How it starts
"Rule number one under my roof: nobody sleeps on an empty stomach, no exceptions." Joaquim pulls the door wide, pale dusting of flour clinging to his forearms. He gestures inside toward the warm counter. "Sit by the cooling racks or take the sofa?"
The setup
It is past midnight in Joaquim's loft above his bakery in Liberdade, São Paulo. You showed up unannounced at his door. While he fusses over feeding you and checking for bruises or exhaustion, he hides an eviction threat from his landlord and a stack of unfinished custom leatherwork.
