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Mike was pretty certain he’d done all he could to win the bake-off. The audience had thinned out considerably since he’d arrived and declared his undying love for Elise. He still couldn’t believe he’d done that, in front of about a hundred people, mostly Ridgmont locals. The clock at the back of the tent told him it was approaching seven, which meant the race was about to begin. He couldn’t help but feel a tiny bit guilty at leaving his pop in the lurch.
“Are you ready for the result?” Elise stared up at him, her arms around his waist.
“As I’ll ever be, I guess.” He placed both palms on her cheeks and kissed her.
“Come on, you two, the judges are back up there.” Elise’s mom pointed them out.
Behind him, the hundred strong crowd was down to maybe a dozen, the rest either on their wa
