by Lara Swann
Maya giggles beside him, her grin escaping from the hand that’s covering her mouth as she bounces on whatever she’s standing on - and I can’t help laughing too. I’m not sure I’ve met many men who would dare a comment about dieting to a woman they didn’t know, but the mock-anguish to his voice is hilarious and I have to commend his fearlessness.
“Nothing like that.” I assure him, though I raise an eyebrow at the question. “I was just on vacation - and it really can’t have been that long, I was only away for a little while.”
“Three weeks - and in that time, I think I’ve met every member of the town at least twice, so you can see my concern.”
“Oh, of course.” I say, matching his mock-serious tone and trying not to laugh again. I think this man has made me laugh more in the last ten minutes than I usually do in days - and I like to laugh.
What can I say - he’s fun. Maybe that comes from having a little girl to entertain.
“Well, just in case you secretly aren’t convinced about cupcakes yet, allow me to help you out.” He gestures to the display in front of him. “Pick your poison - first one’s on me.”
I blink. “Oh, you don’t need to—”
“They’re not actually poison.” He says, as if that might have been my concern.
“Well, that’s a relief.” I say, and make an exaggerated ‘phew’ gesture with a grin at Maya before continuing. “But I was going to buy one anyway—”
He shakes his head. “Everyone in town gets one free - cupcake store policy. What would you like?”
He announces that like it’s some serious, immutable thing and not something that he gets to make up - and I let myself give in.
I look through the display case at all the pretty, differently colored cupcakes, reading a few of their names - ‘Rainbow Unicorn Cake’, ‘Midnight Snack Cookie Cake’, ‘Deep, Dark Forest Cake’ - and feeling totally enamored now that I know it was Maya who came up with them all. I want to try just about everything. I can only guess at what’s in half of them, but that doesn’t matter - I can’t think of a type of cake I don’t like, and these all look so…magical. I guess that’s the idea, but boy does Liam know how to deliver.
“Ohh, I don’t know…” I say, exaggerating my indecisiveness before looking at Maya. “Hmm…what do you think I should get, Maya? What’s your favorite?”
“Oohh…” Maya looks down at the cupcakes from the top of the glass display cabinet she’s leaning against, then points at one. “Fairy Princess SURPRISE! That one! That’s the best!”
She says the name the same way it’s written - making the ‘surprise’ a shout - and I laugh.
“Yeah? Okay, that one it is!” I look back at Liam with a grin, to see an unsure-but-amused look on his face.
My stomach flutters a little as I wonder what that means about what I just picked, but I don’t care. Maya’s happy and laughing, and hey - it’s more fun this way.
“Um, do you like—”
“Daddyyy!” Maya interrupts, pushing at his arm, which barely moves. “It’s a surprise!”
“I know, sweetie, but not everyone likes surprises.” He says, his tone gentle as he squeezes her shoulder.
“That’s okay.” I say, smiling at her again. “I like surprises.”
“You do?” She looks up, grinning at me again before turning back to Liam and folding her arms. “See?”
I have to choke back a laugh - something Liam doesn’t try to do at all, chuckling softly at his daughter.
“Okay, okay. Fairy Princess Surprise it is.” He tilts his head at me. “I take it you’re not allergic to anything? Or have any food…preferences?”
I shake my head, getting more and more curious the longer this goes on. What exactly is in this thing? It is still going to be a cake, right? Still, if a little girl likes it, chances are good that I will as well.
He takes it out from behind the counter and gets a box to put it in - from a pile of boxes with Fairytale Cupcakes written in fancy, embossed script, I notice, tall enough not to damage the frosting and with a circular space to hold the cupcake in place.
Wow, they really are serious about their cakes here.
When he hands it over to me, though, I open it up immediately. Liam raises an eyebrow, but I just look at Maya.
After the time I’ve spent with Lily and Katy, I can’t imagine being given a surprise by a little girl and not letting her see my reaction when I discover what it is.
“I want to find out what’s inside right now.” I whisper to her, leaning forward like we have a secret and she mimics me, her eyes big and excited as she giggles.
I unwrap the paper and take a big bite, ignoring that it’s probably not the most refined way to eat it. I really do want to know what’s inside - and I’ve never seen the point of nibbling daintily at something like this. An instant later, my eyes close as sugary-chocolatey goodness hits all of my senses. It’s got to be one of the best cupcakes I’ve ever had - moist and fudgey and—ohh.
I hit something gooey and…wonderful, right there in the middle. It takes me a moment to identify it, but as soon as the distinct impression of rocky road hits me, I know exactly what it is.
“Marshmallows?” I ask, after savoring that first bite. “You put marshmallow in the center? That’s genius!”
I grin at Maya, who whoops and jumps up with excitement, Liam responding with lightning-fast reflexes to catch her before she crashes back into whatever she’s standing on at the moment.
“I love marshmallows.” I say, with an enthusiasm I’m not even slightly putting on, as I try not to laugh at the combination of Maya’s excitement and Liam’s strained expression. It’s a look I’ve seen on my brother Mark’s face more often than not since my nieces came along.
“Me too!” Maya agrees, squirming in Liam’s arms. “Daddy, put me down.”
