Totlandia: Summer Read Online Free PDF

full of strawberry-rhubarb pie, but his declaration was clearly stated.
    Besides frozen cubes of Cowgirl Creamery butter, Jillian knew that the best pie crust always had a pinch of salt and a few tablespoons of ice-cold water. Salty tears, like the ones falling off her cheeks and onto the dough rolled out on the marble counter in front of her, would do nothing to burnish the wonderful reputation of Life of Pie, the bake shop she owned with Ally.
    But try as she might, she couldn’t stop crying over her breakup with her best friend and business partner.
    Because of Ally, she no longer had to work as a waitress in order to make ends meet. And because of Ally’s belief in her baking skills, she was now part owner of the most talked-about pie shop in San Francisco, where on weekends the line for a slice of pie spilled out the door and onto the sidewalk on posh Union Street, almost around the corner to Octavia Street. And because of Ally’s financial backing and her smart business acumen, Jillian no longer had the need to beg Scott for a weekly contribution of grocery money. She could now make the mortgage on the grand old Pacific Street Victorian she dearly loved and had so painstakingly renovated—the home she’d once hoped to grow old in, with him at her side.
    But in the eight months since Scott had walked out of their lives, she’d learned to live without him, to get a job, and to be frugal.
    And most importantly, she’d become a strong single parent.
    She also learned that there were some men worth trusting.
    Well, one in particular: Caleb Martin.
    Caleb, a Presidio Park ranger, had been her knight in shining armor from the very first moment they’d met—as Amelia and Addison’s stroller hurtled down Lyon Street toward the Presidio Gate—which at that moment was disgorging a swarm of fast-driving Lucasfilm employees, more than likely on their way to some Marina district happy hour.
    “I don’t expect you to understand,” Jillian retorted. “You’ve never been in a long-term relationship. You’ve never been cheated on and lied to by the one person in the world you loved and trusted with all your heart.” She was rolling the dough so hard that it stretched halfway across the counter. It was now much too thin for the pies she needed to make. She sighed as she scooped it all back into a ball to start again.
    Caleb stopped midbite. “Okay, yeah, you’re right. Until I met you, I hadn’t cared enough about any woman to let her get close enough to hurt me. And if you were to go back to that son of a bitch, I’d probably never trust another woman again—or another man, for that matter—around the woman I love.” Seeing the tears welling in her eyes yet again, he added, “Baby, listen, all I’m trying to say is that unlike Ally and Jade, Scott’s assistant was never your pal. It was her feelings for Scott that mattered, not yours.”
    She nodded grudgingly. He had a point.
    “Would you have preferred that Scott stayed with you, even if he didn’t love you?” he asked. “Even if he wanted to be with someone else?”
    Jillian shook her head slowly. “At the time, yes. In hindsight, I know it was my pride that made me chase after him, coupled with my fear of being alone for the rest of my life.”
    “That’s just my point. You weren’t alone. You had your friends—Lorna, Jade, and yes, Ally.”
    He was right. Ally had been there for her at every turn.
    “Jade can’t force Brady to love her,” he continued. “Sure, she can pray he’ll change his mind out of the blue, but it won’t happen if he doesn’t want it, too. Don’t you see? If Jade doesn’t let go of Brady, she’ll stay miserable. ”
    She nodded grudgingly. “I guess you’re right. But she won’t see it that way, ever. As her friend, I have to respect that.”
    “And as your friend, she has to respect your right to counsel her, even if the message is one she doesn’t want to hear—that is, if you feel telling her Ally is and