by Jamie Knight
Savoring Her Sweets
Billionaire and Baker Auction Romance Collection
Copyright © 2020 Jamie Knight Romance.
Jamie Knight
Your Dirty Little Secret Romance Author
All rights reserved.
This collection contains Buying Her Buns, Cramming Her Cupcake and Tasting Her Treat.
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Table of Contents
Buying Her Buns
A Billionaire and Single Mom Auction Romance
Chapter 1
Jocelyn
Chapter 2
Jocelyn
Chapter 3
Jocelyn
Chapter 4
Derek
Chapter 5
Derek
Chapter 6
Jocelyn
Chapter 7
Derek
Chapter 8
Jocelyn
Chapter 9
Jocelyn
Chapter 10
Jocelyn
Chapter 11
Jocelyn
Chapter 12
Derek
Epilogue
Derek
Jocelyn
Cramming Her Cupcake
Chapter 1
Brian
Chapter 2
Brian
Chapter 3
Tammy
Chapter 4
Tammy
Chapter 5
Brian
Chapter 6
Tammy
Chapter 7
Brian
Chapter 8
Tammy
Chapter 9
Tammy
Chapter 10
Brian
Chapter 11
Tammy
Chapter 12
Brian
Chapter 13
Tammy
Chapter 14
Tammy
Chapter 15
Tammy
Epilogue
Brian
Tasting Her Treat
Chapter One
Candy
Chapter Two
Elliot
Chapter Three
Candy
Chapter Four
Elliot
Chapter Five
Candy
Chapter Six
Elliot
Chapter Seven
Candy
Chapter Eight
Elliot
Chapter Nine
Candy
Chapter Ten
Elliot
Chapter Eleven
Candy
Chapter Twelve
Candy
Chapter Thirteen
Elliot
Chapter Fourteen
Candy
Chapter Fifteen
Candy
Chapter Sixteen
Elliot
Chapter Seventeen
Candy
Chapter Eighteen
Elliot
Chapter Nineteen
Candy
Chapter Twenty
Elliot
Chapter Twenty-One
Candy
Epilogue
Candy
Sneak Peek of Buying Her Flower
Other Books in this Series
Sneak Peek of Binding His Virgin
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Buying Her Buns
A Billionaire and Single Mom Auction Romance
Copyright © 2020 Jamie Knight Romance.
Jamie Knight
Your Dirty Little Secret Romance Author
All rights reserved.
Chapter 1
Jocelyn
It’s early morning and I’m already at work in the small bakery I run in a quiet Pittsburgh neighborhood. Having to get up and get out of the house before dawn is nothing new, but that’s okay, though, because I love what I do.
Due to my son, Maxim, though, it means operating without a lot of sleep. Usually he still gets up several times a night, which is exhausting. Then there are nights when he doesn’t wake up, but even then, I still have to get up even earlier to nurse him before I can come into work, but it’s all worth it.
I mean, obviously, I love my son. I'm extremely grateful that not only am I mom, but I also have the chance to have my own career and business as well. Although, lately, I have been worried about how long I’ll still get to do it, since so far, it seems to be running on the generosity of others.
I shrug off my thoughts and instead focus on measuring ingredients for the dough. I don’t need to feel so depressed this early in the morning. I still have a few hours left before normal business hours, but I couldn't wait to get my hand in the dough.
So here I am, kneading dough and baking cinnamon buns while watching the sun slowly rise through the windows of my shop. I sigh happily. I find such peace when I work alone like this. I enjoy the silence and stillness of the empty bakery as I work.
I’m lost in my work and I’m not sure how much time has passed. But after a while, there’s a knock at the door which startles me in the emptiness of the bakery.
I clean the dough off my hands and wonder who it could be. No doubt it’s some customer who is trying to come earlier than usual, even though we aren’t open yet.
The sun isn't fully out yet, so I have to squint a little to see who's there. I gulp softly when I see my Uncle Bob. He’s waiting patiently for me to open the door.
I go to the door and my heart pounds in my chest as I open it for him. He walks inside the bakery and I lock the door behind him.
I’ve been putting this conversation off for a while now, but I know I can’t avoid it any longer. I turn to look at him and wish again that this wasn't happening, but now is as good a time as any, since he has gone out of his way to show up here.
"Good Morning, Uncle Bob,” I greet him, trying to sound cheerful.
He ignores my comment and looks around the place. I can tell by his facial expressions that he's in a bad mood. I try not to let that scare me, but it doesn't work.
"So, how are things with you?" I ask.
I'm trying again to be polite. He clears his throat and looks back at me.
"Been better," he replies.
He runs his palms together anxiously.
"That's good to hear. Maxim says hi," I tell him.
I'm trying to stall the actual conversation as long as I can, even though I know it needs to be had.
