Since I knew he was coming, I was sure to have the double shot of espresso ready to go, and thanked the heavens I’d thought to buy the expensive coffee machine. Just having Cyrus come into my shop everyday made going into debt worth it. I got the coffee brewing and then went to my display case and pulled out a chocolate peanut butter cupcake. I always made sure I had one for him even if it meant telling other customers I was out.
I set the cupcake on a pretty lime colored plate with a white doily. Then I steamed the milk for his double cappuccino.
“How’re things at the office?” I asked as I handed him his cupcake and drink.
“Jude and April came in with the baby,” he said, taking his items to his usual table. I grabbed my water, grateful that no one else was in the shop so I could join him. Good thing he wasn’t there all day or I’d go out of business with all this not wanting customers there when he was.
“Oh, little Bertie.” He was as sweet as any cupcake. “Was he delicious looking as usual?”
Cyrus’ lips twitched upwards. I think he found me amusing. “He was cute. Healthy. Jude said he’d gained three pounds.”
“Jude or Bertie?”
He snickered and had to cover his mouth with his napkin. “I believe he was talking about the baby. But he is looking a little pudgy around the middle, now that you mention it.”
Jude was like Cyrus. Built from bricks. But I went with the joke. “That would never happen to you.”
He sat up straight and puffed out his chest. Immediately, my mouth went dry as I thought about running my tongue over the hard lines of his pecs visible even through his shirt. He thumped his chest. “Like steel.”
I managed a smile as I wondered about another part of him that could be like steel. Seriously, I was going deliriously mad with erotic lust around him.
“If you eat too many cupcakes, it could be a problem,” I said.
He shook his head with confidence. “I run an extra two miles just so I can have one every day.”
I didn’t doubt it. “So, Jude and April looked good?” I knew they did. April and Jude had stopped by to pick up a cupcake for Maya on their way to pick her up from school. But I liked having Cyrus visit so I’d let him tell me about his time with them.
“They did. Happy.”
I sighed. “Yes. True love won out in the end.”
He sipped his coffee and studied me over the brim. “You believe in true love?” he asked as he set his coffee down.
“Sure. They’re proof of it.”
“How about you?”
Cyrus and I talked some in the past about our non-existent love lives. I knew he had a woman in the past who sent him a “Dear John” letter. As far as I was concerned, she had to be the dumbest woman in the world. I mean, who’d give up a sweet, strong, loyal, and sexy beyond belief man like Cyrus?
He knew that I hadn’t a lot of time for love since starting my business. I was up at the crack of dawn making cupcakes, serving them all day, making a few more before heading to bed, and then doing it all over again the next day. The closest thing I had to a social life was the time I’d spent hanging out with April and Maya before Jude had come back into their lives.
“My big love right now is my business,” I said. It wasn’t a lie. I loved owning my shop. But I couldn’t deny that having a man in my life would be nice. I envied April and how Jude doted on her. “How about you?”
He shook his head with a small laugh. “With Jude out, I’ve been married to the job too.”
“But now he’s back. Surely you have time to find a good woman.” I’d want to scratch her eyes out from jealousy. A part of me wished he and I could explore this crazy lust I had for him. I’d even tried to find out if he’d be interested in me. Once when I was in the kitchen, he helped me out by getting a bag of flour from a tall shelf. I’d purposefully stayed put so he’d have to brush against me. I think I might have orgasmed right then as his hard body pushed against me. I was sure he could tell, and I was so embarrassed, I quickly scurried away to make my cupcakes.
He shrugged at my comment about his having more time with Jude back at work.
“How about the Halloween party. Are you going to that? I’m sure there will be plenty of women you can meet there.” There was seriously something wrong with me that I was suggesting he find another woman.
He was shaking his head before I finished.
“You’re not going?” I asked.
“Oh, I’m going. I couldn’t get out of it. But I’m not going to pick up a woman or bring a date.”
“You sound like that would be such a hardship.” I joked.