Page 62 of Forced Knocked-Up Mate

What does this mean? We’ll never talk again, never see each other after the spell is broken? Is she going to kick me out of the house right away?

The idea of never touching her again terrifies me. I suddenly realize the full implications of what’s about to happen.

I was such a fool to trust anyone, to allow myself to love. All people ever do is leave me. Discard me. Why didn’t I remember that this time?

The answer is simple. I let myself believe that the spell would keep us together. I didn’t care anymore if my feelings were real or engineered—I had the perfect excuse to let my barriers come down.

Lucy keeps wiping the counter down as if it’s not already clean. The cold silence between us cuts deep, reminding me of the times we’ve spent in this kitchen laughing and flirting as we helped each other cook and clean up.

Then I’m reminded of after dinner, when we’d go to the couch or straight to bed, where we would immerse ourselves in each other and forget the world and all its pain.

I get up so quickly I knock my chair over. Lucy stops cleaning the counter but doesn’t look at me.

This is fucking ridiculous. Would she keep ignoring me if I jumped on the table and danced a fucking jig?

Pushing past her, I put the kettle on, automatically filling it up with enough water for two. By force of habit, I grab two cups and two tea bags, putting three scoops of sugar in mine and one in Lucy’s.

“I didn’t say I wanted tea,” she says, watching me.

“Hmm?” I feign ignorance. “Oh, I wasn’t paying attention. Do you want tea?”

“Sure.”

I dare to hope that we might regain some of our previous intimacy as she sits down at the table. I fill the cups and take them over to her, bringing a jar of biscuits as well.

The biscuits are my own creation, a whole-food energy bar full of coconut, oats, and nuts, blended with brown sugar and raw honey. The customers love them, and Lucy told me I’m free to invent any recipe I like if it’ll be this much of a success.

I pause with a biscuit halfway to my mouth as I come to another horrible realization.

Will she even want me to work in the bakery?

It’s beyond ridiculous that a tough, bar-fighting, leather-clad biker like me would come to enjoy baking—or be good at it—but that’s exactly what has happened. I love getting into the warm kitchen hours before dawn, wrestling the bread into loaves so it can prove, making tiny, delicate cupcakes, chunky muffins, and complex layer cakes.

Lucy tells me practically every day that I have a talent for baking and shouldn’t let my skill go to waste. Apparently, it took her years to get as good as I am now, and she’s openly admitted to envying me for that.

I watch her slowly sip her tea and nibble on a biscuit, desperate to ask if I’ll still be able to bake once the spell is broken. But the look on her face is so dark, I don’t dare open my mouth.

I can join the team at New Hope, maybe. They bake there for the market. I suppose that will do.

As Lucy finishes her tea and a couple of biscuits, the color comes back into her cheeks. She gives me a small smile.

“I do feel better,” she says. “Thank you.”

“No problem.” I don’t know how to follow up my comment. Usually, we’d go to bed together, but now I don’t know if she wants me there. I can’t ask about work tomorrow morning because for all I know, I’m not wanted there, either.

“Well, I’m going to bed,” Lucy announces, standing up. She looks down at me with challenge in her eyes, as if she’s daring me to force my way into her bed.

“Okay,” I say, putting more effort into my casual, flippant tone than I’ve ever devoted to anything in my life. “Sleep well.”

Lucy stares at me for a moment, clearly taken aback. She gathers her robe more tightly around herself, taking a step back.

“I guess… I’ll see you in the morning,” she says.

“Sure. If I get up early enough.”

“You don’t want to work at the bakery tomorrow?”

“Maybe. I have been thinking about starting work over at New Hope, though. They have a good business running, and their focus on local produce is interesting. You could take me over there to check that out, if you want.”

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