stir it for you?”

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

He nodded. “Thank you for the fancy drink.”

“You’re welcome,” I said with a bright smile. “Now, it’s time for bacon.”

“And cookies,” said the cat.

I paused as I picked up my drink. “Cookies?”

The cat nodded and pawed at his drink. “Yes, we have a book signing today. We said we would provide cookies.”

My good mood wobbled. “Ugh, I can’t bake cookies from scratch… I mean, I can learn, but I don’t know how to do that off the top of my head.”

I swear he smiled at me. Someone knocked on the door and my smile vanished.

“That’s what the cookie dough order is for,” he replied smugly.

The cat jumped off the counter and headed for the kitchen, leaving his teacup behind. The person knocked again. After setting my mug back on the counter, I made my way to the door. An older woman gave me a hesitant smile as I unlocked and motioned her inside. She carried a large plastic container.

“I hope this is the right place for the cookie dough,” she said as she stepped inside.

“Yep, you found us.”

“Perfect! This order was a lifesaver. Sales have been really rough this month, but this gets me in a much better place.” She walked in and set the container on the counter. I noticed the teacup was gone. “I have instructions on these index cards and if you need anything, just call me. My number is on the back.” Her dark hair was pulled into a ponytail, but it was messy and all over the place. Her shirt had flour on one side and she had a handprint on the right leg of her jeans. She held out the index cards. “I mean it, if you need any last-minute orders, or anything. My name’s Sandra.”

“Thank you! This event is a little last minute, so I really appreciate this.” The name on the card said Sandra, Cookie Master and in the corner was a cookie with a chef’s hat on it. “I am not a baker.”

“I need to get back to the shop, thanks again!” Sandra headed out the still open door, leaving the plastic containers behind. The cards pulled at my attention so I flipped through them. Instructions for the temperature to bake the cookies at, along with storage instructions written in neat handwriting.

Step one: Preheat your oven to 375

My eyes widened, and I darted into the kitchen to turn on the oven. One oven was already at 400 and the other at 375.

“Is it time for breakfast?” asked the cat.

“I need to figure out what to do with the cookies, and then I will make bacon. How much time do I have until this book signing?”

The cat lapped at his teacup before pulling away. “It starts at ten and we will open the doors at nine am.”

Never had I been so happy to have gotten up at 6:30. At this point it was only 7:30 and I had plenty of time. My shoulders relaxed, and I went back to the storefront to grab the containers of cookie dough. By the time I set them on the countertop my coffee was sitting next to the cat. “Thank you for grabbing my coffee.” The cat didn’t respond and looked curiously at my statement. “I didn’t have enough hands. Alright, let’s get the bacon in and the first batch of cookies. What flavor did you get, anyway?”