by Liwen Y. Ho
The Sweetest Spark
The Spark Brothers Series Book 3
Liwen Y. Ho
Contents
1. Colin
2. Candy
3. Colin
4. Candy
5. Colin
6. Candy
7. Colin
8. Candy
9. Colin
10. Candy
11. Colin
12. Candy
13. Colin
14. Candy
15. Colin
16. Candy
17. Colin
18. Candy
19. Colin
20. Candy
21. Colin
22. Candy
23. Colin
Epilogue
Afterword
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Also by Liwen Y. Ho
The Sweetest Spark
Copyright © 2018 by Liwen Y. Ho. All rights reserved.
ISBN: 9781706605843
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Cover Design: Victorine Originals (ebook & print cover front) & Kristen Iten (print cover back)
Interior Design: Liwen Y. Ho
Publisher: 2 Square 2 Be Hip
First Edition
Created with Vellum
For my dear “little sister,” Angela-poo, who taught me so much about cancer, faith, and Jesus. I think of you often and look forward to seeing you again in Heaven.
Chapter One
Colin
Colin Spark had one thought on his mind, and one thought only: he’d do anything to have Candy Connelly back in his life.
His gaze traveled from his plate with its miniscule portions over the length of the dining table at one of San Francisco’s finest restaurants. He and his four brothers, along with their significant others, were seated for dinner to celebrate his oldest brother’s engagement. Although Candy wasn’t a member of their family, she had enough history with the Sparks to be an honorary sister. Plus, Aiden’s fiancée, Abby, had given her the role of wedding coordinator, which suited her straight-laced, organized ways just fine. Candy was about as professional as they came, looking put together in a dark blazer and dress pants and not a single strand of hair out of place.
Despite looking polished, Candy looked as uncomfortable as Colin had ever seen her. Perhaps that was because she had no choice but to take the seat directly across from him when the others had filled up. Everyone else around the table were paired up, leaving the two of them as oddballs out. Which was suitable, considering they were the oddest pair present.
They were as different as two people could be. Not one to care about his appearance, he had thrown on a sweater and a pair of khakis five minutes before leaving home. He slouched in his high-backed chair, while she sat up straight in hers, doing everything in her power to avoid eye contact with him. The fact that she smiled at everyone around the table except him hurt even more. He sighed loudly, wallowing in his own self-pity. The sound must have irked Candy because she immediately stopped eating. With purposeful movements, she set her fork down, wiped her mouth with her napkin, and stood up.
Colin’s eyes followed the woman he loved toward the back of the room where she stopped to chat with the chef. Chest heavy, he narrowed his eyes at the tall man who greeted her with a long embrace. To his dismay, Candy seemed very interested in what the chef had to say, tilting her head to one side as she listened in earnestness. Colin bristled. Had she ever looked at him that way? If only she saw past his goofy exterior and into his heart. Then she’d know how much he cared for her.
He cut into his two-inch piece of Wagyu steak and took a bite. The juicy morsel did nothing to satisfy his taste buds. Normally a big eater, he couldn’t even stomach the small bite.
He groaned, wishing he was anywhere but here right now. As much as he loved his brothers, and was happy for any occasion when they could get together, being surrounded by the ones who knew him the best wasn’t what he wanted at this moment. Which was a strange thought, considering how much he loved company.
As the middle child of five, Colin had never had cause to be alone. He was the family jokester and thrived on being in the limelight. That’s how the good Lord had designed him. Even though his brother, Aiden, was a pop star, and Evan, an actor, Colin liked being the center of attention just as much as them, if not more. Then there was Brandon, who was a successful romance author, and the fourth youngest brother, Darren, a firefighter.
All the Spark boys besides him seemed to have a good grip on their lives. His own career path hadn’t taken him in that direction though; his spontaneous nature wouldn’t allow for a conventional route. On the cusp of turning thirty, Colin was still finding his way, as his mother so kindly put it. He supposed that included finding his way around love as well.
Not that he didn’t know who he loved, but getting her to reciprocate his feelings was another matter. He had fallen for Candy since the first time he laid eyes on her. He was only thirteen and she was seventeen when their families had gotten together for a summer BBQ. Colin hadn’t noticed the opposite sex much until the gorgeous teenager wearing a pretty yellow sundress, with her hair curled perfectly, walked into his backyard.
He’d always had a sweet tooth as a kid, which made crushing on a girl named Candy all the more appropriate. Of course, she’d only seen him as a cute kid, one of the little Spark boys. Later, when they were both in their twenties, she’d moved away to New York to check out the restaurant scene there. When she returned to the Bay Area last summer, he had immediately reached out to her under the guise of asking for her help with his business. They had spent plenty of time together, to the point where they walked the line between friendship and something more. That was until she told him a month ago that they needed to stop hanging out. Now, they were practically strangers.
