Page 91 of Flake It Til You Make It

Will laughed out loud. “No, he didn’t! Oh my God, youdidn’t, Rocco!”

Rocco shrugged. “It was a good example. And okay, your whole fake relationship was never very effective.”

“Or fake at all,” Luca inserted.

“But it worked out,” Rocco claimed. “Why shouldn’t I want a little piece of that success for myself?”

“Oh, I think you got it,” Enzo said.

Rocco met Taylor’s gaze. “I think I did.” He leaned in to kiss him and Taylor just grinned.

“Goat cheese,” he murmured under his breath.

And nobody at the table knew why on earth Rocco laughed so hard he couldn’t stay upright—or why Taylor joined him—but really, all that mattered was thattheyknew and they were happy and life was actually, surprisingly, very, very good.

Epilogue

It was another surpriseparty.

These were becoming kind of a Jolly Java trademark. Rocco had thrown five of them in the last four months, and during that time period he’d been gone for three weeks, in Indigo Bay, to help Luca and Oliver with their Sweethearts Festival. He and Joel were even discussing putting together a special menu and price list just for these parties.

But this surprise party wasn’t for a birthday or an engagement or an anniversary.

It was something a lot more special. And a lot more intimate.

Rocco checked the candles he’d scattered across the empty room, in nooks and on tables, making sure they were all still lit. Walked over to the panel that controlled the lights and sound,turned the overheads down to only a faint glow, letting the candlelight flicker across the walls.

He’d picked out a slow, soft romantic playlist and it echoed through the room, making it even cozier.

Ten minutes ago, Joel had dropped off a little six-inch cake, withCongrats, Taylor, written across the top. Chocolate with chocolate ganache, his favorite.

Rocco had baked a batch of Taylor’s mom’s almond cookies, and there was also a plate of ham and cheese pastry swirls, just in case they went into sugar overload. Next to the pastries, he’d tucked a bottle of Taylor’s favorite prosecco, a perfect reminder of their first date, into a makeshift ice bucket.

He checked his watch and everything was ready, with at least five minutes to spare.

His phone dinged and it was Mona, letting him know that the council meeting had just broken up and Taylor was heading in Rocco’s direction.

That meant Rocco had ten minutes to obsess about whether this was the right move.

Of course it is.

Even if this meeting had been merely a formality, it was still a very big deal.

His phone dinged again. It was the mayor again.

And don’t worry about Walter. I’m taking him to an early dinner at Rudolph’s :)

Walter moving to Christmas Falls had been so good for Taylor. At first Walter stayed with Taylor, but the first time he’d walked out of his bedroom in the morning to find the mayor there, hair mussed and a bright smile on her face, with his dad, he’d suggested that maybe until Walter found a place of his own, he could stay in Rocco’s apartment over the coffee shop.

Since Rocco was barely there anymore, it had been easy enough to move the rest of his belongings to Taylor’s house and let Walter stay here.

There’d been a lot of changes in the last four months, but this might have been one of the biggest.

Still, Rocco found himself excited for the future and all the new challenges it would bring.

He texted Mona back.We still don’t want to know what you’re doing after.She sent a laughing emoji, and he’d just slipped his phone back into his pocket when the front door opened and Taylor strode in, the biggest grin on his face.

He practically ran over to Rocco and hugged him so tight.

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