“What?”
She resisted a giggle. He was just as grumpy as she was in the mornings when someone disturbed her sleep. He was silent too long and a finger of dread slipped down her spine. At the gentle touch on her right arm she twisted her head in that direction.
“The alarm was triggered at the shop again.”
She knew who was behind this now. All she had to do was figure a way to catch him. “All right.” She kicked off the sheet, scooted to the edge of the bed and stood. He was there before she could truly get her bearings.
“I wanted to make you breakfast in bed.”
“It’s okay.” She rested her hands on his chest. “You can do that another morning.” She didn’t think she’d ever tire of touching him. Slowly, she drifted one hand over his chest until she cupped his cheek. Day old stubble prickled her palm, then she swept her thumb over his lips. A moment later she rose on tiptoe to kiss him. “Let’s get to the bakery.”
****
Thirty-three minutes later they stood in the waiting area of the bakery. The police already did what they needed to do and the newly repaired door was intact. Thankfully nothing had been disturbed.
“Do you think it was a glitch with the alarm system? Maybe the battery for the thing is going?” She unwound her scarf and unbuttoned her coat.
“I don’t think so. Wait here. I’ll check things again.”
“Are the cops still outside?”
Footsteps scuffed against the floor. “Yeah. They’ll probably stay out there until we open.” Clothing rustled and he gripped her shoulders. “You know they’re fans of yours. You should give them a cupcake or something.”
She laughed. “They’ll think I’m flirting again.”
“They know you’re off limits.”
“Interesting. I didn’t peg you as the jealous type.”
“I’m not.” He slanted his mouth over hers. “Stay here while I have another look around. When we walked through earlier something was bothering me.”
“Where am I?”
“If I tell you that, you won’t be still.” His voice faded as he moved away.
Hinges squeaked. “Something smells weird.”
“Stay where you are,” came the muffled response.
She smirked. Did he really think that would deter her? She tilted her head, listening. The hum of the display cases reached her ears. With one hand thrown out in front of her she carefully walked forward. Something smelled off.
Her fingers touched cold glass and metal, then slipped in something wet and sticky. She wrinkled her nose in disgust. Totally gross. Why hadn’t the closing crew wiped down the cases? Someone was getting disciplined over this.
She rubbed her fingers together. The substance was tacky. It wasn’t icing or chocolate. Again, she dipped an experimental finger in the goo. There was something familiar about it. As much as she detested the task, she followed the sticky stuff nearly to the end of the counter and stopped. The odor was stronger here. Something familiar. A little sweet, but she couldn’t place the scent. She wiped her hand on her coat, then stopped and brought her fingers to her nose, sniffing. A frown teased her mouth. Lotion? Or maybe some sort of hand sanitizer? That’s what it was. Why would someone squirt that all over the display case?
“Avery,” Penelope called. “There’s some weird lotion/hand sanitizer on the counter.”
Avery stopped mid-stride. He hadn’t seen any lotion on the cases when he switched on the lights. He changed directions and headed toward the front again. Something didn’t feel right.
“And it feels weird too.”
He stifled a groan. What had she walked into this time? Stubborn female. The only time she seemed to follow directions was in bed. Just thinking about what they’d shared most of the night had his cock springing to life. A quick glance at his watch let him know there wouldn’t be enough time to indulge in her lush curves before the first employee arrived in thirty minutes.
Avery rounded a table. The odor hit him then, reminding him of an overheated heated car and a buffet line. A blur of red hair caught his attention above the swinging doors. What was she doing now? He picked up his pace, some instinct urged him forward.
“There’s a small box here. Did you leave another gift?”
Gift? His heart pounded. He hadn’t... “No.” Through the crack in the swinging gate, he watched her reach for a square-like object nestled between the register and a stack of bakery bags. The paper glistened with a bluish tinge. Warning bells clanged in his head. That’s what was off. She lifted the lid. “Penelope, no!”
A spark. That’s all it took and the entire display seemed to go up in flames. Fear and panic culminated in a scream as Penelope stumbled away from the fire, yet the blaze moved with her.
Avery’s world narrowed, heart stuttering as he realized the right side of her coat was on fire. Adrenaline shoved him into action. He slammed through the gates, leapt across the counter and tackled her in one smooth move. He rolled her, snatching her coat from her body and slapping out the remaining flames from her clothes.
“Are you okay?” He ran his hands over her body. She coughed and moaned, but nodded. Smoke quickly filled the space. Heat singed his face. Pounding and shouting reached his ears.
He twisted his head. The cops from outside crowded at the door. With an arm around Penelope, he helped her to her feet and hurried to the door. No sooner had he twisted the lock, uniforms blurred together as people spilled in and they were yanked out. A coughing spasm wracked his body.
Avery glanced around the rapidly filling street. Sirens shrieked their presence as a fire engine rounded the corner, an ambulance not far behind. Smoke billowed from the open door and Penelope was nowhere to be found.
Heart lodged in his throat, he pushed his way through the gathering crowd. “Penelope.” His voice seemed lost in the din of shouts and idling engines. “Penelope.” He had to find her. Make sure she was okay.
“Here.”
Relief coursed through his veins and sagged his shoulders. She was seated on the bed of a pickup truck, a blanket wrapped around her body. Her hands, palm side up, rested on her thighs. Soot and tears streaked her face, now reddened from the heat.
He palmed her cheek, leaned down and kissed her. Without hesitation, she fused her mouth to his, accepting what he had to offer. He pulled away, resting his forehead against hers. “I don’t think I’ve ever been so scared in my life.” He smoothed her hair from her face. A few of the strands were singed, but nothing serious.
“Me too.”
He looked her over and for the first time really noticed her hands. “Oh, my God.” He pushed her sleeves up, gently inspecting the reddened flesh. “We’ve got to get you to a hospital.”