Uncle Bob sighs irritably.
"Look, I don’t have time for all this chitchat. The sun isn't even out yet. I'd like to get back home and rest while I still can," he snaps.
I try not to flinch at the rude tone in his voice.
"Oh, ok. So, what brings you here today?" I ask.
I'm trying to act like I don’t already know.
He sighs again in exasperation.
"You know why I'm here. It’s the same reason I'm always here. Now, do you have the payment on my loan or not?" he asks.
I swallow at the anger in his tone.
"Um, I think I have a little bit of it," I reply softly as I hurry past him to the cash register.
I'm eager to put some distance between us. He crosses his arms and taps his foot impatiently as I open the register. My face falls as I pull out the money. I close the register and slowly walk back over to him.
"Um, all I have is $100," I stammer, as I hesitantly hold it out to him.
He stares at me in shock and his face is turning red. He’s clearly getting angry.<
br />
"You know you owe me so much more than that. For months I have been waiting and waiting and you only give me little payments each time!" he shouts at me.
I try to keep my hands from shaking as he snatches the money from me and shoves it roughly in his pocket.
"I will have more soon; I'll continue to pay you back, I promise," I say, feeling a little fearful.
He waves his hand at me in irritation.
"I'm tired of hearing that. It's all you ever say. I will give you a few more weeks and then I'll have to evict you. I can’t pay bills on empty promises. I'm tired of waiting for my money," he snaps at me.
I want so bad to breathe a sigh of relief at the fact that he’s giving me a little more time and not just evicting me now, but I need to appear strong in front of him.
"I understand, and I will work harder to get your money by then," I reply.
This seems to appease him.
"See that you do," he barks at me.
I unlock the door and let him out. Once he’s gone, I lock it firmly, then go back to the kitchen. I can’t fall apart now, as I have tough work to do.
I'm just glad I was able to get him to leave before customers come in and see him. If that had happened, I would have been so embarrassed.
I try to focus on work again and regain my happiness, but I can’t. My mood is gone. Maybe he's right and all this work is futile. I'm starting to think I'm wasting my time.
I start to feel better about myself and my work as I help the customers throughout the day.
Without realizing it, I feel myself being cheered up by how much they like my baked goods and how happy they are to be here in my bakery.
No matter how many compliments I receive, though, I can’t help fearing that it will all fall apart soon, and I will disappoint everyone, including myself.
Chapter 2
Jocelyn
After a long day of work, I’m glad to be home. I am tired, physically, mentally and emotionally. Technically, it is my Aunt Barbara’s house, but I don't mind, and neither does she. We get along well, and she adores Maxim. I have been living here since I was pregnant with him.
I unlock the door and find the two of them sitting in the living room. She looks tired as well, and is trying to calm a squirming Maxim.
"Hello," I announce loudly from the door.
She looks at me with both surprise and relief. Then she picks up the still squirming Maxim and walks over to me. Maxim squeals with delight and reaches for me.
"Hi. How was work?" my aunt asks me, as she passes Maxim to me.
I put the house key in my purse and take him from her. He wraps his arms around me and pulls on my hair.
"Hi, baby boy. It was ok, I guess," I say to her.
I really don't want to go into detail about everything that happened.
"Aww, I'm sorry to hear it was only ok," she replies.
I shrug. Then Maxim touches my face, wanting attention. We both turn to look at him.
"How was he today?" I ask my aunt.
She lets put a tired sigh.
"Well, he’s been fussy and clingy. I got him to eat and stuff, but I couldn't get him down for a nap, and he wouldn't play with his toys. We spent the last hour trying to watch TV, but he didn't like it," she replies, sounding tired.
"I'm glad I'm home then," I say.
She nods in agreement.
"Me too. I'm going to take a bath and a break from the little cutie. No offense," she replies.
I chuckle at her words.
"Trust me, I completely understand," I reply.
Before she walks away, I say, "Um, Aunt Barbara, thank you once again for watching him. I don't know what I would do without you."
She smiles kindly at me and replies, "It’s no problem, dear. Even when he’s fussy, he is still so adorable, and I love spending time with him."
I smile at her words and then at Maxim. What she says next takes me by surprise.
"Jocelyn, if it's any consolation, I think what my sister did is just wrong. They had no right to talk to you like that or treat you that way.”
I'm so surprised by what she said that all I can do is blush and say, "Thank you."
Aunt Barbara smiles and goes to take her bath. Meanwhile, I take Maxim to our room and lay down with him. I ask him how his day was, and if he’s tired, because he looks like it and it doesn’t sound like he slept much with Aunt Barbara.
He smiles and coos at me and I lay down with him to nurse him. I spend a lot of time talking to him and cradling him while he nurses. Aunt Barbara is right; he might be a handful, but he is absolutely gorgeous.
