by Bailey Rock
“We were all skating and he was ahead of me a bit.” If I close my eyes, I can see the way Jessica skated up to him, her long dark hair flowing about behind her in the breeze, so I keep my eyes locked on the art behind my mom’s head.
“Suddenly this girl, this really pretty girl, skates up to him and plants a kiss on him. She bumps into him first so that he reaches out to grab her and then kisses him and I just…collapse, I guess. Seeing it was terrible, mom, and I couldn’t keep my feet under me any longer. I think that I tried to catch myself, but it all happened so quickly, so I’m not really sure.”
“Lance was always a decent guy. What did he say about it? Obviously, you two talked it out or you wouldn’t let him be alone with Liv.”
I nod. “It’s actually the girl from the barkery,” I begin, but she interrupts me.
“No! Your great nemesis in the property acquisition battle?”
“That sounds more intense than it really is, but yes. My great nemesis who is apparently pretty nice and just…misguided about her feelings. Anyway, Lance said that there’s nothing there and I believe him. Maybe I’m stupid, and maybe I’m just trying to make my high school self happy to be with him, but I trust him.”
“Or maybe you have every reason to trust him. Maybe he’s telling you the truth and trusting him is the smartest thing you can do. You think about that?”
Out of all the people in my life who have dealt with drama and come out on the other side, my mom takes the cake. I know that if she thinks that I can trust Lance then I should give him a shot.
“You’re right.” Before I can say anything else, though, the front door opens and Liv and Lance come in, both with pink cheeks and pulling their coats tight around them. Hemingway goes to greet them, but when he sees Lance, he turns and runs to jump on top of me, huddles down in a furry ball, and stares at Lance.
Hemingway doesn’t do great with new people.
“Mom!” Liv screeches, launching herself at me while Lance closes the door behind him, “Mr. Lance says that when you feel better he will take all of us camping if we want! And we’ll roast marshmallows! And did you know he knows how to fish? He said that I don’t have to bait the hook if I don’t want to, but I can if I want to try, and that he’ll help me learn how to clean it if we want to have it for dinner. When will you be better?”
My eyebrows are raised as I look from Liv to Lance. “Camping? Fishing? The great and mighty Lance Parker isn’t afraid to sleep on the ground?”
He shrugs. “I’ve spent my fair share of time in tents, but Liv hasn’t. So, I thought it was about time she learn.”
“Okay, honey. I’ll talk to Lance about camping when I’m all healed up. But right now, Julie is in the kitchen getting snacks, so why don’t you join her?”
I can barely finish talking before Liv is off of the sofa and running to the kitchen, calling Julie’s name. Lance sits down in her place and nods hello to my mom.
“It’s always good to see you, Lance.” My mom pats my knee and stands up. “But I better go make sure those two don’t ruin the kitchen.”
When she follows them, it’s just the two of us left alone and I slowly lean over until my head is resting on his shoulder. Hemingway yowls and jumps off of the sofa, turning to spit at Lance before he walks into the kitchen for a snack.
“Nice cat.”
“Yeah, he can be a bit of an asshole, but he’s my asshole, so I love him. He’ll warm up to you if you come around often enough.”
“I plan on it, so your cat better be ready.”
“Hemingway. His name is Hemingway, and he has a big personality, so you better be prepared.”
He chuckles and we sit in silence for a few minutes, both thinking. I’m thinking about how amazing it was to see Lance and Liv sitting outside talking and what it would be like to have that be an everyday occurrence.
More than that, though, I want Lance. When he had his arm wrapped tightly around me and was helping me to the porch, I couldn’t help but think about being with him. I’m just a day out of a concussion and all I want to go is take him to bed.
“You tired? Want me to help you to your bed?” His voice interrupts my thoughts and I shake my head to clear it.
Yeah, I want him to take me to bed, but not so I can sleep.
“I am, but no. I want to be here with you, and still have them in the kitchen. It’s nice, isn’t it?”
