At Thirty-Two, I Unlocked the Talent for Secretly Loving Someone

Her first love begins at thirty-two: awkward, but completely sincere. Branded as “older,” “ordinary,” and “socially anxious,” she finds her entire safe haven in a neighborhood pastry shop. Then a gentle dentist becomes a regular, and her long-dormant talent for secret crushes suddenly awakens. She hides her feelings in low-sugar recipes and tracks his movements through the neighborhood grapevine. Every step closer leaves her flustered, and impossibly sweet.

This is the story of how an “ordinary girl” slowly melts someone’s heart with the aroma of freshly baked treats, countless flights of fancy, and the courage to risk everything. There is no fateful encounter from the heavens, only two cautious, sincere hearts growing in the cracks of everyday life, finding their way to each other over flour and the scent of cream in the warmest mutual romance between adults.