I hated knowing how unhappy her job made her. That she struggled that much.
“You forget to buy food for yourself…” I began, only for her to finish my sentence.
“…but my cupboards are always full of baking supplies. I know.”
“You need to take better care of you,” I surmised.
She met my concerned gaze with her lovely eyes and indicated the large amount of baking all around her. “This feeds my soul.”
She slid another small group of flowers onto the top of the cake and nodded as if pleased. It looked like a garden—almost too pretty to eat. Yet, I wanted a piece of the cake she had baked. I wanted to sample her creation. To savor something that brought her joy and maintained her sanity. I wanted a piece of her soul.
“If this—” I indicated the various treats “—makes you happy, why don’t you do it full time?”
“Because I have to fulfill my obligation.”
“To your parents?” I guessed.
The happy light in her eyes died as she frowned. “Yes.”
“Are you done here?”
“For now.”
I extracted the icing bag from her hands. “We need to talk.”
“I don’t know if I can talk about this.”
I slid my arms around her waist, pulling her close. The way she immediately relaxed into me made me happy. I liked knowing how much she needed to be held by me.
“I will listen to whatever you can say. But I need to understand, Lottie.”
She was silent for a moment, then tilted back her head. “No one ever asks.”
“I’m not no one. Don’t you get that? Don’t you feel this connection between us?”
“Yes.” Her eyes held my gaze. “It’s…intense.”
I tightened my arms. “It is. It is also unbreakable. I’m here for you. So, today, tomorrow, next week, whenever you want to talk, I’m here.”
“Okay.”
I brushed my lips to hers. “Can I have another cookie?”
“You liked it?”
“Next to you, it was the most delicious thing I’ve ever eaten.”
Her cheeks flushed and she glanced away. I slipped my finger under her chin and met her eyes. “You and your cookies are amazing. So, yes, I want another one, or six. And I want to talk. Then I want to spend the rest of the day with you. Naked.”
“Oh,” she breathed. “Naked together?”
I chuckled. “It would be a little awkward if I was the only one naked.” I bent low and kissed the soft spot behind her ear as I stroked along her forearms with my thumbs. “Besides, what I want to do with you? You need to be naked too.”
She shivered, goose bumps rising on her skin. Tugging on the apron, she stepped back and pulled it away, tossing it to the counter. “Okay, then.”LottieWe sat in the living room. I made coffee and brought in a plate of cookies. I wanted the cake to set up before I sliced into it. It was always tastier after it cooled completely and the flavors melded. Logan picked up another cookie, biting and chewing, his eyes drifting shut in appreciation. He hummed in pleasure.
“All of these are incredible.”
“Good.”
He held out the cookie he was eating, pressing it to my mouth. “Bite,” he instructed. I hesitated and he frowned.
“Surely, you at least eat your own cookies, Lottie. You don’t give them all away?”
I opened my mouth and let him feed me. The spicy ginger and cinnamon flavor enhanced with the vanilla and lemon glaze burst in my mouth. It was one of my favorites, and this was a particularly good batch.
“I do,” I mumbled around my mouthful. “I eat a few of them.”
He tossed the rest of the cookie into his mouth, chewing. “Not enough.”
His concern touched me. He seemed to notice everything about me—and after the past many years of feeling invisible, it was an odd sensation. Yet, one I thought I quite liked.
He took my hand, stroking the skin. “When you didn’t show up at my place after your parents left so quickly, I thought perhaps you had changed your mind about me,” he confessed.
“How did you know they left quickly?”
Two streaks of crimson slashed over his high cheekbones. “I, ah, waited on the corner. In case…” He trailed off.
“In case?” I prompted.
“In case you were upset and needed me. If you came out right away, I wanted to be there for you. But you didn’t, so I went home and waited.” He met my eyes. “I don’t have your number, so I couldn’t call you. I got tired of waiting and worrying, so I came to find you.”
I moved closer and cupped his cheek. He covered my hand with his, pressing my palm into his skin. His beard was heavier than this morning, soft and bristly all at the same time under my touch. “I’m sorry I worried you. I had words with my parents, and when they left, I had to do something, so I started to bake. I only meant to make one batch of cookies, but I got caught up… I lost track of time.”