After a few moments of nursing, I notice that Maxim is quiet. I look down at him and shake my head in wonder. I guess that was all he needed, because now he’s fast asleep.
I detach him from me, and close up my blouse. Then I look at him lying beside me. When he’s asleep, he looks like an angel. I check to make sure he is ok, then stare up at the ceiling.
Even though I'm tired from today, I can’t sleep. I let my thoughts wander about how I got to this point in my life and wonder what I am going to do from here. I usually don't like to think about this, but sometimes you can’t stop your mind from going down these tracks, or, in my case, sometimes getting stuck on the same track over and over.
It all started when I got pregnant in high school. I was born and raised in the small, conservative town of Bloom, Idaho and people there weren’t kind to single, unwed mothers.
Thankfully, I managed to graduate high school before I started showing. That still didn't stop my parents from kicking me out as soon as they found out, though, which was the situation Aunt Barbara had been alluding to earlier.
I was pregnant and on my own. I had no idea what I was going to do. I thought I was going to have to wander around by myself or end up in a much worse situation.
I was so happy and relieved when my Aunt Barbara, my mother’s sister, was nice enough to offer me a place to live. Surely this will be the turning point for me, I thought.
I was even able to take a chance on my dreams and start baking seriously, which was something I had loved to do my whole life. I even made plans to open my own business.
A few months later, I thought things were really working out for me when Uncle Bob, my mother’s brother, who seemed as nice as my Aunt Barbara at first, gave me a loan for my bakery business. I really thought my dreams were starting to come true.
But apparently things were too good to be totally true. I hadn’t known my mom’s side of the family well because we had left Pittsburgh for Bloom – where my father is from – when I was a baby, and my mom didn’t really keep in touch with them. It turns out that Aunt Barbara’s niceness was for real, and my Uncle Bob’s was not.
I think that was all an act and that he only wanted to make money off of me, because look at how he acted today. He’s been acting like this a lot lately because the business hasn’t been profiting. It’s making some profit, which is all going to him, but I don’t know how he thought it would make a lot by now – it’s something I have to build up.
It’s obvious he thought it would somehow be a huge money-maker right away and now he doesn’t want to help me anymore. I suppose I can understand that, but I don't know what else to do. It seems like no matter what I try, nothing works out for me.
I have no money to go to college and I’ve never been great at academics anyway. I’ve started applying to work at other local bakeries or restaurants. So far, I haven’t heard back from any, but hopefully I will soon. I tell myself to stay positive, but it’s difficult.
A quiet knock at the door startles me from my thoughts. Maxim is asleep, so I quietly tiptoe over and open the door. It’s Aunt Barbara.
She whispers to me, "I'm done with the bath and thought that maybe you should take one too because you’ve been working hard all day. I also want to apologize for seeming frustrated earlier.”
"Oh, it’s no problem. I really do understand completely. A bath sounds wond
erful, thanks," I reply.
We both smile at each other. Barbara takes Maxim and goes to put him in his crib. I watch how carefully she cradles him, then look around the room for my shower stuff and pajamas.
At least I’ll always have my Aunt Barbara, I think, feeling very grateful. And Maxim, of course. Nothing else in my life might be going right, but as long as the two most important people are in it, I know things will turn out okay.
Chapter 3
Jocelyn
I sink into the warm bubbly water of the bath. I so needed this after today. Life certainly is stressful at times.
I lay my head back and close my eyes. I'm doing my best to relax but all I can hear is my mother's voice telling me, “you will ruin your life if you have this baby.”
Growing up, I had to listen to her incessantly complain about how babies take up all your time and energy. Me being pregnant only made her complain about it even worse.
I think about how I was so angry at her for continuously suggesting that I should give Maxim up for adoption, once she found out I was pregnant. I’m still angry at her for suggesting that.
I smile as I remember the way Maxim reached for me when I got home. Like I was his whole world. Even though life sure is hard sometimes, I'm so glad that I kept him. I think about how I first got pregnant and another conversation comes to mind.
I remember my mom scolding me for having pre-marital sex and I have to scoff every time I think about it. I think how ironic it was that I got pregnant on my first time having sex. And the sad part is that it wasn’t even good sex, at all.
The memory makes me shudder and feel all icky. I'm so glad I'm in the bathtub right now. I sigh and shake my head. I can’t believe I ever hooked up with that guy. I mean, I'm happy that I have Maxim, but that guy was a total loser.
And to think I lost my virginity to him. I was so humiliated when he wanted nothing to do with me after that. That's the reason why I didn’t even bother to tell him I was pregnant, and because I knew he’d be a dick about it.
I was so right about that. Eventually, word got around to him because my parents told his parents after they found out. This led to a whole mess, because predictably, he denied having sex with me. Because of that, his parents demanded a paternity test. They are dicks just like him.
