The Confectioner Chronicles Box Set

by Claire Luana

The flag cracked in the breeze, billowing open to display a silver Imbris falcon in flight emblazoned across the middle. Wren felt her heart soar with it—into the dawn of a new day.

  Epilogue

  “A little higher,” Wren said, squinting into the morning sun, eying the banner. “The left side’s a little low. Just an inch...”

  “Good?” Lucas asked.

  “My arms are getting tired,” Thom complained.

  “Perfect!” Wren cried.

  Thom and Lucas stood on two chairs, tying off the ropes that held a bright pink banner fluttering over the door of the shop. Grand Opening, it announced boldly.

  Lucas hopped down, striding over, snaking his arms around Wren’s waist from behind as he surveyed his and Thom’s handiwork over her head. She leaned back into him, admiring the view as Thom joined them too, dusting off his hands. “Cake & Cone.” Thom read the wooden sign emblazoned above the banner. “Infused and Artisanal Ice Cream and Confections. I still think we should have gone with Cone & Cake.”

  Wren rolled her eyes. “We flipped a coin! My suggestion won.”

  “About that. How do I know you weren’t...influencing the coin?” Thom raised an eyebrow.

  Wren opened her mouth in mock affront. “Are you suggesting I would use my luck to influence something so important as the name of our shop? I am outraged at the suggestion.”

  Lucas chuckled, his chest rumbling pleasantly against her.

  “Maradis’s first shop for infused goods. It’s a new era,” Lucas said, tactfully changing the subject.

  “And we’re so pleased to have the king’s personal endorsement.” Thom inclined his head.

  Lucas groaned. “Please don’t call me that. It’s bad enough to have the entire Guild and Nobles’ Councils lurking around every corner, trying to ingratiate themselves with me! I keep telling them that I’m only standing in until the election, and then I’ll have zero power over anything.”

  “I don’t know,” Wren said, turning in Lucas’s arms and kissing him on the cheek. “You have some sort of power over me.”

  He grinned. “A power I must only use for good.”

  “I don’t know.” A sly smile curved across her lips. “Maybe you could use it for bad.”

  Lucas’s response was lost as a new voice joined them. “Ew,” Trick said, walking up, a brown paper package under one arm. “There’s nothing more tacky than a public display of affection,” he said before wrapping his arms around Thom and dipping him back, giving him a thorough kiss.

  Thom’s cheeks were red as Trick let him back up for air—his smile ear-to-ear.

  “Thanks for coming,” Wren said.

  Trick handed her the package. “A christening present for your new baby,” he said, nodding towards the shop.

  “Aww. Should I open it now?” Wren asked.

  He nodded, and Lucas unwound his arms from her as she pulled the brown paper off of the gift. She opened the box and lifted out a crisp white linen apron embroidered in silver thread with the diamond logo of her and Thom’s new shop, a stylized ice cream cone on the bottom, a swirl of cupcake frosting on the top.

  Wren pressed her hand to her heart. “I love it, Trick.”

  Thom and Trick wore matching grins. “He already gave me mine,” Thom said. “Aren’t they cool?”

  Wren pulled the apron over her head, tying it over her lavender dress.

  “You know, I have a present for you too,” Lucas said, taking one of her hands, the other reaching in his pocket to pull out a little blue velvet box.

  “You helped so much with the shop, even with all your other duties,” Wren said, touched but wary about the size of that box. Though the past few peaceful months with Lucas had felt like a dream, she didn’t think she was ready for what kind of step came in boxes of that size—that shape.

  “I wanted to.” He handed it to her.

  Wren took in a breath as she opened the lid, the hinge creaking. A silver key lay inside.

  She looked at him with surprise. “What’s this?”

  Thom and Trick were trying to act nonchalant and give them a moment, but she could tell out of the corner of her eye that they were watching with keen interest.