“It is. You have a great kid, Maggie. Liv is a lot like you.”
I smile, even though he can’t see it. “She’s pretty incredible. I’m sorry that this is how you had to meet.”
He’s trailing his fingers up and down my arm. Even through my sweater, the contact is giving me chills.
“Worth it. And I was serious about the camping and the fishing. I couldn’t tell if you believed me.”
“I did, I was just surprised. Hard for me to see Mr. Lance Parker, the man who drives a Tesla and owns his own company, gutting a fish.”
“Well, I try to keep things interesting.” He shifts position and pulls me in closer to his side. “But last night you were the one really keeping things interesting. You don’t have to get a concussion in order for me to fawn all over you, you know.”
I chuckle. “And you don’t have to call me your fiancée when I’m in the hospital.”
“Oh, but I did. You didn’t see the way the doctor was checking you out. I’m just glad he didn’t start asking specifics.”
“Specifics?”
“Yeah, like how I proposed, when we’re getting married, all of that. Because I haven’t decided yet.”
“You…haven’t decided?” My head feels a little fuzzy, but I’m pretty sure that I’m following the conversation correctly.
“How to propose. I do know that I love you, Maggie. I knew it before last night, but you scared me. I don’t want to be without you.”
I’m silent for a moment, which he mistakes for me being upset.
“But no rush. I’ve got all the time in the world to love you.”
I’ve never been really good with words, so I don’t say anything, but my heart and my mind are racing. Good thing I’m not still hooked up to a monitor like I was at the hospital or they would think I was in need of medical care.
No, my heart racing isn’t a bad thing. I just can’t believe that I’ve finally found my home.
Chapter 12
Lance
Monday morning. The absolute best time for me to get anything done in the office without distractions is bright and early Monday when nobody else is here. We have our huge staff meeting in a little bit, but right now the office is quiet and I can work without any distractions.
Well, no distractions except for the giant double chocolate chip muffin sitting on my desk. There was no way I was going to come into work without first swinging by Blue Sky Bakery and seeing my girl. It’s just luck that she had something for me to eat. And a few kisses.
It’s been hard controlling myself all weekend when I’ve been around her, but the last thing I needed to do was pin her up against the wall, slide my hands under her clothes, and make her call my name. I mean, that’s what I wanted to do, but not when she felt so bad.
And not in between games of Monopoly Junior, which is Liv’s current favorite game. I really have to buy her some new board games, because if have to be the ship one more time, I may scream.
My computer takes a moment to warm up, but as soon as it’s on, I can start looking for new property for Maggie. I know that she’d freak out if she knew what I was doing, which is why I’m not going to tell her until I find the perfect space for her bakery.
She has no idea how much she’s going to be limited by her small space. And I know that she’s worried about the money and how she’ll get everything moved over without losing business, but that’s what I’m here for. She may have had to move into Blue Sky Bakery on her own, but I’m not going to let her handle another move by herself.
Not that I’ll be doing the heavy lifting, of course. T
hey have movers for this sort of thing, and I have the bankroll to make it happen.
My money has never made me as happy as I thought it would, but spending it on Maggie and Liv? That sounds like a great way to spend it.
I’ve narrowed down some possible choices to five great options when I hear someone walking down the hall. Instinctively, I minimize the window I’m working in, just because I don’t want to have to answer questions from my staff.
A light knock on the door and, when it swings open, Ben is standing there. He looks a little rough for the wear, like he had a long weekend and hasn’t really recovered, and I frown. I wanted him to get his act together, and he seems to be struggling to do just that.
“Boss man!” He leans against the door, giving me a moment to take in his crumpled tie, his unshaven face, and his mismatched shoes. Yep, Ben had a rough weekend, and he forgot that he needs to leave his problems at the door when he comes to work. “Did you have a good weekend?”
I frown. Is he slurring his words?