The chair across from him pulled out before the woman he’d been thinking about sat down. Candy took the napkin next to her plate and placed it in her lap. She began cutting into her food with the proper fork and knife, taking care to take small, careful bites.
Colin observed Candy as she ate, completely lost in her beauty. She’d curled her chestnut brown hair so that it fell around her shoulders in soft, shiny waves. Her red lips—a color he loved on her—curved into a smile as she talked to the woman next to her. She had such a presence about her, always in command of a room even without saying a word. He supposed that’s why he’d been drawn to her from the start. Candy knew what she wanted and always went after it. He admired that about her. Oh, how he wished to be on the receiving end of her desires.
“Can I have your attention?” The oldest Spark, Aiden, stood at one end of the table and lifted his glass. He wore a fancy navy suit, a wide smile lighting up his face. “Abby and I want to thank you all for taking time out to celebrate with us tonight. It’s so good to see everyone, especially Evan and Emma. It worked out well that you guys came up from So Cal for work this week.” He turned to the brunette beside him. She stared up at him with adoring eyes behind her glasses. “Is there anything you want to add, baby?”
Abby lifted her glass as well in the direction of the rest of the table. “I can’t believe Aiden and I have been together for over a year and this is the first time all the siblings have been in one room. That means the rest of you need to get hitched so we have more reasons to get together in the future.”
“My fiancée makes a good point,” Aiden chimed in. “If anyone needs help in that area, we’re more than happy to help. But for now, let’s enjoy this delicious meal.” He lifted his glass. “Cheers, everyone.”
The rest of the table lifted their glasses in unison and replied, “Cheers.”
Aiden took a seat then called out to Colin, “Hey, Colin, you know what? Now that I’m engaged and Brandon’s married, you’re next in line, brother.”
Colin scoffed and shrugged his shoulders. “No need to wait on me. If Darren or Evan want to go ahead, I’m not stopping them. I’m waiting for the right woman to come along or the right one to realize she’s the one for me.” He snuck a look at Candy who had started coughing as she drank from her glass. “You all right, Candy?”
She shot him a wide-eyed glare and nodded curtly. “I’m fine, thanks.” Her tone was controlled as was everything else about her. She dabbed at her mouth with her napkin and replied, “Speaking of weddings, there’s a lot we need to talk about. As the official wedding coordinator, I’ve put together a timeline of tasks that need to be completed over the next five months until July.” She reached for her work bag and pulled out a folder. From it, she removed several stapled documents and passed them out on her right and left. “I’ve highlighted everyone’s name in a different color, so be sure to keep an eye out for your responsibilities. Each task has been explained in detail, but if you have any questions, let me know.”
“Thanks for this, Candy,” Darren piped up at the other end of the table. “I see here on page three that the wedding party has been paired up already. Is that set in stone?”
Candy shot him a disapproving glare. “Yes, is there a problem with that?”
“No, no problem. Just wanted to confirm, that’s all.” Darren smiled at the blonde woman sitting across from him. His broad shoulders and defined chest filled out his dress shirt, showing off his firefighter form. Despite his large stature, his voice was gentle and kind. “Looks like you’re stuck with me, Danica.”
“That’s totally cool,” Danica replied with a pleased smile. Her cheeks flushed as she looked around the table. “It only makes sense. Brandon and Bria are married, Evan and Emma are dating, and Colin and Candy …”
Colin noticed Candy’s body tense considerably. Her complexion reddened as she took another sip of her water. He felt everyone’s eyes on them both as the tension in the air of the restaurant thickened. There was complete silence, since Aiden had reserved the popular restaurant all to themselves for the evening. Several awkward moments passed until the servers came around, exchanging their empty plates with the next course.
The tension broke as everyone marveled at the next dish, commenting about its presentation. In the midst of the chatter, Colin raised his eyes and met Candy’s for a brief moment. Their gazes locked, making his chest tighten with longing. The words she’d spoken when they ended their pseudo-relationship came back to him. It’s not you, Colin, it’s me. I’m just not ready to commit to anything. I need to focus on my career right now. I hope you understand.
Candy’s words didn’t bring any more comfort to him today than they had months ago. Not when Colin knew it was all a lie. She didn’t think he—the impulsive owner of an ice-cream shop—was good enough for her. He didn’t have any accomplishments worthy of her respect. To her, he’d been a good time, a temporary fling at best. If that were true, then why had he seen such tenderness in her eyes?