She chuckled. “It burns a little. How bad is the bakery?”
Avery glanced at the building. The fire extinguished before it could do more damage. “We won’t be opening today or tomorrow.” He cradled her face between his palms. “I’m sorry, P.”
“My parents are going to flip when they hear about this.”
“Are you ready to sign the bakery over to me?”
A tremor ran through Penelope and Avery stiffened at the smug note in the voice behind him. He released Penelope and whirled on his heel.
“What business do you have here, Sam?”
Sam shrugged. “I heard all the commotion and wanted to see if Penny had been injured.” He glanced at Avery, then to the woman seated on the pickup truck. “You seem to have hurt yourself. You know it’s a liability to have a blind person in front of an open flame.” He grinned.
Avery balled his fingers into a fist and did his best to smash the leer off the other man’s face. Blood gushed over his hand and bone and cartilage crunched in his wake. He stepped back, shaking out his hand as Sam landed on his butt.
“Did you just hit him?” Penelope was at his back, shock in her voice.
“Yes.”
“That’s him. That’s the guy. I saw him sneaking around the
bakery earlier.” An older man, who held the arm of a uniformed officer, pointed at Sam.
“Yep. That’s him, all right. Saw him the other day too.” This came from someone else.
“You’ve got that wrong.” Sam stood and wiped his nose with the back of his hand. “I want this guy arrested for assault. He broke my nose.”
“From where I stood it looked like you took a face plant,” the older man said. Several others in the gathering crowd nodded in agreement.
“Avery, what’s going on?” Penelope nudged him.
He turned, dragged the blanket more fully around her shoulders. “Sam is being arrested.”
“Oh.”
“Yes. And we need to get you some medical attention.” He propelled her toward an EMT. “I need to know you’re okay.”
Chapter Seven
“So you guys we’re right.” Penelope carefully rested her bandaged hands in her lap and leaned closer to the phone in front of her. She had both her best friends on speaker.
“Of course we’re right,” Moira agreed.
“We know scum when we hear it.” This was from Violet.
“The authorities here received some pretty convincing evidence of fraud, embezzlement and a few other crimes. You wouldn’t know anything about that, would you?”
Silence, but she could hear their smiles.
“Figured as much.” She paused, blinking rapidly to contain the tears of gratitude. “Thanks.”
“No problem,” Violet said.
“So, how bad is the bakery?” Moira asked.
“Seriously? You ask about the bakery, after she tells you she was set on fire?”
“Well, obviously she’s okay. She’s talking to us.”
“Obviously.”
Penelope chuckled. “We should open for business in a couple of weeks. There was some smoke damage. Until then, we’re leasing a place up the street from us. I’m out of commission for a couple of months though. My parents are coming back to help.” The last was said with a grimace. No matter what argument she tried, her parents insisted on flying to Michigan to help out until she returned to work. On some level she felt like she failed them, but as Avery had pointed out, the same thing could’ve happened to him or any of the other employees for that matter.
That information only slightly mollified her. Here she was with second and third degree burns on her hands, could barely dress herself and it would be at least two months before she could hold a pastry bag again. If Avery hadn’t been there, her injuries would’ve been a lot worse.
“And how’s Avery?” her two friends chorused.
“He’s just fine. Hovering.” Footsteps scuffed the floor behind her. Hands settled on her shoulders. “Say hello, ladies.”
“Hi, Avery.”
“Hello, ladies.”
“Thanks for saving our girl,” Moira said.
“And putting out her fire.”
Heat cruised Penelope’s cheeks. “Hanging up now.” She reached for her phone. A hand closed over her wrist.
“I’ve got it,” Avery murmured.
“Happy Valentine’s Day,” the women chorused and the line disconnected.
“You’ve got some pretty cool friends there.” Avery turned her chair so she faced him.
She nodded. “They are the best at what they do.”
“And it is Valentine’s Day...a little late after all the excitement.”
She tilted her head, a smile teasing her lips. “Not my favorite holiday.”
He chuckled. “Too bad because I got you a few things to celebrate.”
A rich, fragrant chocolate scent passed beneath her nose, which was then replaced by a lighter sweeter perfume. Her smile widened. Flowers. “Candy and roses?”
“Very perceptive, and there’s one more thing.” Clothing and paper fluttered. A faint grunt and he rested his hands on her knees. Hinges creaked.
Penelope lifted her hands and laid them on his arms, slowly sliding them up until she reached his face. Damn. With most of her fingers bandaged she couldn’t tell what was happening. The only fingers waltzing in the wind were pinky and ring finger on her left hand. She used those to stroke his cheek.
“I don’t like this, Avery. Not being able to touch things makes me feel helpless. I don’t like that.”
He kissed her fingertips. “It’s just for a little while.”
She pouted. “I still don’t like it.”
“How about this? Be my Valentine?”
She leaned forward until her lips met his. “Of course.”
He carefully pressed her palm to his face. “No. I want you as my Valentine for the rest of our days. Marry me?”
“I...” She snapped her mouth close. “Are you...but...”
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you so flustered.” His fingers touched hers and a moment later something cool and metallic slid on the third finger of her left hand. “It’s just a little something I’ve thought about since our first kiss.”
Tears burned her eyes. For the second time in her life she wished for her sight so she could see the beautiful ring he’d slipped on her finger. “Since our first kiss.”
He caressed her lips with his thumb. “Yes. Although, nowhere in my visioning did I imagine you being injured. Naked, yes.” She giggled. “Injured, no. So what’s your answer?”
“I’ll forever be your Valentine.” Her heart melted as he wrapped his arms around her waist and fastened his mouth to hers. At last she’d found her mystery man.
The End
Table of Contents
Title page
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
The Baker's Touch Page 7