His eyes darken. “Don’t you know, Mabel? I know everything.”
His tone is ominous, with zero mirth. For a few terrifying seconds, I believe this is his way of telling me he knows that I’m fantasizing about Corbin coming up behind me as I mix batter, wrapping his arms around me, then kissing the sugar off my neck and stripping me to nothing but an apron.
Holy shit, my fantasies are getting weirdly specific.
I perform an immediate mind-wipe. “If you know everything, then what’s the temperature for baking an upside-down pineapple cake?” I want to trip him up and maybe get sex off my brain too.
But Theo laughs and says, “Actually, Corbin sent me up. I was walking past the weight room, and he told me he was going to meet you here. I said I’d get you since I don’t want him to break his workout routine. But now that I’ve got you, how’s everything going? Do I need to fuck him up for any reason?”
“Have you always been pugilistic?” I ask as we head down the escalator to the food concourse, where workers prep snacks for tonight’s game.
He stops at a plant wall and gives me a serious look. “Yes.”
I roll my eyes and motion for him to resume walking. “You don’t need to fuck him up for any reason.”
“Noted. But the offer stands. Also, I put in a call to the lawyers atRomance Beachand made it clear they shouldn’t talk about you again.”
“Seriously?”
“Yes,” he says, pulling no punches. “Look, your ex is a prick. What the hell is his problem—talking shit about you on TV?”
“I’ve mostly tried to ignore it,” I say, though it’s not always easy to put my head in the sand about the fallout—losing a shot at a loan. Plus, I’m a meme.
“Good,” he says. “You should. But that’s why you’ve got me—so I can handle this for you, and they’ll know better.”
“What did they say? The lawyers?”
“They said…Heard.”
I stand up straighter. “Oh. Really?” That’s code for understood.
“Yep.” He drapes an arm around me and pulls me in for a brotherly hug. “And next time, when you decide to date again, let me meet the guy first. Vet him. Make sure he’s not an asshat. Or better yet, how about you take a timeout from dating and focus on this bakery, and let’s launch the fuck out of it?”
Oooh, did my brother just expressly tell me not to date? Normally, nothing would make me want to date more, because I don’t need or want his permission to seeanyone.But…that’s some solid advice. I wasn’t even on the apps—I deleted them all after Dax dumped me—but this is a good reminder that it’s best I focus on my love for sugar and butter, rather than on hearts and flutters.
I hold out a hand to shake. “It’s a deal.”
Theo blinks.
I might have fallen into a parallel universe because my brother never blinks. Metaphorically, of course.
“For real?” he asks.
I glance around like I’m checking for spies. “For real. And look, don’t tell anyone that I agree with you. I need to give this business my all. I want Afternoon Delight to be a big, raging, ridiculous success. Romance is a distraction.”
“Damn straight it is. Always choose the bear,” he says, still shaking my hand.
“The bear,” I echo with a decisive nod, like we’re sealing a deal for picking the bear over the man when confronted with that choice. I meet his gaze. “And hey, it works both ways. You’ve been a little romance-shy since Ginny.”
He glares at me. “We don’t need to mention her.”
“I’m just saying, if and when you get back out there, you should let me do some vetting too. I can make sure you’re not with a backstabber.”
He peers over his shoulder. “Is the knife she twisted in me still there?”
I pat his shoulder. “Nope.”
When we resume our pace, he tilts his head. “Afternoon Delight, huh? That’s a little naughty.”