Rising, I cross the room to him so that I can get close enough to smell him. “I did, Ben. You feeling okay?”
He reaches out for my shoulder and misses, which causes him to stagger into the room. Instinctively, I reach out and grab him to keep him from falling.
“What a weekend!” His voice is much louder than it needs to be, and I don’t have to sniff to tell that he’s reeking. Ben is drunk.
Oh, God. I close my eyes and try to think about what to do next.
“Ben, you didn’t drive here, did you?”
He opens his eyes and tries to focus on me. “Drive? Where are we going?”
This is worse than I thought.
“You know what? Just have a seat in my chair.” I help him to it and hand him the trashcan. “Puke in that, not on the carpet.” I’m out my door and almost run into Jeremy, who’s whistling on his way to his office.
“Hey, Lance! You about ready for our meeting?”
Grabbing his shoulders, I pull him into an empty office. “Ben is here and drunk out of his mind.”
Jeremy narrows his eyes and sighs. “I saw him walking this morning but didn’t really think much of it. What do you want me to do?”
What I want to do is kill him. “So, he didn’t drive? I guess call an Uber and get him out of here. I don’t want him here when we open.”
“You got it.” Jeremy runs off to do as I’ve asked, and I hold my head in my hands for a moment before pulling out my phone.
Me: Miss you. You sure you should be working this morning?
Maggie: Are you kidding? Baking is my life. Besides, I had some crazy ideas for new cookie flavors when I was conked out. Can’t wait to try them!
Maggie: Also, miss you too. Everything okay?
Me: You’ll love this. Ben is here and drunk as a skunk.
Maggie: Nooo! Really? I’ll need all the details tonight. You still coming to dinner?
Me: Wouldn’t miss it for the world. Have a great day and be careful of oven burns.
I was worried that she wasn’t quite steady enough to be working her huge and hot oven, but she’d simply pooh-poohed me and fired it up anyway. What is a bakery without baked goods?
Maggie: I will as long as you be careful of any stray women trying to kiss you.
I laugh out loud and slide my phone back into my pocket. It’s time for a meeting and another one of her delicious muffins. If I’m lucky, Jeremy will have already gotten rid of Ben for the day. I’ll have to fire him, of course, but not right now. Not when he’s drunk.
He’d probably cause a scene.
Right now, it’s time for my meeting and then I want to work a bit harder to find the right property for Maggie.
“Okay, team,” I call out as I walk into the board room, rubbing my hands together. Everyone is already digging into their muffins and scones, but they quiet down. “It’s going to be a good week. Let’s talk about property.”
“You feeling okay? You’re never this happy on a Monday.”
“Or ever.”
The group chuckles and I laugh. “Well, things have changed, and I’m in a good mood. Let’s get started.”
It isn’t until after the meeting that I finally allow myself to really think about what has changed. The obvious answer is that Maggie is now in my life. As hard as I find it to believe that she could make that much of a difference, I think my staff would argue that she has.
It makes the ring in my pocket feel even more important.
Maggie
Okay, so maybe not all of my great ideas that I had when I was in the hospital are going to be as delicious as I thought. I’d always wanted to make a giant German chocolate cake cookie, so combining bittersweet chocolate chunks, toasted sweetened coconut, and chopped pecans was a no-brainer.
Some of the other flavor combinations though? Not so great.
I sigh and push aside the stack of papers I had scrawled my ideas on. They’ll go in the recycling later this afternoon, except for the ones that have decent flavor combinations.
Even though Lance had asked me to stay home from work and close the bakery so that I could rest, there wasn’t any way that I was going to do that when I knew that it could be suicide for my company. When I’m well-established I can take some time off, but before then, I have to be open every day or I’ll lose customers.
I’m about to close for lunch and have sold all of my croissant sandwiches when the bell tinkles over the door and I hear someone walk in. I’m in the back, so I call out to them to let them know that I’ll be out in a minute.
