“Yeah? Congratulations,” Beau said. He glanced at Lewis and shook his head before rolling his eyes. He pushed him over toward another man who was standing behind the cabinet, who grabbed Lewis’s shoulders and marched him through a door. “What can I get for you this morning?” Beau asked when he returned to the counter. He held up a box and gestured toward Ramsey. “This is Phineas’s order.”
“Perfect,” Ramsey said. He looked at Maxwell, but I had zeroed in on the lemon bars with wide eyes.
“You have lemon bars,” I said quietly. When I looked up at Beau, he grinned.
“I do. And lemon-filled powdered donuts.” I moaned involuntarily. “I understand that type of moan,” Beau said. “How many of each do you want? Are the cravings bad?”
I smiled. “Honestly, I don’t think they’re that terrible just yet. But I’m just barely pregnant. Who knows what things will be like next week or even next month.” I sighed. “Can I get three of each? It’s more than I really need, but I’m not sure how the day is going to go.”
“I can certainly do that,” Beau told me. “Is there anything else you need?” Beau glanced to my right, and I noticed that Maxwell was standing right there. “Did you want an assortment for the clinic?”
“Yes, please,” Maxwell said. “A box of pastries, as well as one of muffins.”
“You got it, Dr. King.” Beau handed me a box, and I brought it close to my nose and took a deep breath.
“These smell so amazing.”
Maxwell chuckled. “I can attest to the fact that the lemon bars taste amazing. I’ve not had the donuts, but Beau’s lemon bars are exceptionally good.”
“I can check you out down here.”
I looked to my left, and after grinning up at Maxwell, I moved down the counter and smiled at the young man who was standing at the register. “I’m Tate,” he said.
“Hi, Tate. I’m Camden.”
“Hi, Camden,” Tate said. “So you’re Dr. King’s mate?”
I nodded. “I was just as surprised as everyone else seems to be, but yes, he’s my mate.”
“That’s really awesome,” Tate said. “Your total is seven-fifty.”
I dug in my pocket to grab my card, but Maxwell was there first. “Here’s my card.”
I looked up at Maxwell. “I was going to get it.”
“That’s fine. We’re going to be combining things soon anyway, so it won’t matter who uses the card.”
I took a deep breath and was going to argue, but I couldn’t. He wasn’t wrong. We’d discussed finances, and although I didn’t have nearly what Maxwell did, he’d been insistent that we use what he had. I had agreed as long as we used my finances to set up accounts for our children. I didn’t have much, but in all honesty, it was more than enough for up to five children to have a very good start in life.
I looked back at Tate, who seemed indecisive. “Use his card,” I said. “He’s not wrong.”
Tate looked relieved and immediately took Maxwell’s card. After he tapped it on the card reader, he handed the card back to Maxwell.
“And the usual for the clinic?” Tate asked as Beau brought over a pair of matching light blue boxes.
“Yes.”
Tate rang those up, pushed a couple of buttons on the tablet, and then turned it around. Maxwell signed it and then accepted the boxes from Beau.
“Thank you, Tate. We’ll see you most likely tomorrow.”
“We’ll be here, Dr. King,” Tate said. “Are you also Dr. King?” he asked me.
I glanced up at Maxwell, unsure. “Uh, we’ve not really talked about those specifics yet. You’re welcome to call me Camden though. Or just Doc. A lot of others have called me that in the past. Dr. Kennedy can be a bit much when in a hurry.”
Tate just nodded, and I let Maxwell pull me from the counter. Someone else took our spot, and I waved as someone called out to me as we were leaving. Once we were outside, I smiled up at Maxwell. “They seemed so nice,” I said. “But what was with Lewis? Was he upset?”
Maxwell shook his head and chuckled. “No. Lewis is the ultimate romantic. He’s been telling me that my day was coming soon, and now, here you are. He’s not been in this realm long, but quite a few have found mates since he’s been here, and Lewis really wants one for himself.”
