Millionaire Crush (Freeman Brothers 3)

“You just had to choose my bakery, didn’t you?” I asked.

“Well, I couldn’t exactly have Mom make it. And I wanted the best.”

“You made a good choice,” I said. “The chocolate is particularly good.”

“Kelly chose it,” Quentin said.

That made me sigh. “You got Kelly in on this, too?”

“She’s part of the family, Vince. You wouldn’t want us to leave her out, would you?” he asked.

“Alright. I see how you’re playing now. I’m going to go work, but let Merry know I’ll be contacting her about your birthday.”

Quentin was still laughing when he hung up. Grinning again, I shook my head and went back to the cake. Anthony might have been duped into delivering the taunt, but the man made a good cake. And that morning, I did feel like celebrating. Even though there were things I still didn’t know, I was very sure about one thing. I had very strong feelings for Lindsey. It was long past a crush now.

It was a good workday, and I was happy to see everybody getting back to their usual productive style. Now that Merry and Quentin’s baby was here and many wedding decisions had been made, the chaos had died down. I was happy to ride that for as long as it would last.

I was just getting ready to leave for the day when my phone alerted me to a text from Lindsey.

Come by the bar. I’ve got dinner.

It was just a simple invitation, but it brought that big, goofy grin back to my face. I told her I was on the way and headed down to the parking lot. The grin hadn’t lessened even a little when I climbed into my truck and started for the bar wondering when I would stop being so damn happy. And hoping I never would.24LindseyVince caught my eye as soon as he walked into the bar and I smiled at him. As he made his way over, I dipped back into the kitchen to grab the plate the food I made for him. Piling fresh, golden French fries next to the burger, I carried it out and set it down on the bar in front of him. He leaned toward me for a quick kiss before I grabbed a pint glass to fill with his favorite beer.

“This looks incredible,” he said, examining the massive burger in the center of his plate.

“It’s my father’s special burger. The one my mom started making for him and he put on the menu when he first took this place over from his dad. It isn’t on the menu anymore.” I leaned closer and dropped my voice to a whisper. “It’s a secret.”

Vince laughed and picked the burger up. Caramelized onions and sautéed mushrooms dripping in garlic butter slid out on a cascade of melted provolone and swiss cheeses. His teeth crunched through a layer of crispy bacon between the two patties, and he let out a moan. That sound woke my body up and made it hard for me to concentrate on the work I needed to be doing.

What I really wanted to be doing was finding all the ways I could make that sound come out of Vince that didn’t involve food.

He hung out at the bar throughout the evening and into the night. It was one of the few nights Nick didn’t come by, but that didn’t surprise me. I’d called him earlier in the day and told him not to come. It was with a lot of assurances of my undying adoration and promises that if Grant came back and I got to kick his ass, I would film it, but I did it. Tonight, I just wanted to be with Vince.

And the couple hundred people who drifted in and out of the bar for dinner or drinks. But I could handle them. As long as they got what they ordered, they were happy and stayed out of my conversation. Mondays tended to see lighter crowds, which meant I only had one person in the kitchen and one other in the front of the bar with me. That kept me running around at some points, but I stopped to talk to Vince as often as I could.

I was buzzing with energy, and by the end of the night, I knew I didn’t want to wait anymore. I knew what I wanted. It might be fast, but it was different with Vince. We had history. More importantly, we had a connection unlike anything I’d ever experienced. I wanted to experience even more.

The customers dwindled fairly early, so I checked with the others to make sure they were good if I cut out early. They confirmed they were, so I left them to lock up and walked out into the parking lot with Vince. When we got to his truck, I slid my arms around his waist and touched a kiss to the side of his neck.