Page 46 of Whisk Me Away

Brant moved around the counter, reaching for me. He gently squeezed my hand in his. "You don't have to go through this alone, Karis. Whatever you're facing, we'll face it together. Always."

Tears pricked at the corners of my eyes as I finally let myself lean into his embrace. All the guilt and uncertainty melted away in that moment, replaced by a profound sense of relief. Brant may not have all the answers, but having him by my side made the journey seem a little less daunting.

Brant pulled back slightly, his gaze intense as he met my eyes.

"Peach, I've been thinking a lot lately, and I've come to a decision. I'm done giving you space. I'm ready to give this thing between us a real shot."

His words hung in the air, and I was momentarily stunned. Did he just say what I thought he said?

"Brant, I..." I stammered, struggling to find the right words. "I don't know what to say."

He smiled but his eyes still held a hint of uncertainty. "You don't have to say anything right now. Just know that I care about you more than I've ever cared about anyone. And I want to see where this could go if you're willing to take that chance with me."

His vulnerability caught me off guard, and I felt a flicker of hope stir within me for the first time in a long while. Maybe this could be the fresh start I'd been longing for.

Was it possible that things could really work out between us? After all the walls I built up, could I finally let someone in and allow myself to be happy?

I took a deep breath, letting his words sink in. "Brant, I'm scared," I admitted, my voice barely above a whisper. "But I want to try. I want to see where this could lead."

His face lit up with a smile, and he pulled me into a gentle embrace. At that moment, I felt a weight lift off my shoulders.

"Will you teach me how to bake?" Brant whispered against my hair.

My head swung back, taking in the serious look on his face.

"Wha—What? You want me to teach you how to bake?" The thought of spending the day baking with Brant made me ridiculously happy.

"If you're willing. I can't promise any amazing skills, but I have two hands ready to work,” he held both hands between us as if to emphasize his point.

I couldn’t hold back the laugh that bubbled out of me.

"Have you ever baked anything before?" A genuine smile tugged at my lips.

Brant eyed me for a minute before shaking his head. "I mean, it's possible I helped my Gram bake cookies in the kitchen as a kid, but not in recent memory,” the smile he gave me had my breath catching in my lungs.

The image of a younger Brant with his messy brown hair bouncing around the kitchen with his Gram flashed in my mind. I could almost see the flour-dusted countertops and smell the aroma of freshly baked cookies lingering in the air. His small hands eagerly reaching for ingredients, his laughter filling the room as he clumsily stirred dough under Gram's watchful eye.

It made me long for the day when I had a little one of my own that I could spend hours upon hours baking with. The thought of being able to pass on the knowledge and skills my mom taught me and her mom before that had me tearing up. I blinked rapidly, hoping to clear away any sign of glassiness from my eyes. I didn't want to explain to Brant where my mind just went.

"Let's do it, then!" I clapped excitedly, turning to the prep table. "Right now, I’m finishing up some breakfast puff pastries. Then I need to make more of my blueberry crumble muffins."

Brant’s groan filled the small space. "Those are my favorite,” he said, shaking his head.

"Then you're in for a treat,” I shot a wink over my shoulder as I began filling the pastry dough with the sausage and cheese mixture.

This day was turning out to be exactly what my heart needed.

CHAPTER 32

BRANT

Watching Karis in her element was mesmerizing. She floated through the kitchen with such grace, like this was where she was meant to be. I asked her to teach me how to bake because I wanted an excuse to spend time with her, a reason to stick around and see her in action.

Once the little sausage-filled pastries were in the oven, I helped her clean up the counter before pulling out the ingredients we needed to make her blueberry crumble muffins. Occasionally, Aspen would pop her head back here to check on Karis. I loved that she had someone here with her now. I'd been worried Karis would run herself into the ground, especially after her mom passed away. Still, as long as she had Aspen here, hopefully, she wouldn't run herself ragged.

I knew all too well what it was like to throw yourself into work after having your heart completely broken. Granted, losing your mom was worse, but when Olivia left, I buried myself in work to keep myself busy. I figured that if I stayed busy, my mind couldn't dwell on reality, and I could keep my emotions bottled up.

Sometimes, that's exactly what we need to do to cope, but eventually, you have to work through those feelings, or they would sit in there, slowly eating away at you. I didn't want that for Karis. I didn't want her to hide away what she was going through. So here I was, learning how to bake.

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