Page 55 of Bake You Mine
Before Aubrey could finalize a vision of Liam in his rugby gear, he gave her a parting wave and ducked into Elevation. As she turned away, he popped out with an umbrella for her.
“You took the day off, right? Wouldn’t want you to get wet.” He chuckled to himself and leaned forward, his mouth against her ear. “Well, not yet.” Like the cad he was, he closed the door with a grin.
Still in a lust-filled daze, she headed toward a cute woman’s boutique called Blue Skye. Even if she and Liam were taking things slow, she still needed some new underthings, since most of what she had were granny panties.
Her feet hardly touched the ground. She and Liam were going to have sex. Maybe tonight, maybe not.
Her head was so high in the clouds that she didn’t notice Chris until he was directly in her path. He’d stepped out of Our Daily Bread, Port Fortune’s oldest bakery. An institution intown, it carried a far more extensive array of bread than she did at Petit Chou. It wasn’t surprising that her ex would patronize the closest thing to competition she had in town. He could be petty as fuck.
“Aubs.” Chris’s umbrella knocked against hers.
She ducked around him. The last thing she needed was an interaction with her ex, not when she was trying to put all those doubts out of her mind.
“Sorry, I can’t talk. Have a good day!” For once, not even her asshole ex could put a damper on her mood.
But his presence was a reminder of what could happen if you were too free with your heart. As she ducked into Blue Skye, Aubrey was grateful she’d finally told Liam the truth.
fifteen
“You guys can head out.I’ll clean up.”
Unused to this kind of statement from Liam, his kitchen guys left so fast that smoke nearly flew out from under their shoes.
“Only Teddy keeping you company tonight?” Damon asked.
If Liam tried lying to Damon, he’d sniff it out in seconds. When you’ve known someone since kindergarten, they tend to understand how you tick. “Someone’s meeting me here, and I want the place to be empty.”
“Empty for who?” Damon’s wife appeared around the corner.
Liam almost jumped out of his skin. “Jesus, Lameka. You’re not one for sneaking around.” He brought a hand to his chest.
She stepped inside and looped an arm around Damon’s neck. “That’s because I usually have two kids trailing behind me like breadcrumbs—only they’re the kind who never stop saying, ‘Mama?’ They’re at grandma’s tonight so my man and I can have a late-night date night.”
She and Damon shared a look, just like they used to share in front of their lockers before homeroom.
Liam laughed. “Then why are you having another one?” Lameka was five months pregnant.
“Because I love them. Mama still needs a break.” She started to lead Damon away, and Liam hoped she’d get Damon out of there before Aubrey arrived.
But he wasn’t that lucky.
“Wait a minute,” Damon said. “You wouldn’t need to clear the room if it’s just Dani coming by for one of your hookups.”
Liam said nothing as he unbuttoned his chef’s whites.
Damon took the silence as an invitation. “Okay, you’re not the type to kiss and tell. Give me something here, dude.” Damon rubbed his hands together.
“Seriously, let us live vicariously,” Lameka added.
Liam tossed his whites into the linen bin. “I have no idea what y’all are talking about.”
“Why aren’t you looking me in the eyes? Nah, something’s up. Who’s the lady?” Damon came around and slapped his hands on the counter.
He and Lameka exchanged a glance. She quirked her lips. “I think I know who it is.”
When Liam said nothing, she continued, “Is it Aubrey?”
Even if Liam could get away with lying to Damon, Lameka was a human lie detector. God help the Jackson children when they became teenagers. They weren’t getting shit past her.