  “I got a new apartment,” Lucas said. “I don’t like living in the palace, and I won’t after the election. This new place is bigger than my old one. Big enough for two. I thought...maybe you’d like to live there with me.”

  Wren’s mouth formed a little O as relief welled in her. “You’re asking me to move in with you?” she asked, delight swirling within her like molten chocolate.

  “Would you?” Lucas asked, nerves written across his face.

  “Of course!” she cried, throwing her arms around him. “I’d love to!”

  Lucas swung her around once before putting her down and giving her a kiss.

  Wren shoved an auburn curl out of her face. “I thought...well, never mind. I’d love to move in.”

  Thom let out a barking laugh. “My god, man! I thought you were proposing!”

  “Proposing?” Lucas looked at Thom with horror, then back to Wren. “Did you think...? Did you want...?”

  She shook her head. “I think moving in is the perfect first step.”

  “Next time don’t go for the ring box, brother.” Trick clapped Lucas on his shoulder.

  Wren just laughed, holding the box to her chest.

  “Should we go in?” Lucas asked, running a hand through his salt-and-pepper hair. “Please, something to put me out of my misery.”

  Wren nodded and with a smile pushed her way into the shop. The silver bell tinkled as the door opened. She looked over the inside with a swell of pride. She and Thom had designed the entire shop themselves, from the whitewashed brick wall to the funky iron chandeliers that hung from the soaring rafters to the tables crafted from gnarled wood from the Cascadian foothills. A chalkboard behind the counter announced their day’s offerings: Thom’s newly dreamed-up flavors of ice cream on the left, her cupcakes and confections on the right. A sleek silver espresso machine nestled against the back counter, offering whatever else a Maradis native might need.

  The bell tinkled again and Wren turned to find Callidus and Olivia stepping through the door. Despite the unseasonably warm February day, Callidus was swathed in a black pinstripe suit, his ebony hair in a perfect coif. Olivia wore a bright coral dress cinched with a leather belt, her blonde curls bouncing. She gave Wren a tight embrace. “Are we your first customers?”

  “Very first,” Wren said.

  “Dash is sorry he couldn’t make it,” Olivia said. “He’s buried with a new crop of recruits.” Dash had been promoted to captain of the Cedar Guard and was busy trying to replenish the ranks the invasion had decimated.

  Wren waved a hand. “He’ll have plenty of chances to come by. Tell him we missed him. What can we get you?”

  “I want a scoop of the lemon basil sorbet Thom has refused to shut up about,” Olivia said.

  “Right this way, ma’am,” Thom joked as he walked around the counter, brandishing a silver ice cream scoop.

  “And what can I get for you?” Wren asked Callidus with only a touch of hesitation. Things had been strange between them since Wren and Thom had announced they were leaving the Guildhall. Not bad, but...there were words unsaid.

  “A cupcake, I think,” Callidus said. “Maybe one of those rose ones.” He nodded towards cupcakes frosted like blushing roses crowning the three-tiered display on the counter.

  She looked back at him and let out a disbelieving laugh. “Really?”

  A smile broke across his face. It was so uncommon, it touched her. “I hear they’re to die for.”

  Wren smacked her hand against her forehead, groaning. “That’s terrible.”

  A laugh escaped him. “I couldn’t resist. I was sad, you know, when you said you were leaving. But now... This suits you, Wren. I’m happy for you.”

  “Thank you,” she whispered, overcome with emotion. How far they’d come together. What they’
d been through. She’d never really thought she’d end up here. Happy.

  “The Guild’s door is always open, you know. For both of you.”

  “Will you be all right?” Wren asked.

  “Oh yes.” Callidus waved a hand. “Olivia and Marina could run the place in their sleep. Though with the gold we sent to the Red Badger, we’ll have to tighten our belt for a year or so.”

  Wren snorted. “I still don’t think we should have paid Ansel anything.”

  “I debated. But he did help us get into the palace. Him and Griff and the men and women who follow them. We couldn’t have done it without them. So I sent him half.”

