Kate Hardy | How to Win a Girl in Ten Cakes

In BACHELOR AT HER BIDDING, my hero, Ryan Henderson, is a pastry chef. So I really had to share one of his recipes… (Ry, being Parisian-trained, would fancy it up by cutting it into a perfect rectangle, slicing it horizontally and layering it with lemon curd, and putting a fancy lemon frosting on top. But this is the down-and-dirty version used in my house. It lasts for about five seconds if my eldest teen has his friends over.)

Lemon Drizzle Cake

-4 oz (125g) butter -6 oz (175g) caster sugar -grated rind and juice of a lemon -2 eggs, beaten -6 oz (175g) self-raising flour -4 tbs milk -2 tbs granulated sugar

Cream butter, caster sugar and lemon rind until fluffy.

Beat in eggs.

Stir in flour, then add enough milk so the mixture will drop off the spoon when you shake it gently.

Put mixture into a lined 2lb (1kg) loaf tin.

Bake in a moderate oven (180 degrees C, mark 4) for 40-50 minutes or until firm on top and a skewer comes out clean.

Heat the lemon juice and granulated sugar together until the sugar is dissolved (takes about 30 seconds in an 850w microwave).

While the cake is still hot, pierce the top with a skewer and spoon the lemon syrup over. Leave to cool in tin.

About BACHELOR AT HER BIDDING

Your date with Parisian-trained chef Ryan Henderson promises you’ll get the best meal of your life cooked especially for you. His Red Velvet cheesecake is to die for – but we know he has even better desserts up his sleeve…

How to win a girl in ten cakes…

When Dr. Rachel Cassidy comes back to Marietta with a broken heart and a divorce under her belt, going to a Bachelor Auction fundraiser doesn’t sound like her idea of a good time – and when her sister and friends “buy” her a dinner date with sexy Parisian-trained pastry chef Ryan Henderson, that sounds even worse.

Ryan doesn’t have time for dating – he’s put his dreams to one side and come back to Marietta to look after his sick grandmother. But when he agrees to help a charity fundraiser by offering to cook a special meal to one lucky bidder, he gets more than he bargains for and discovers a woman he might just dare to let himself fall in love with.

Then tragedy strikes, just when Rachel and Ryan think they might have a future, opening up old scars and pushing them apart.

And if they’re to stand a chance of getting back together, then Ryan’s going to have to be seriously inventive. Can he win the love of his life with ten cakes?

Excerpt

The following Friday night, Susie, Lexy and Dayna set up a card game with Phyllis – fortified with Ryan’s brownies – while Ryan and Rachel caught a movie in Bozeman.

“It’s a long while since I’ve been to the cinema,” he said after the movie, and slid his arm round her shoulders. “I really enjoyed myself tonight.”

“So did I,” she said with a smile.

On the way back to Marietta, he pulled his car over at the side of the road and opened the roof so they could look up at the stars.

“It’s a perfect night,” he said softly.

The only thing that would make it more perfect, Rachel thought, would be if they could snatch a whole night together. But his circumstances meant it wasn’t going to happen, and she wasn’t going to make a fuss about it – that wasn’t fair to him.

“Perfect night and perfect company,” she said.

As he pulled up outside the house he shared with his grandmother, Rachel asked, “Would you and Phyllis like to come for Sunday lunch?”

She couldn’t help smiling at the momentary look of horror on his face and the careful way he asked, “Are you cooking?”

“No, my mom will be cooking. We try to get together as a family once a week.”

He looked slightly worried. “And I’ll be there as a… friend?”

She shrugged. “As whatever you like.”

“We’ll be there – just tell me what time.” He smiled and kissed her. “Tell your mom I’ll bring dessert as my contribution.”

About Kate Hardy

Kate Hardy is the award-winning author of more than 60 novels for Harlequin, Entangled and Tule Publishing.

She lives in Norwich in the east of England with her husband, two teenage children, a springer spaniel called Byron, and too many books to count. She’s a bit of a science and history nerd who loves cinema, the theatre, and baking (which is why you’ll find her in the gym five mornings a week – oh, and to ballroom dancing lessons). She loves doing research, especially if it means something hands-on and exploring. (That’s how the ballroom dancing started…)

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