by C. J. Birch
“Aren’t you adorable. Oh yes, you are.” Hayley tilted her head back to stop the pooch from licking her mouth. “You must smell all the pastry I’ve been elbow deep in, huh?” And then her head turned to Lauren, who stood off to the side of the path watching her. Her attention diverted, Hayley fell over onto the path. Now with more access, the bulldog climbed up her torso, attacking her face with a new vigour. Hayley laughed. “Enough.” She pushed him away as the dog’s owner pulled him free.
Lauren helped Hayley up off the ground. She was covered in muddy paw prints and dirt. “Where did you come from?” Hayley asked.
It took Lauren a moment to find her voice. It felt so good to be standing in front of Hayley. “How are you?”
Hayley brushed at the mud, her cheeks pinked. She shrugged. “I’m working at a restaurant downtown. Ramiro knows the chef.”
Lauren picked a dead leaf out of Hayley’s hair and began ripping it to shreds. “Did Ramiro tell you about this class?”
“The pastry class? Yeah. He said my crusts need work so I should get a little help.” Hayley looked behind her. “How did you know I was in a pastry class?”
“I think Ramiro’s been playing matchmaker. I’m enrolled in the pastry-arts course.”
A smile lit up Hayley’s face. “Congrats, by the way. Ramiro told me you’d won. I wish I could’ve been there to see Hipster Dan’s face.”
“It was priceless. Something I’ll cherish for the rest of my life.”
They began walking down the path toward the diner. “Good. The asshole deserved to be handed his ass.”
“Well, it was better than that. He’s been disqualified from ever entering again because apparently he stole his idea from someone else.”
Hayley’s surprise was feigned. “No kidding.”
“And this time they had proof.”
Spring was just starting to make itself known. There were more and more mild days. All the snow had melted, although they probably had one more storm in their future. The end of March and early April usually featured at least one. The overcast sky belied the balmy weather they were having.
Lauren loved this time of year, when everything came back to life. With the hibernation over, the park filled with dogs and squirrels. The birds sang louder, and the sidewalks and streets were free of slush.
They meandered along the path, not sure where they were heading or caring.
“I’ve been meaning to say something for a long time.” Lauren pulled Hayley over to one of the benches off the path. “I should’ve said it, but I was too scared.”
Hayley took a seat on the bench next to Lauren, her azure eyes bright. She pulled out a bag of trail mix and offered some to Lauren, who shook her head. She was too nervous to eat.
“I shouldn’t have fired you.”
“No. That was exactly what you should’ve done. I stole money.” Hayley picked out a raisin and threw it on the ground. “Is that what you wanted to say?”
Lauren shook her head. “The biggest regret I’ve had in the last—hell, probably ever—was letting you walk out of my life without saying I love you.”
A white squirrel jumped up onto the end of the bench, a raisin between its paws. Hayley stared at it, frozen in shock and warmth and excitement. The squirrel swished its tail a few times, then hopped off the bench in search of more food. Hayley returned her attention to the beautiful woman sitting across from her. If anything, she looked better than Hayley remembered. Her dark bangs hung above her soft brown eyes, catching the light in such a way that they almost appeared golden. Her red lips seemed more so next to her pale skin.
Hayley didn’t doubt that she’d made a huge mistake leaving. She’d run from Casper Falls and the whole humiliating mess with Violet, but she was done with that. She leaned into Lauren for the softest of kisses. “My biggest regret is leaving you without telling you how much I love you.”
Lauren smiled. “You can’t have the same regret.”
“No? How about this? My biggest regret will be you not accepting my dinner invitation.”
Lauren grasped Hayley’s cheeks and pulled her close. “We wouldn’t want to make any more regrets, would we?” When they kissed this time, the park and everyone in it fell away. Hayley’s grip had loosened, and her bag of trail mix fell to the ground.
The white squirrel, who had been biding its time off to the side, scurried up and began shoving nuts into its mouth as fast as it could. Above, two women sat oblivious to everything in the world except each other.
About the Author
CJ Birch is a Toronto-based video editor and digital artist. When not lost in a good book or working, she can be found writing or drinking serious coffee, or doing both at the same time.
An award-winning poet, CJ holds a certificate in journalism but prefers the world of make-believe. She is the reluctant co-owner of two cats, one of which is bulimic, the other with bladder issues, both evil walking fur shedders.
CJ is the author of the New Horizons series. Just One Taste is her fifth book. You can visit CJ on social media @cjbirchwrites or at www.cjbirchwrites.com.
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