  Wren had received a letter from Ansel a month ago, admitting he’d been wrong to doubt her, and wishing her happiness. She found she hoped for the same, for him.

  Callidus continued. “But don’t you worry about us. We’ll be fine. Though things certainly are less exciting without you and Thom and Hale around.”

  The mention of Hale brought another wistful smile to her face. “Have you heard from him?” she asked. She had stood on the docks just two days ago, waving goodbye as Hale had stood on the deck of the Sea Witch, Griff’s flagship, waving back at her. It turned out he and Griff had known each other back when they’d been young. Hale had decided he needed some time away from the Guild to find himself again. Away from Maradis and the memories it held.

  “Not yet, but they shouldn’t get to Centa Kana for another day. He promised to write from there,” Callidus said. “At least we know Griff will keep him in line.”

  “She said she was going to make him work to pay his way. Can you imagine?” Wren laughed. “Hale doing hard labor?”

  “It’ll be good for him,” Callidus said.

  “Agreed.” Wren nodded. She understood Hale needing to get away. And she knew, she felt it in her bones, that when he was ready, he would come back to them. When he put himself back together again.

  The bell tinkled and a family walked in—a blonde woman with two young boys. “Are you open?” the woman asked.

  “Absolutely,” Wren said.

  “I’ll let you get to your customers,” Callidus whispered, and Wren nodded, hurrying behind the counter.

  “What can I get you?” Wren asked as the two boys moved forward, grubby fingers pressed against the cool glass of the ice cream case. The mother smiled, her hand lingering on one of the boy’s tawny heads.

  “Is it really magic?” One of the boys looked up at her, his green eyes as wide as saucers.

  “It is.” Wren nodded. “The magic flavors are marked with the little magic wand.”

  “I want to be magic when I grow up,” the other boy said.

  “It’s all he talks about.” The mother offered an apologetic smile.

  “Well,” Wren said, leaning down, “I think that’s a perfect plan. Because in Alesia, you can be an inspector, or a priest, or a pirate. Or if you believe hard enough, you can be a magic confectioner. In Alesia, you can be anything you want.”

  Thank you so much for taking the time to read The Confectioner Chronicles! I hope you’ve enjoyed reading about Wren’s adventures as much as I enjoyed writing them!

  Reader reviews are incredibly important to indie authors like me, and so it would mean the world to me if you took a few minutes to leave an honest review wherever you buy books online. It doesn’t have to be much; a few words can make the difference in helping a future reader give the book a chance.

  If you’re interested in receiving updates, giveaways, and advanced copies of upcoming books, sign up for my mailing list at http://claireluana.com. As a thank you for signing up, you will receive a free ebook!

  Claire Luana grew up reading everything she could get her hands on and writing every chance she could. Eventually, adulthood won out, and she turned her writing talents to more scholarly pursuits, going to work as a commercial litigation attorney.

  While continuing to practice law, Claire decided to return to her roots and try her hand once again at creative writing. She has written and published the Moonburner Cycle, the Confectioner Chronicles, the Knights of Caerleon trilogy with Jesikah Sundin, and is currently working on several new fantasy series.

  She lives in Seattle, Washington with her husband and two dogs. In her (little) remaining spare time, she loves to hike, travel, binge-watch CW shows, and of course, fall into a good book.

  Connect with Claire Luana online at:

  Website & Blog

  The Moonburner Cycle

  Moonburner, Book One

  Sunburner, Book Two

  Starburner, Book Three

  Burning Fate, Prequel

  The Confectioner Chronicles

  The Confectioner’s Guild, Book One

  The Confectioner’s Coup, Book Two

  The Confectioner’s Truth, Book Three

  The Confectioner’s Exile, Prequel

  The Knights of Caerleon

  The Fifth Knight, Book One

  The Third Curse, Book Two

  The First Gwenevere, Book Three