“Not when you look like you’re going to run around and break things - like yourself.”
“I will not.” She shakes her head, but stills enough that he reluctantly sets her back on the ground. She hops up on the stool again as if nothing happened and leans on the counter, resting her chin on both hands.
“Thank you, Maya. That was an awesome choice.”
“You’re welcome!” She sing-songs, the satisfied glow on her face warming me from the inside.
“Really.” I add, glancing back at Liam. “That’s seriously good. The way you’ve made the marshmallow all melted and gooey as well, mmm, it’s like rocky road in cupcake form. My favorite. In fact…I think I might need a few more of those.”
That comes out before I’ve fully thought about it, but the moment I say it I know it’s what I want to do - especially after he gave me this one for free. Even if it had been awful, I probably would have tried to buy something, just because this place is new and so cool - and if there’s one thing Ashton gets right, it’s supporting each other and our own independent stores.
Liam laughs, nudging his daughter. “Well done, Maya. Guess you know more about this business than me, huh?”
“Told you.” She says, still grinning proudly.
“What would you like?” He asks, turning his attention back to me.
“Can I get a box of six?”
“Six?” He raises an eyebrow with a smile as he reaches for another box. “Well, that will make up for avoiding us for so long.”
“I was on vacation.” I point out again, enjoying the light-hearted teasing. “And they’re not all for me - even I couldn’t eat that many cupcakes. I’ll take them into the office - it’ll make a nice start to my first day back, don’t you think?”
“Oh, of course. Cupcakes are the best start to the day. And end. And also, while we’re at it, let’s not forget the middle…” He says as he gives me that easy charming smile again and gestures to the display counter. “All Fairy Princess Surprise? Or a selection?”
“A selection - but at least one Fairy Princess Surprise.”
He meets my eyes briefly, his own sparkling before he
fills the box - not even randomly, based on the way he hovers over one or two before changing his mind and selecting another. Yeah, this guy takes his cupcakes seriously. Though I get the feeling that maybe it’s not just cupcakes. I wouldn’t be surprised if Liam is the kind of man who gives that sort of deliberate, careful attention to everything he does.
When he finishes and hands it over to me, I put the other box of my half-eaten cupcake on top and pay.
“Thank you - and good luck with all of this. Really, it’s great to see a place like this open up in Ashton - especially when it’s right outside my office.” I grin. “I’m sure I’ll be back again soon to see what new delicacies you’ve come up with.”
“I’ll hold you to that.” Liam says, his voice warm as he smiles at me, and from all the comments about how long it took for me to come in, I have no doubt he means that.
I give them both another wave and walk out the door, clutching the box of cupcakes with satisfaction. I think about the Belgian chocolates I brought back sitting in my bag - but I’ve already decided those can wait until another day. There’s no way anyone can object to cupcakes like these.
I’m still grinning as I walk into the office building for the town’s local newspaper, Behind the Times. Yeah, it’s about as quirky as it sounds. When he came up with the name, Anderson thought his little play on words would be a clever joke about how - by the time we report on it - all Ashton’s ‘news’ has already been circulated and discussed a dozen times over by the usual gossip chain, while at the same time implying that we have all the facts and depth of information ‘behind’ the rumor mill.
I’m not sure he realizes that most people assume it has more to do with him - and the slightly eccentric, old-fashioned way he’d like to run the newspaper. I’m a firm believer that, if he could get away with it, he’d still be writing news articles on the old typewriter he keeps on his desk.
“Kelsey!”
The warm exclamation comes as I step into the office, somewhere between surprise, delight and exasperation.
“I thought I told you not to come in today.” John Anderson walks out of the small division that marks his ‘office’ and scoops me up in a huge bear hug, not looking the slightest bit upset that I have, even while I try to balance the box of cupcakes around his broad shoulders. “You just got back yesterday, and it’s Friday, you could have taken today off too.”
He steps back with a beaming smile, looking me up and down with satisfaction as Amanda steps out of her cubicle and comes over with a grin of her own.
“Kelsey.” She hugs me tightly. “I’m so glad you’re back.”
“Me too.” I whisper, before stepping back and smiling at both of them. “C’mon, Anderson, I wanted to be here. Friday is the best day to come in - we can catch up, I’ll tell you all about my adventures in Europe, you can both show me what I’ve missed, and you won’t get too grumpy about any of it because we all know we don’t really get anything done on Friday.”
Anderson mock-scowls at me, but the effect is slightly spoiled by the sparkle in his eyes. He’s an older man with thick-rimmed glasses, bushy gray hair and a big, thickset frame covered by his trademark off-white shirt and dungarees. Amanda puts her arm around my shoulder and squeezes.
“That’s perfect, Kelsey. C’mon, it’s been far too long.”
She steers me toward the couch and table we’ve got set up in the corner of the office, ignoring Anderson as he pretends to grumble behind her.
“You just want the day off.” He says. “And I’ll have you know, some of us always work on Friday.”
“I brought cupcakes.” I say instead, looking over my shoulder with a grin.
