So many fond memories. So many good holidays spent here.
Eliza shrugged out of her sweater and into Lachlan’s t-shirt. She couldn’t help but note the sharp evergreen scent, which seemed to surround her now in a relentless cloud. She couldn’t help herself as she breathed it in repeatedly, enjoying the fragrance. He smelled of peppermints and Christmas trees, with a blend of a manly sort of musk that Eliza couldn’t place.
She glanced in the mirror and rolled her eyes. It was a band t-shirt with the graphic of a hand in the “Rock and Roll” symbol, and the slogan above saying: “Sleighing It.”
Whatever. She wasn’t going to a fashion show. And she certainly wouldn’t feel insecure in these baggy clothes. She was here for one reason, and one alone. It wasn’t to look cute or impress anyone. She did, however, pinch her cheeks and nose, cursing the storm outside for not allowing her to get into her makeup bag.
She stalked back down the stairs and rounded the corner to find Lachlan sitting at the kitchen island, hanging a treat over the dragon’s nose, commanding the creature to sit.
The dragon was wagging its tail with its head cocked to one side, but it wasn’t listening.
Lachlan glanced over at Eliza. “He doesn’t know how to sit.”
“Or he does, and he’s choosing to ignore you.” She leaned against the counter.
She swore she saw the little dragon cast her a wink. “So. Back to naming you.” She eyed the dragon.
He eyed her back.
Eliza thought for a minute. “How about Biscuit?”
The little dragon pastry audaciously made a gagging noise before flapping over to the baker’s rack, this time much more carefully than before. With a delicate wing, he tapped on a little metal tin of recipe cards, making sure not to topple anything else over in the process.
“Not Biscuit, I take it?” Eliza giggled, opening the box for him. He shook his head back and forth vigorously, extending his wing even further. “What is it you want in here?”
She sifted through each colorful cardstock page one by one, each recipe more enticing than the next.Yuletide Christmas Cake, North Pole Panettone, Pistachio and White Chocolate Stollen, and Jingle Bell Bundt Cake...
The collection was massive, and the possibilities swirled in her mind as she tried to narrow down which sweet treat shewould craft first. Some of the recipes even sparkled faintly, as if competing for her attention.
Her fingers thrummed across one labeled “Reindeer Chow.” Before she could pull it free, a low growling noise rumbled through the dragon. His gumdrop eyes narrowed at the recipe card, hissing his displeasure.
“Not a fan of reindeer chow?” Eliza asked. To her amazement, the little fire-breathing biscuit shook his head. He batted his wings, planted his feet on the rim of the tin box and shuffled through each card with his snout.
Eliza couldn’t help but smile. “You’ve got opinions now, huh?”
He stopped once he reached a card labeled “Gingerbread Snap Dragons.”
Eliza’s mouth dropped open. This was the recipe card that made him. And he wanted toeatthem? “You can't be serious. You want me to make these?”
Now that she knew he could understand what she was saying, she certainly wasn’t going to voice that she didn’t wish to make any more pastries of his kind.
The dragon shook his head again, nudging her with his gumdrop and pointing at the name. “Oh, I see,” retorted Eliza. “You’re trying to tell me what you are!”
The dragon nodded his head yes in response.
“But that isn’t your actual name, is it?” She blinked.
Another shake.
“Well, what is it, then?” she asked.
With his snout, he began shifting through the cards again until he stopped. He tapped a word halfway down the page.
“Puffcake ...”she recited.Her eyes shot wide. “That’s your name. Your name is Puffcake!”
The creature flapped his wings, barking as he spun midair.
A genuine laugh escaped Eliza’s lips, one of the first since the breakup and the shop closing down. “Well, Puffcake, I think it’s only fitting that we first paid homage to your name. Do you mind grabbing two eggs from the fridge?”
