by Jamie Pope
She was a strong woman. She never thought that kind of thing could happen to her. She should have seen the warning signs in Steven. She should have known it was coming, but she didn’t see a thing and that’s what worried her about Chase.
“Hey.”
She broke out of her thoughts to see him sitting on her front steps with a large bag at his side.
“Hey.” She walked up to him. “What are you doing here? I thought I was going to see you tomorrow.”
“You wouldn’t let me pick you up from school and I really hated the thought of you on a bus at night alone.”
“Millions of people do it every day, Chase,” she said, feeling breathless at his sweetness.
“I know. But millions of people aren’t crazy about you.”
“Oh.”
Damn. He was too good. Almost too perfect. There had to be something wrong. Something she wasn’t seeing.
“What’s in the bag?” she asked him, not wanting to think about what could be wrong when everything was feeling so right.
“Dinner. I made chicken piccata and there are some marbled marshmallow brownies for dessert.”
“You made me dinner? You actually cooked?”
“My siblings aren’t the only ones who can throw down in the kitchen. I just need a carefully laid out recipe.”
She smiled. He was the first person in a long time who made her smile like this. “I’m glad you’re here, Chase.”
“I wouldn’t have been able to sleep without seeing you tonight. How was your final?”
“It was tough, but I think I did pretty well, thanks to you.”
“Not thanks to me. You are really intelligent. I’ve just been at it a little longer than you have.”
“Will you stay tonight?”
He nodded. “Will you let me take you out tomorrow? There’s a little art theater downtown that is showing old black-and-white films for a dollar. They’ve got food trucks lined up in front of it. I figured we could sample food from around the world.”
“Of course, I’ll go out with you tomorrow. It’s the only thing I want to do.”
* * *
Two evenings later Chase walked up to his parents’ stately home in a beautiful old affluent section of Seattle. He had never thought about where he had come from until recently. But he’d always had everything. Every chance. Every opportunity. He worked incredibly hard and earned every penny, but he didn’t have to. Things were just easier for him. He wondered who or where he’d be under different circumstances. Would he be like Amber, whose parents worked hard every single day of their lives but never had much money? Where would he be if his parents couldn’t have afforded to send him to college? What would his life be like if he was faced with crippling student loan debt? Would he still be the same man he was now if he had been born to a different set of parents in a different part of town?
He didn’t know the answer to any of those questions, but being with Amber made him think a lot about things lately. He was thankful for the life he had. He gave back, but he did that out of obligation more than anything else. He was truly appreciative of all that life had brought him, and he was especially appreciative that he had spent the past few weeks with a woman who kept his mind as active as his body.
The door opened before he had the chance to knock and he saw his beautiful mother standing before him wearing cream-colored designer slacks and a peach top that went perfectly with her brown skin. Her makeup was just right; there wasn’t a strand of hair out of place. His entire life he had seen her that way. He wondered what she would look like with her hair mussed and clothes that came from a discount store instead of a pricey boutique. Would she still carry herself the same? Would she still walk around with that slight air of superiority that made her Nadia Drayson?
“Hello, son.” She kissed his cheek. “You’re late. You’re never late.”
“Am I?” He looked down at his watch and sure enough he was eleven minutes late to his monthly family dinner. “Oh, I apologize. I must have gotten caught up.”
He had been with Amber. She had gone to kiss him goodbye and it had turned into more than just a little kiss.
“It’s quite all right. Your cousin Belinda and her husband, Malik, are here visiting from Chicago. They are stopping over on their way to LA.”
“That’s nice.” He was actually a little surprised to hear that his Chicago cousins were in his parents’ home. He had no problem with them, but there had been some strain between the two branches of the family; it was almost a feud, going back to some ancient debt from a few generations ago. Chase liked to think of it as the Drayson cold war.
“Tonight we are having roasted pork tenderloin with a spicy blueberry reduction and creamy barley risotto.”
“Spicy blueberry?”
“Your brother recommended it. It’s turned out quite well.”
“You made it, mother. I’m sure it did.”
She smiled at him. “Don’t tell the others, but you’re my favorite.”
“You tell them the same thing.” He smiled back.
“I’m not sure what you are talking about. Graham, dear. Chase has arrived.” He followed his mother into the living room to see his father with a glass of bourbon in his hand.
“Hello, son. I tried calling you the other day, but I couldn’t reach you.”
“Oh, really?” He made a practice of not answering calls when he was with Amber. He hadn’t done that in other relationships. He always picked up his phone and answered his email. But now that he was with Amber, the less distraction he had from the outside world, the happier he was. “I’m sorry. I hope it wasn’t important.”
“Not terribly. I have a friend who would like you to look at his investment portfolio. I told him you were a financial genius.”
“You give me too much credit, Dad.”
“I don’t. You have something special. Not everyone has your skill. I would hate to see it go to waste.”
