“Ms. Sutton?”
“Thessaly, sir,” I answered automatically. Straightening in my chair, I tried to focus on the lesson. “It was the homeland of the ancient heroes Jason and Achilles, and also one of three places the demigod Perseus was said to have killed his grandfather.”
Professor Bryant chuckled. “I only asked for the country, Ms. Sutton, not the history. But thank you; you are correct.”
My cheeks heated as a few of the other students laughed at me. By now, I was used to it. I probably knew more about ancient religious lore than most of my professors combined. Random facts came to me without my even thinking about them anymore, even half-asleep as I was. When the class was finally dismissed, I ran out the door.
Sophie and I had stayed up half the night dissecting what went down at the bakery. Of course, she was all for it, but nothing ever kept Sophie down. I, on the other hand, felt differently. Those few seconds were so fucking hot, I’d thought I was going to set him on fire, but a player wasn’t exactly the kind I wanted to jump into bed with. The one thing I wanted consistently was an emotional connection, and that was something a man like Sam couldn’t give me.
To judge a book by its cover, he didn’t strike me as the type to commit to anyone but himself. I took so many phone numbers in the one week I ran the front of the shop, I felt dirty just touching them, and from men and women alike. He did say he liked options, and my previous opinion of his sleeping with half of Boston had underestimated his varied tastes. And the ones left for me… well, they went in the drawer, too.
Ugh. I shuddered.
There was no denying the attraction, though. I’d tried my damnedest not to flirt with him, and thank God for my Theater Arts courses, but one moment ruined all my hard work. Pretending like it didn’t happen worked well enough for me, but Sam might not agree. Maybe I should do what Sophie said and just go for it. Not for a relationship, but one night of relief we obviously both needed.
We could still be adults and work together after that, right?
Not likely, but it was a good thought.
A dark-skinned arm wrapped around my shoulder as Sophie snuck up on me again. I groaned sarcastically and pushed her away when she smacked a loud kiss on my cheek. “What’s up, Red?”
“Heading home to bake,” I told her. “Since it’s my day off, I have some recipes I wanted to try out, maybe see if Sam is interested in adding any to his menu.”
“Ooh, get it, girl!” She skipped in a circle around me before latching onto my arm. “Well, I’ve got a ride home from the gym, so I won’t be in until very late tonight, if not tomorrow. You feel me?” She winked so conspicuously it was hard not to laugh. “You should call Mr. Hottie and have him come get some dessert tonight.”
I gasped dramatically, holding one hand to my chest and the other fanning my face. "My dear Ms. Pratten, whatever are you implying? Such a scandal!"
“On my word, Ms. Sutton, they do say the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach,” Sophie replied, imitating a southern accent as she waved her hand flippantly. “Do invite your gentleman caller over to… Sophieple your wares.”
We glanced at each other for a moment, then burst out laughing. I loved Sophie for how easily our conversations flowed. She got me in a way no one else had tried to before. I decided to do it, for better or worse. If nothing else, then at least we could discuss why last night was a bad idea on so many levels.
“Just don’t forget to save me some.” Sophie tossed her bag in the back of my Jeep and climbed in. “You know how I love your desserts.”
After dropping her off at the gym, I sent Sam a quick text and got to work in my tiny apartment kitchen. I changed into comfy leggings and a tank top, throwing my bracelets and all but one necklace onto my nightstand. Then I scooped my hair into a messy bun before donning my chef coat. Bowls littered every available flat surface, a spoon or whisk stirring away in each one. I'd promised myself before I started atSinsational Sweets,I wasn’t going to use my magic near him, but it was too easy to fall back into old habits. More than a few times, I’d caught myself using it when I needed to step away for a second and was thankful Sam hadn’t caught on.
My mom had taught me the easy stirring spell when I was young and helped cook alongside her. I didn’t spend much time learning witch magic—mostly because my chaos magic required more of my attention—but I knew a handful of useful spells for clean-up and making things move. I’d attempted the old Mickey Mouse walking broom trick when I was nine, but it didn’t go so well. I was digging splinters out of my hair for a week after I accidentally blew it up.
I pulled the batch of chocolate cherry cookies out to cool and turned the oven up for the small batches of Philly cheesesteak and pizza puffs. His lunch menu was fucking delicious but didn’t get quite as much business as breakfast and dessert. These would be easier to handle on the go, among both the college crowd and busy professionals with short lunch breaks, and would boost our lunch sales.
Not like we needed the business or anything. We were already so swamped, I’d thought about dropping college and working full-time to help him keep up. I was just trying to improve what was there, to make the day more consistent.
While my puffs baked, I frosted the triple chocolate devil’s food cupcakes. I’d found plastic devil horn toppers in the seasonal aisle and thought they would be perfect for someSinsationaldesserts with Halloween coming up next month. The dark icing spiraled perfectly and I stuck the horns on each one.
I really hoped he liked the play on the shop name.
The oven timer beeped the Sophiee time the doorbell rang. I flipped the oven off and pulled the tray out, then ran to the door. With a quick prayer to the universe, hoping I didn’t fuck this up for once, I took a calming breath and opened it. Sam stood on the other side, hands tucked in the pockets of his black slacks and his black uniform shirt practically molded to his fine-ass physique.
My mouth was watering, and it wasn’t because of the amazing smells coming from my place.
No, Lexi! Down!
He grinned, a flash of white against his tanned skin, and his beautiful teal blue eyes almost glowed in the low light of my living room. I opened the door wider and let him by.
“Come on in. I’ve got a small feast prepared.”
“A small feast?” he asked, glancing into my kitchen as he entered. “It smells delightful.”
I bit my lip, fighting back a smile at the compliment, and pointed him toward the couch. He touched his fingers to the book sitting on the arm, and I resisted the urge to snatch it up and hide it in my room. I hadn’t had a chance to finish it since I started working between classes. His lips twitched when he read the title, and I got the impression he was trying to hide his amusement.