Chapter Two
Candy
Candy dried her hands with a paper towel and threw it away before pausing to look at her reflection in the restaurant’s restroom mirror. She might have looked put together in her pixel print jacket and ankle pants, but that was nowhere close to how she felt inside. Seeing Colin’s face across the dinner table just about did her in. Why did he have to look so good yet so sad? Dressed in a gray sweater over his blue button-down shirt, he looked every part of a woman’s dream man, except for the sorrow in his dark brown eyes. If there was a picture of puppy dog eyes, his would’ve been it. And to think she was the cause of his heartache. A lump formed in her throat just thinking about it.
A toilet flushed in one of the stalls behind her before a woman walked out. Looking every bit the part of someone in love, Abby wore a fitted dark red dress and sparkling ruby earrings Aiden had bought her for Christmas. Candy was truly happy for her friend and for Aiden, that they had found each other, so she pasted on a smile when Abby met her gaze in the mirror.
“You look amazing. I couldn’t be happier for you guys,” she gushed to Abby. “Now don’t you worry about a thing. I’m going to take care of all the wedding details. You just concern yourself with being in love.”
Abby grinned. “Thanks, Candy. I know you’ve got everything under control.”
“Yep, everything’s under control,” Candy repeated with half as much conviction in her tone. If only she could say that about her life. Actually, her career as a renowned food critic was going well. She had a TV gig lined up in two weeks—her first ever TV appearance—on a major network show. If that turned out well, she might get her own show. Other than that though, she didn’t have much else going for her. Especially not in the area of love.
“So, I’m dying to know, even at the expense of being nosy,” Abby began with a smirk, “what is going on with you and Colin? I haven’t asked you recently, but did something happen? He looks like a kid who lost his puppy. I need the latest scoop on this saga.”
Candy rolled her eyes as she fished a tube of red lipstick from her purse. She uncapped it and began applying a coat, taking her time to answer. She knew Abby—and the rest of the family, no doubt—had questions about where she and Colin stood. That was one of the perils of being part of a large family. Not that she had one herself, but since her sister, Mandy, and Aiden had been high school sweethearts before Mandy passed away from cancer, she had become an honorary sister. And now, Abby was indirectly becoming her sister-in-law, something she couldn’t be more thrilled about. But that also meant answering a lot of prying questions.
“We stopped hanging out a month ago after the new year.” Thirty-one days ago to be exact, not that Candy would voice such thoughts out loud. “I knew we weren’t headed anywhere long-term, so I told him we couldn’t pretend we were. Besides, I need to focus on my career. I’ve been working toward having my own show, and now that it might be a reality, I don’t have time to play around.”
Abby gawked at her as she lifted her glasses with the palm of her hand. “Play around? Is that what you think Colin’s doing? I know he can be silly when he wants to be, but Aiden says he’s the most serious he’s ever seen him when it comes to you. He really wants it to work out with you.”
Candy capped the lipstick and placed it back in her purse. Turning to face Abby, she frowned. Colin being too serious was part of the problem. She had made sure to end things well before February, before he tried to make her his Valentine. “It was fun for a while, but …”
“But what?”
She hesitated. It wasn’t that she didn’t know how to answer, but anything she said was fair game when it came to the Spark family grapevine. She didn’t expect her friend to keep secrets from her fiancé. “I know you tell Aiden everything now, as you should, but I don’t want this to get back to Colin. Please.”
Abby nodded, urging her to continue. “My lips are sealed.”
Candy took a deep breath and placed a hand on her hip. “Colin is a great guy, but he has no direction or drive. He gets caught up in whatever he feels like doing at the moment and doesn’t think about reality or consequences. He doesn’t know what he wants in life.”
“Give the guy a break. He’s only twenty-nin
e. He still has some time to figure things out.”
“I don’t know, Abby. Both Darren and Evan are younger than him, and they’ve got good careers going. Colin is fun and sweet and cute—” she winced when she realized she’d said that last word out loud “—but so young.” Sure, there was only a four-year age difference, but she’d always feel like the older, more mature one in the relationship. “I don’t want to be holding his hand, leading him around. I want a man who will be the leader in our relationship, a godly man I can respect.”
Abby nodded. “I get it. You don’t respect him. I couldn’t be with a man I didn’t respect either.”
“You and I are strong women who need strong men. You got yours. I’m just waiting for mine to show up. God willing, He’ll bring the right one along, like He did for you.” She reached over to give Abby a tight squeeze. “I’m so thrilled for you. You and Aiden give me hope there’s someone out there for me.”
“Aiden and I have been praying for you, for all of the siblings. And you know what happens when we pray, right?”
Candy chuckled. “This sounds familiar. Let me guess, hearts—”
“Change,” Abby finished for her. “Aiden’s always reminding me of that.”