Chase knew that was a slight dig at him for taking a leave of absence from his job to work at the bakery. His mother didn’t like that any of her children were involved in this venture, but their father seemed more amenable to it. That is, when it involved Jackson and Mariah. Chase was often held to a slightly different standard than his siblings. A higher one. Especially by his father, who pushed him always to be the best in everything that he attempted. It wasn’t in a harsh or overzealous way, but there was just a little more weight on Chase, a little more pressure than the other two received.
“Hey, Chase.” He turned to see his cousin Belinda and her husband, Malik, walk in with Jackson and Mariah. “We didn’t know you had come in. We were just on the patio talking shop.”
“Yes,” Nadia said with a slight sigh. “Last bit of conversation I heard involved cupcakes. It’s every mother’s dream to hear her children discussing cupcake flavors after working so hard to make sure they have gotten the best education that money can offer.”
“You say that, Mom, but you never turn down any of the treats I bring you from the bakery,” Jackson said as he wrapped an arm around his mother.
“Well, of course not. That would just be rude.”
Jackson grinned at her before he turned his attention to Chase. “I see you’ve made it. Finally pulled yourself away from that sexy girl of yours.”
“Girl?” Nadia’s eyes widened and Chase wanted to smack his brother. “Are you seeing someone, Chase? You didn’t tell me you were seeing anyone.”
“I am,” he said, not wanting to discuss his love life in front of the entire family.
“Well, who is she?”
“Her name is Amber.”
“Sweetheart, I think you know me well enough by now to know that when I ask who is she, you should tell me more than her name. I would like to know what she does, who her p
eople are. What makes her anywhere near good enough to be with my firstborn son.”
“She’s my friend, Mom,” Mariah spoke up. “I told you about her.”
“The barista with the car trouble?” He could hear the disdain in his mother’s voice. “Oh, Chase. I thought you would have learned from your mistakes. There is a certain type of woman that you don’t get involved with, and one who is swimming in debt certainly qualifies as that type.”
“She’s more than a barista. She’s a jewelry designer and a graduate student and, even if she weren’t those things, who I see is my business.”
“I think you might have to make it all of our business.” Jackson plopped himself down on the couch. “He’s crazy about this one, Mom. I went over there and there were cups on his coffee table without coasters and take-out containers from cheap places, and did you know that he called in sick to play hooky with her?”
“You done tattling?” Chase asked Jackson.
“I’m not tattling. I’m reporting and I’m all for you being with her. I like Amber and you’re a little bit looser since she has been around. Plus she’s outstanding to look at.”
“If Jackson likes her,” his mother said, “then that’s a sure sign that she is all wrong for you. I’m just wondering how long it takes before she decides she is going to trap you. You are very eligible, son, and there are dozens of nice women that I approve of that would make perfectly lovely wives. I’m not sure why you are wasting time on this woman you have no future with.”
“Can I say something?” Belinda asked as she looked between Chase and his mother. “You seem so dead set against Chase being with this woman, but I haven’t heard a single reason why he shouldn’t be.”
“We live our lives a certain way. We travel in certain social circles. Even if you love this girl, can you really see her being your wife? Fitting in with your friends? We have that huge charity ball next month that I’m hosting. Will she be able to handle herself there? Keep up with conversations? Be able to speak eloquently about current affairs?”
“She isn’t some trash I picked up on the street and put some polish on. She’s a smart, talented woman. She teaches a class for underprivileged girls at a community center and she values education. She doesn’t just throw money at a problem—she works to change things.”
“She can’t throw money at a problem if she doesn’t have any,” his mother retorted.
“She is talented, Mom,” Mariah spoke up, defending her friend. “Look.” She took off the bracelet Chase had given her and showed it to her mother. “Amber made this. She sells them in a few boutiques around the city. She’s talented.”
“It’s cute,” Nadia said dismissively. “And I’m sure she’s a nice person if all of my children seem to like her, but I just don’t think she’s right for Chase.” She patted his cheek. “I’m going to see about dinner.”
Chase repressed a sigh, knowing that there was no winning with his mother. He liked Amber. He didn’t give a damn what anyone in his family thought. He would be with her. But he did wonder about the long term. If his mother didn’t like her, she wouldn’t make things easy for Amber. And Amber seemed uncomfortable with wealth, and his parents never had a problem showing theirs.
How would she fit in at family functions and charity balls? How would she function in a world that she didn’t like to travel in? She might not want to be a part of this. They were similar creatures, but there was still a world of things separating them.
“Let me pour you a drink, son. You look like you need it,” Graham said as he walked away from him and toward his decanter.
Malik walked up to him, placing a supportive hand on his shoulder. “I started out driving the bakery delivery truck. I worked with Belinda at the bakery before I started The Brothers Who Bake blog and wrote the cookbook. Go ahead and be happy with your barista. Her past doesn’t dictate your future. Just be happy. The rest of the world be damned.”
