“No need to thank me. I’m lucky to have you.” I nodded as he finished the lattice work. “I think it’s ready to bake now. Wanna do the honors?”
“Of course.” Miles put the pie in the oven.
The wide width of his shoulders and bulky frame took up a lot of space in the kitchen, but I was super tiny so it worked out well as we moved around each other, putting trays of cookies into the other oven and taking them out, making batches of cupcake batter and the different frostings and icings for the variety of pastries and cakes.
A short while later, Peter and Alice arrived. They were shocked to find Miles in the kitchen, but thankfully, they had nothing against demi-humans and welcomed him to The Brewed Muffin family. He looked like he felt welcome too, which meant a lot.
Business boomed once the doors opened for the day. Even more so than usual. Word had spread like wildfire, and people from the towns outside the capital had traveled to eat here.
Alice walked into the kitchen and placed several tickets on the counter. “Big crowd in the dining room. The orders just keep coming in. Do you need any help back here?”
“If you don’t mind starting on the drinks, that’d be awesome,” I responded as Miles frosted a platter of strawberry cupcakes. I had my hands busy filling buttery croissants with raspberry jam. “After I finish with these, I’m going to put another batch of cookies in the oven.”
“Chocolate chip, I hope.” Alice stepped over to the coffee machine and added freshly ground beans. “They’re popular today. Lemon too.”
“The lemon is my favorite,” Miles said, his voice on the quieter side. Again, a contradiction to his ginormous size. He was soft-spoken and shy. A total gentle giant.
Noted. I’d make sure I sent a bundle home with him later.
At closing time, once the last customer left, Peter cleared the tables in the main dining room while Alice did a sweep of the reading parlor, clearing any dishes left behind and straightening up the cushions, placing books back where they were supposed to go. Miles helped me clean the kitchen.
“How was your first day?” I asked.
“Better than I could’ve dreamed.” Miles placed the last dish on the drying rack. “Not many people will hire someone like me. Even those who accept demi-humans fear me because of my size. But you saw beyond that and gave me a chance anyway.”
“You’re gonna make me cry.” I cleared my throat. Damn emotions. “Oh! This is for you.” I handed him a bundle of lemon cookies. “As a way to say thanks for all your hard work today. You’ll get real money too, of course, not just sweets. I pay at the end of every week.”
Miles accepted the cookies. “I’ll continue to work hard.”
“I expect you back here bright and early tomorrow morning.”
He beamed. “I’ll be here.”
Once Miles left, I grabbed the muffins I’d baked earlier and situated them on a platter for Maddox. The air stirred at my back before Lake appeared. The now empty café had lured him downstairs.
“I’m glad you’re still here,” I said. “I bet you’re hungry.”
“A little.” Although hesitant at first, Lake took my hand in his. “I’m sorry for disappearing this morning. Being around other people is still… difficult for me.” He looked away. “I didn’t want to leave you. So I waited upstairs until everyone left.”
The front door opened, followed by heavy steps on the floorboards, growing closer. Footsteps, as well as familiar voices. Lake tensed as Briar and Maddox appeared in the doorway, but he didn’t flee. A big step forward for him.
Maddox locked gazes with me and reached me in a few strides, bringing me close to his body. His scent slammed into me, like leather and warm spice, and I pushed my face against his armor, eyes stinging.
“I told you I’d make it back in once piece,” he said.
“Yeah.” My throat quivered. “You did.”
Briar appeared at my other side and greeted me with a temple kiss. “Thane thanks you for the treats. He ate three of the four scones and devoured the stack of sugar cookies.”
I hadn’t realized I’d been so tense until being in their arms again allowed me to breathe a little easier. My men were home. They were safe.
All three of them.
I looked at Lake over Briar’s shoulder. He had released my hand and given us space. But he was part of this too. Part of this unconventional family. Maybe it was too soon to see all of us that way, but I did. With my free hand, I reached for him.
He stared at my palm, ears adorably perked. And then, he placed his hand in mine, allowing me to pull him closer.
“Go wash up,” I told Maddox and Briar. “I’ll make you something to eat.”
