Family now.
I hadn’t realized how much I’d missed hearing something like that. Ever since I was little, Grams had told me that it didn’t matter if your family was small; it just mattered that you had one, even if you picked it foryourself. I’d taken that to heart. After she passed, it had set me loose into the world without a tether. Truly alone. Until now, I’d thought I’d done okay, but now I understood how much I needed to feel like I belonged.
Milton and Derek were safely waiting for their arraignment, but I still had a lot of questions about all the whys.
Now, standing in the doorway, the smell of sugar and coffee was almost enough to make me cry. Mia was already behind the counter, her apron looking like it had been through one too many flour wars.
“Morning, boss,” she said, not looking up. “You’re late. Again.”
“It’s seven-oh-five,” I said, hanging my scarf. “That’s not late. That’s fashionably delayed.” I’d gone back to walking to the shop instead of driving, and I was enjoying the heck out of it.
“Tell that to the mixer. I thought it was going to revolt.” She glanced over her shoulder, grinning.
We settled into the rhythm that we had established long ago as we assembled our cake slices for the day, baked fresh sets of scones, and then filled the bakery cases. This month, in honor of our book club selection, we had a distinctly English theme with specialty teas, finger sandwiches, and treats like frangipane tarts. But I had to admit that I loved the challenge of learning new recipes.
I wrote up our specials. We were still putting in a few of ourRose Codeoptions, so we had a Bletchley Lemon Drizzle slice with a rose glaze and a Rose Martini Mocktail, made with pink lemonade, rose syrup, and tonic water, with a sugar rim.
After we opened, I moved to the bookstore section to restock and check the shelves. It was surprising how quickly things could fall out of place, especially with waves of tourists passing through. People often moved books around while browsing the blurbs, then left them in the wrong spots. Not that I minded, but it took some effort to make sure I was either recirculating the end cap books or returning them to their proper spots. There were also new releases that needed to be shelved, which was one of my favorite jobs.
“Hey, East. You want a coffee?” I heard Mia say.
Popping up from the stacks, I could see my man’s sexy ass self as he sauntered to the counter. “Hey,” I said, giving him a little wave.
“Coffee would be great,” East’s voice was still gravelly from the cold as he shrugged out of his coat. “You been keeping her in line?”
Mia snorted. “Trying. She keeps sneaking in late and pretending she’s fine. I keep pretending to believe her.”
I shot her a look. “You’re not supposed to narc on your boss after eleven.” Sidling up beside my man, I let him cuddle me and kiss my temple, his hand roaming over that curve of my hip that he favored. He made appreciative little noises as he waited for Mia to bring his coffee over. “You want something sweet with your coffee?”
“I got something right here,” he murmured before he let his hand drift under the edge of my sweater.
Giving him a tame kiss on the lips, I darted out of his grip and moved behind the counter to heat a cinnamon roll, trying to ignore his eyes on me. I’d never get anythingdone if I stayed right next to him, and I’d want more than a chaste kiss or two. I’d want to corral him in the back office and see what magic he could do with his tongue. The problem was that Easton Holt was a bad boy at heart, and he would be more than accommodating to a romp in the office, but I had work to do.
The bell jingled again, and Sage swept in, a gust of cold air, wrapped in her purple coat. “Good morning, my favorite people!” she said brightly. “I brought green stuff for the display window. Hello brother. What’s shaking?”
“Sage,” Easton chuckled under his breath. “Come here and give me a hug.”
Sage smirked and did as he asked, setting down her bundle of assorted rosemary, evergreens, and what looked like ivy. “Thought your window needed a refresh for book club.”
“Very nice. Thanks, Sage-O-Rama.” I gathered up the garlands. “You want to help me swap everything out?” She was the best at decorating. I definitely benefited a lot from having a best friend in the florist business. My windows always looked fresh and stylish.
We moved together to the window, and she began swapping out our current display before nesting in the ivy’s fronds among the teacups and weaving baby’s breath between them. “This will last about a week. When’s this book going to finish up?”
“Soon,” I said. “Just one more week, then I’ll let people stew for a bit. Maybe start dropping some hints. You’ll like the next one.”
Sage’s eyes sparkled. “Is it going to be raunchy?”She wiggled her eyebrows over at her brother as we made our way back with the bottles that we’d borrowed from her shop. “Maybe we can make some people blush.”
“You know the rules, Sage. No hints. Not even for you.” She fake grumped a little while we packed up the bottles.
“I wouldn’t mind a raunchy title.” East winked over at me. “But maybe we can save that for private book club night. You know how much I love those.”
Sage clapped her hands over her ears. “Stop it. My ears. My brain. I’m going to need bleach.”
I hadn’t told Sage of East’s newfound interest in Ruby Dixon’sIce Planet Barbarianseries. He’d surprised me by coming home one day, nearly frantic as he’d carried me to the bed, pulling down my leggings (thank God for leggings) and diving between my thighs where he’d set to proving that it wasn’t just Vektal that knew how to eat. Apparently, he’d gotten hold of an audiobook version of the first book.
He’d gotten himself all worked up and rushed home for a little relief. I loved how it made him all hot and bothered. Spicy books for the win.
The door chimed, drawing me out of my very hot reminiscing as I shot a glance toward East. He’d been watching me, tracking my every move like he always did. He offered a small smirk, as if he knew exactly what I was thinking.