He nodded. Malik had a great point.
Chapter 11
“What do you think about cheesy apple-pie cupcakes?” Chase asked Amber that next evening as they strolled hand in hand in Myrtle Edwards Park as the sun was just setting.
Amber barely heard his question. She had been so focused on the beauty of the scenery around her, the feel of his big hand in hers and the rush of feelings that came over her when he looked at her. The sky was a beautiful purply orange and there were brightly colored blossoms lining the paths. Elliott Bay was the perfect place to see views of Puget Sound, the Olympic Mountains and Mount Rainier. She had never been here before, thinking that this part of town was a place that only tourists ever went, but Chase had surprised her with this trip after she was finished teaching her class.
It would have been easy for him to take her to a fancy restaurant. It would have been easy for him to take her on those typical dates men like him usually went on, but he seemed to go out of his way to find things that she might enjoy.
He found black-and-white films at a movie theater that still served real butter on their popcorn and the art exhibit featuring women over fifty. He found little hole-in-the-wall restaurants that served good, filling, cheap food. He was trying with her, trying to do things that would make her happy.
Sometimes it made her feel guilty that maybe he was missing out on things that he wanted to do, places that he wanted to try, all because she didn’t want him spending a lot of money on her. She wanted a relationship of equals, but she wondered how long he would be interested in someone whose lifestyle was so different from his.
“Did you say an apple-pie and cheese cupcake?”
“I did. I hear that people in the Midwest enjoy apple pie with a slice of cheddar cheese.”
“Oh, sweetheart, that’s the most original thing I have ever heard.”
“Do you think it will taste bad?”
“I honestly don’t know. We can try to make them. Although the last attempt didn’t turn out too well.”
“We burned them because you put icing on my face and the next thing I remember was licking it off your stomach.”
“We should bake more together,” she said, returning the hot look he gave her.
“Maybe we shouldn’t. Next time we’ll burn something down.” He laughed and shook his head. “I wished I was more like my siblings. They know what flavors go together and they can think of forty different things that might work, and I keep thinking about how much it would cost to make each cupcake and the price we would have to sell it for to make a decent profit.”
“I think you’re thinking too hard about it. Just relax and it will come to you. I promise.”
“Are you saying I’m uptight?”
“Only sometimes, sweetheart.” She kissed his cheek. “When it really matters you aren’t uptight at all. My toes curl thinking about all the ways you aren’t uptight when we are alone.”
He paused and looked at her. His eyes drinking in her face, like they often did, making her feel beautiful. “Let me take you away for a weekend. Somewhere nice.”
“I can’t afford to go away right now.”
“Your paying for the trip would defeat the purpose of me taking you away, wouldn’t it?”
She blinked at him. “Oh. I...” She wanted to go. She wanted to just say yes and spend a few days away from it all with him, not worrying about money or her car or her grad school grades. But she was torn. She knew it would make him happy if she just relented, but she didn’t want him doing any more for her than he had already done. Him just being there when she got home was enough. It made her happy.
She hadn’t wanted a relationship. She had sworn off men until she had finished grad school, made some more headway into her business. But he had snuck in when she least expected it. “It’s not the right time. Maybe in a month or so,” she said not wanting to commit, but not wanting to hurt him,
either.
He shook his head. “I have the feeling it’s never going to be the right time.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means what it means. I feel like I don’t have you yet.”
“I wasn’t aware that I was property to be owned.”
“I didn’t mean it like that.” She could see that he was annoyed with her and she was waiting for the coldness to come, the nasty remark, the cut, and she braced herself for it. But it never came. In fact he was silent for so long the lack of words was almost more painful than if he had hurled an insult at her.
“Say something,” she said when the silence became too much.
“I don’t know what it’s going to take for you to trust me, but I’m going to keep being here for you and keep caring about you until you let me in. I won’t stop until I get there because you are worth it to me.”
“You do too much for me as it is. I don’t want you to think you have to take care of me.”
“I don’t think that. But I want to take care of you. I want to solve all your problems and relieve all your stress. I want to buy you things and take you places and be there when you go to sleep and be the first person you see when you wake up. There’s something about you and I don’t know what it is, but it’s something I’m not willing to give up on.”
The air left her lungs and she knew right then and there that she had fallen all the way and absolutely in love with him. There was nothing she could do about it and that’s what scared her the most.
* * *
“How’s the cupcake bite coming along?” Jackson asked Chase as they stood off to the side in the bakery just watching the action going on. Foot traffic had been lighter than normal these past couple of days. Chase had learned that other bakeries had started duplicating the Draynut, but sales hadn’t gone down, thankfully, with 87 percent of customers who walked through their doors between eight and ten coming out with Mariah’s original pastry creation.