“It’s okay, I can wait,” comes the reply. The voice stops me in my tracks and then I fly out of the back of the kitchen and into Lance’s arms.
“What in the world are you doing here?” He’s wearing a deep blue suit and I leave a streak of flour across it as I squirm into his embrace, but he doesn’t seem to care. His heart is pounding in his chest and I take a deep breath, enjoying the way he smells.
When he speaks, it’s a rumble from deep in his body, and I feel my stomach tighten at the sound. I can’t help but remember the other afternoon in his office. He has a huge cock and it filled me completely. I want it again, but I’m also concerned about why he would just show up.
“I just wanted to see my favorite girl.” He steps back and looks at me appraisingly. There’s a fire in his eyes that makes my knees go weak and he reaches out to pull me toward him again for support. “You feeling okay? Should I help you get home?”
“I’m good,” I tell him, stepping back so I can see him again. My heart is thudding in my chest and I can feel myself getting wetter just talking to him. He’s gorgeous, all cut muscle and stubble, with bright eyes and thick hair that I want to hold while I shove his face between my legs.
The thought makes me tingle.
“You sure? You’re looking a little…off.”
If I’m off, it’s only because I want him to be on me, and I shift position. Licking my lips, I let my gaze drop down to his pants, and then flick my eyes back up to his face. His eyes widen as he realizes what I want.
“Oh, you do feel good. Well, weren’t you just about to lock up? I can take you home because we don’t want to cause a health violation.”
Dammit, he’s right. All I could think about was mounting him on the back counter in the kitchen, but that’s a fast way to get your restaurant shut down. His cock twitches in his pants while I wait, and the movement makes me smile.
I can only imagine it swelling as he thinks about me. I want his hands on my body as badly as he wants to rub them all over my skin, and my nipples get hard just thinking about it.
“We can go to my place. Liv is at school and my mom is out during the day.” Stripping out of my apron, I toss it on the counter and link my arm through his. I lean up and gently kiss along his neck, nibbling his ear. “But we better hurry, because I don’t want to wait.”
“Then let’s go.”
In just a few minutes we’re at my house. He has his hands
on my ass the moment we’re in the door, massaging and squeezing them, and I turn around to kiss him, locking the door behind him.
When I face him, he grabs me, his hands squeezing into my hips, and pulls me to him, spinning me around and slamming me into the wall. I gasp loudly, and he stops me by kissing me, his mouth hot and insistent on mine. Moaning, I allow his tongue into my mouth, tasting him as he kisses me.
“You are perfect, you know that, Maggie,” he whispers, pulling back a moment to look at me. I grin at him and give him a playful shove, but he grabs my wrist and pulls me into him, yanking my body so that I’m pressed up to his.
“So fucking perfect. And mine.”
I nod, unable to say anything. All I can think about is getting down the hall with him and stripping him down. I want to ride him and feel him come in me and watch his face as I milk his cock.
“My bedroom is that way,” I manage, pointing over his shoulder, and he turns to follow my finger when Hemingway comes yowling out of the kitchen.
“What the hell?” Lance cries out as Hemingway winds his way between his legs. The cat is so big that he can barely fit between us, but he manages to make his way between Lance’s legs right as Lance is taking a step.
Lance trips, falling backward over my huge cat, swearing on his way down.
“Your cat hates me!” He yells as he falls, making a resounding crash as he lands flat on his ass. Hemingway, for his part, continues to yowl and walks over to me, stretching up on my leg for me to pat him.
I ignore the cat and rush to Lance’s side. “Are you okay?” He stands up and rubs his ass.
“Your cat is a menace.”
“My cat was just saying hi. Or thought that you were trying to hurt me and just wanted to protect me.” Crossing my arms over my chest makes me feel petulant, but I don’t care. “He’s the victim here.”
“Oh, he’s the victim? I was the one who was about to burying myself in the sexiest woman alive.” He reaches for me and pulls me closer, sliding his hand around my back to cup my ass.