“I’m good.” I finger the lace of the new wedding dress. An Alonuko original. I have no idea how Royal got it custom made overnight.
“You sure? No lingering effects from yesterday?”
I flush. I am a little sore, but not from being held hostage. Royal was pretty eager to show me how glad he was that I was back safe and sound. And I was just as eager to reciprocate.
But I woke up alone. Royal left a note and a chocolate muffin, but I’d have preferred him.
“I’ll take that as a no,” Lula says with a grin. “You might be interested to know, I just came from the hospital. Royal’s father and the rest of them need counsel.” I stiffen, but Lula doesn’t notice. She tosses her dark hair over shoulder. “I'm arranging plea bargains for all of them. The firemen and cops didn’t like all the drugs they found. They’re going to jail for a long time.”
I bite my lip. This is good news, but will Royal be happy that I got his dad in trouble?
“We don't even have to bring kidnapping charges unless you really want to,” Lula adds gently. “I figured you might want to stay out of it.”
“I do,” I say quickly.
“Then that’s settled. I have to say it's my first time dealing with a situation like this. Typically, when I do hospital visits, my client has been shot, not taken out by a cupcake. But one of the guys is in critical condition. The rest are severely dehydrated.”
“They ate a lot of cupcakes.”
“Yeah they told me that.” She snickers. “I had to fight to keep a straight face. I can’t believe your plan worked.”
I shrug. “No one suspected a thing. Pink cupcakes are the most innocuous thing on earth.”
Lula shakes her head. “I told Royal he’d better watch himself with you.”
“I only make laxative cupcakes in extreme situations.”
“Good to know. But it might be a while before I eat anything else you bake.”
“That’s fair.”
We share a grin.
“Seriously, Leah, you did good. A whole embarrassing branch of our family was taken out in one go. The three othercrime families in Metropolis are watching. We needed a show of strength if we're going to take a seat at the table.”
Lula moves to the mirror and straightens her dress, unaware that she’s making my head spin.
“Royal’s father was the weakest link, but now Royal has proven that he can clean house. And he did it without having to kill his father. What did I tell you?” Lula holds up her manicured fingers. “Royal needed a bride. He needed a reason to get rid of his father. And he wanted you. I told you.” She taps her temple. “Royal has a brain like an engineer. He's always tinkering. Always fixing things in his head. His mind works like a clock.”
“Right.” I blow out a shaky breath.
“All right, let’s head out.” Lula grabs her Chanel purse and fishes for her keys. “I’m supposed to drive you to the church. Unless you want to blow off my cousin and head to Atlantic City?” Her tone is joking, but there’s a serious assessment in her dark eyes.
“No.” I smooth my hands down the bodice.
Lula’s dark eyes search my face. “I’m serious, Leah. You don’t have to marry him, if you don’t want to. “
“I do want to.” I might not be totally okay with everything in his world, but I want Royal. “But on the way to the church… is it okay if we make one stop?”
The bakery isa bright spot in the dark strip mall. Someone’s replaced the old door and added a fresh coat of paint. The overhead sign is new and bigger, with pink lettering like I always wanted.
“You’ll be okay?” Lula calls from her black Beemer. I nod and pick up my skirts, trudging to the new front door. Once inside, Idrop my train, unsure of what to do. The place smells like spices—red beans and rice, goat curry. Mrs. Rossi is cooking again.
“Leah!” Mr. Rossi bursts from the back, Mrs. Rossi right behind him. They sandwich me, taking turns giving me hugs. “Look at you!”
“Bellissima!”
“Ms. Rossi,” I choke out. “You look great.”
