Page 113 of Bake You Mine
Aubrey reviewed the plans, her heart rising like a cloud. “This is all good, but I thought you didn’t have the money?”
“I have a new investor. You may know her?” He turned toward her, all smiles. “She goes by the name of Mom.”
Aubrey’s mouth dropped open. “Really?”
He shrugged. “Ma always has an opinion, but now she has the money to go with it. She’s finally going to be getting back payments from the insurance company after my dad’s accident.”
Aubrey knew they’d been battling with the state for years, so this was good news. “So, you’re going to let her be part of the Elevation team?”
He rolled his eyes. “After much back and forth, she agreed to be a silent partner. Besides, Gary has offered me a favorable lease rate on the new space, and we’ve worked out a new lease agreement for the current space. He’s become somewhat of a mentor to me.”
She chuckled to herself. “So that’s what you guys were working on earlier.”
“Well, yeah. I’ve been planning this for days. I was going crazy without you. This was a way to occupy my thoughts. I wanted to surprise you. Did I?” His smile was bright.
“I don’t know how you figured this out so quickly.”
“What can I say? The thought of losing you provided ample ammunition to figure out my shit.”
She turned to the cake box. “You owe me a piece of cake.”
He wrung his hands over one another. “I’ll give it to you. But did it work? Are you surprised?”
“I would only be more surprised if the roof caved in right now.”
Their eyes met, and they laughed.
“Then I’ll have that cake while you process.” He walked into the kitchen and reappeared with a couple of plates and a cake server.
“I’m surprised you even have one of those.”
“For the private parties, duh,” he said, not unkindly.
Once the cake had been served, she sat at the table while Liam returned to the kitchen to grab them glasses of water. She stress ate a few bites before he joined her. He took care to scrape off some of the icing.
“Hey, you’re scraping off my grandmother’s Italian buttercream.”
“Cake is bad enough; icing is the worst.” Before she could complain, he said, “A bet is a bet.” He scooped a big bite into his mouth, wincing.
Only the street sounds carried in as he chewed.
“Well?”
He set down his fork. “Well, it’s a cake. It’s a nice cake, I guess. Dark and rich, not super sweet. I still don’t like chocolate.”
“Damn, you’re not cured after all.” She shoved a bite into her mouth.
“Aubs.” He placed his hand over hers, causing her to choke a little.
He pushed the water glass across the table to her. “Are you okay?”
She waved him off after a slight pound of her chest. “I’m okay, honestly. If anything, I’m a little mad you beat me to the punch.”
“What are you talking about?”
“I was starting to plan out some romantic gesture. I missed you so much, and I realized I was caught up on the wrong things?—”
“Wait, what were you planning? You’ve got me curious.”
