Page 23 of Fire and Icing

“True,” Greyson agrees. “She’s usually far too kind to everyone. Always giving away free food.”

“What am I supposed to do?” I ask the guys.

They glance at one another, sharing some sort of unspoken conversation.

Patrick nods at Cody. Greyson looks up. His brows are raised until Cody and he exchange a look that obviously confirms whatever they’re all agreeing on. Captain’s quiet.

Cody smiles at me and I’m sure he’s going to tell me I’m off the hook. We all love our morning run for baked goods. No one wants to upset Emberleigh.

“You’ve got your assignment, Rookie,” Cody says with a professional formality to his voice. “Keep apologizing. And come back with donuts.”

“Seriously?” I’m nearly whining. “Is there something else I can do instead?”

The guys don’t even consult one another.

Cody claps me on the shoulder. “I’m sure you’ll figure it out.”

I swallow hard and look him in the eyes. “I’ll figure it out.”

“Good man,” Greyson says.

I don’t know how I’ll do it, but the next time I’m on shift, I will deliver my apology and come back here with a box of Emberleigh’s donuts. I’m not blowing my chance to prove myself to this crew of men. And I’m not giving up my blueberry-lemon donut—or, more importantly, the opportunity to correct Emberleigh’s misperception of me.

Captain looks at the clock on the wall. “Time for workouts.”

Cody shuts the lid to the donuts.

We walk toward the weight room together. Patrick’s trailing behind us.

“How’s the new place?” Cody asks.

“I like it. I’ve only been there one night, but it’s clean and private. Mrs. Holt cooked me dinner. I’m planning to cook for her tomorrow just so she knows I’m not there to take advantage of her hospitality.”

Patrick takes a seat on the weight bench and grabs a dumbbell. Cody picks up the jump rope and begins skipping. I walk over to the TRX machine and start doing pull-ups.

Cody says, “Mrs. Holt’s not worried about you taking advantage of her. Trust me. She loves having the company.”

“That’s what she said,” I tell him.

Patrick gasps and then he chuckles. “Wait. You’re living with Emberleigh’s grandma?”

“What? No,” I say.

And then the photos on that shelf in the hallway come streaming back into my mind like a rapid-fire reel. Redhead. Baker. Her sunshine.

“You do know Mrs. Holt is Emberleigh’s grandma, don’t you?” Cody asks, a strong note of amusement in his voice.

“Uhhh …” I’m scrabbling for some way to cover my obvious ignorance.

“Oh. Wow. This is awesome. Rich. So rich,” Cody laughs good-naturedly.

“Please. I should have known,” I say, shaking my head and avoiding eye contact with either of them.

“She’s close with her grandma,” Patrick informs me.

“Great.” I say the word without any enthusiasm, so I repeat it. “Great! No. That’s really great. We all should be close to our grandmothers. I’m glad they’re close. Really.”

“You seem glad,” Patrick smirks.

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