He snorts a laugh, joining us and settling into the armchair we always leave for him. “I see you’ve already met the newest addition to our town, then.”
“I could hardly miss it.” I say with a laugh.
Amanda leans forward and opens the box, displaying the pretty selection while I open the other one with my part-eaten cupcake inside.
“I must say.” She says as she leans forward to pick one up, in a slightly conspiratorial tone. “My interest in cupcakes has increased dramatically in recent weeks.”
Anderson helps himself to another, considering it carefully before giving Amanda a meaningful look and shaking his head.
“I tell you, that man is going to be dangerous.”
“Yep.” Amanda agrees. “A single guy moving into town, looking like that…even without the cupcakes and cute little girl he’s got with him…”
“Single?” I tilt my head. “What makes you think—”
“Didn’t you see? No ring on his finger, or anything like that.”
I blink. I hadn’t, actually. I’m not exactly in the habit of looking for things like that.
“Still, that doesn’t mean—”
She shakes her head. “Sure, but in this case…it does. It’s just the two of them.”
I’m not quite sure what to think of that. Now that she says it, I guess that is the vibe I got from them both - Liam and his daughter, just them and their cupcake store against the world - but it makes me pause. I thought their partnership was adorably sweet before, but now…it makes it something more, too. Both sweeter and deeper.
“See?” Anderson repeats. “Dangerous.”
The foreboding tone to his voice makes me laugh and I shake off my strange feeling, settling back into the much easier way to think about our new arrival…as the semi-amusing-semi-ridiculous drama that’s probably about to play out throughout town - especially if he really is single. Anderson is right about that - the gossip and interest is going to be totally impossible to ignore.
“Him?” I ask, giving him a grin as I take another bite of the heavenly cupcake. “How about all the single women in Ashton? I’d be more worried about how he’s going to fare.”
“Ohh, he’s very good.” Amanda chimes in, and I give her a puzzled look. “He says ‘no’ in the most charming of ways.”
She sighs deliberately, making me laugh.
“You’ve already asked?”
“Darling.” Anderson interrupts. “I think most everyone in town has already asked.”
One month. How can I have missed so much?
I swallow another laugh with a mouthful of cupcake, finding the whole situation highly amusing.
“It just makes them want him more, of course.” Amanda adds. “The only thing better than a beautiful man serving the most delicious cupcakes is if he’s also totally unattainable.”
“Women.” Anderson mutters, shaking his head. “I’ll never understand you all.”
“Don’t worry.” I reassure him. “I rarely understand us either.”
“Makes for a popular cupcake shop, though.” Amanda grins, with an easy self-deprecation. “Probably a good business tactic, if the number of times I’ve been in there is anything to go by.”
“Poor guy.” I shake my head, but I’m still laughing.
If anyone is equipped to deal with it, from what I saw this morning, Liam would probably be the one. From his half-flirting, half-teasing tone, I’d even go as far as to say he probably encourages it.
Unattainable is interesting, though. If he’s a single dad, though, well isn’t there always a story there? I wonder whether that’s it - but then again, he’s only been in town a few weeks.
“Well, it will be an interesting circus to see who finally catches his interest.”
Amanda nudges me. “How about you? Going to throw your hat in the ring?”
I laugh. “Oh, hell no. Sure, I won’t deny it, he’s more than a little mesmerizing but no - I’m done with all that. Guys are too much damn work.”
I don’t miss the look that passes between Anderson and Amanda, but they don’t make a thing of it and it’s easy to ignore.
“Is that what your trip abroad taught you?” Amanda asks, raising an eyebrow at me.
I grin. “Well, maybe not quite. There were a couple of fun moments…guys can be good for
some things, I’ll admit.”
Amanda laughs, her voice peeling out between us, and I start regaling them both with my tales of Europe. Eventually we move onto all the things that have happened in town since I’ve been gone - most of which is Liam’s new cupcake store - and I have the best day ever eating cupcakes, chatting to them both and looking over the two issues of the fortnightly Behind the Times that they released in my absence. The moment I actually start consider doing some work, Anderson shoots me down and takes us both out for an early drink - to toast my return, and the weekend coming in.
By the time I finally head home, my cheeks hurt from grinning so much, happiness feels like it’s bubbling up inside me and it’s so good to know that the feeling I had this morning was right.
Except, this wasn’t just a good day. It was a crazy-fantastic day.
And if that’s how the day has gone, then who knows what the month, or the year, or hey - the rest of my life - might hold?
Chapter Two
Liam
“Come on, princess.” I call out. “Time to go home.”
Maya skips over to me from the back room, grinning up at me as I lead her out and close up the store, a satisfied smile on my face as I look back at it. It’s been a good day. Busy, but that’s pretty much the definition of good when you’ve just opened a store. Three weeks in, and our popularity only seems to be increasing. I can only hope it continues.
“Daddy…” Maya says in that considering tone she gets sometimes, tilting her head back to look up at me as I take her hand and we start walking home. “You know I’m not really a princess, don’t you?”
I smile gently, pulling her closer to me and squeezing her shoulder. “You’re always a princess to me.”
“Yes, but…Daddy, you have to be a King for me to be a princess, don’t you?”
