Whetted Appetites Read Free

for today?”
         “Almost,” Max answered, waving a piece of paper in front of Dalton.  “Got another complaint from Victoria Bradley.”  He handed Dalton the paper.
         “Who?” Dalton asked, etching his brows.  He looked at Max, waiting for him to elaborate on the name.
         “Victoria Bradley,” Max repeated.  “She’s the owner of that new bakery on Third Street called ‘The SweetTooth’.  Said her order has been delayed again.  I told her to come by your office at three tomorrow to fix the problem.  I took the liberty of making the appointment since I knew that would be the only time you’ll be free for a few weeks,” he explained, obviously proud of himself.
        Dalton nodded his approval and hid a smile.  Max did get a little over confident at times but he was an excellent manager.
         “Well, the sooner the better.  I’m not partial to heated confrontations,” he admitted.  He knew he should be ashamed of himself for admitting that bold women sometimes made him forget the English language.  It wasn’t that he was all thumbs when it came to women who could give it as good as they got.  He had no problems with a woman who knew what she wanted and how to get it.  It was the subject matter that bothered him.  He was perfectly fine with heated conversation but not because one of them was unhappy with a certain situation. 
         Max chortled at this.  “You’d better watch out for this one.  She might have a bit of a hot temper.” Max wiggled his eyebrows.  “She sounds like a spitfire.”
         Dalton shrugged his shoulders in a defensive gesture.  “How bad could a little old lady that owns a bakery possibly be?”
         “Yeah.  Even little old ladies can give it as good as they’ve got.”  Max clapped Dalton’s back.  “Don’t worry.  All we have to do is fix the problem as quickly as we can and give her a great discount on her next shipment.  Just let me know how much so I can adjust her bill.”  Max started towards the door before he turned around.  “Oh, heads up.  I think this one’s wound a bit too tight.” he laughed.
         Dalton snorted and gave Max a disapproving stare.  “Max, you know better than to talk about our customers that way.  Even if they can’t hear you.”
         “Yeah.  I’m sorry.  Won’t happen again.”
         Dalton sighed.  “Great.  Tomorrow should be wild and crazy,” he said with false enthusiasm.
         Max laughed sympathetically.  “Everything will be fine.”  He glanced at his watch.  “Well, got to get going.  My old lady’s probably got supper on the table.  See ya.”
         “See you tomorrow, Max.”
         Dalton finished putting his files away and sat back in his chair.  He took a deep breath.  He always got a little nervous when something went wrong and he was confronted by an angry customer.  He just wished everything would run according to the plan at all times.  But he knew that was just wishful thinking.  Nothing worked out one hundred percent of the time.
         Max thought Victoria Bradley was wound tight.  He was constantly tight as a bowstring.  He knew he needed to relax but he didn’t have the time.
         Max said she sounded like a spitfire.  Though, he envisioned a much older lady.  About fifty or so with her graying hair twisted into a tight bun.
         According to Max, she was already wound tight enough.
         But the truth was that Victoria has every reason to be acrimonious with his company.  It was obvious she had let it slide.  If the shoe was on the other foot, he would feel exactly the same way she did.  Super ticked at the company for letting him down.
         It worked both ways.  Without their business, they would be out of business.  And without hers, they would be packing up as well.  In the end, they had to work out compromises and keep each other balanced and happy.
         So