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“Now, sweetie. Don’t be so quick to dismiss this opportunity.”
Missy chimes in. “You never know, we could select Mr. Right,” she insists, her excitement evident in the little, happy jig.
“NO! Absolutely not,” I bark at them. “I refuse to participate in some sort of dating audition for Missy’s wedding.” I stare at Missy, wondering why they are so fixated on my love life.
The bell jingles behind me, signaling a customer entering the bakery. When I turn to greet them, my heart nearly stops at the sight of the most handsome man I’ve ever laid eyes on. He stands tall and confident with dark hair (Did I mention handsome?) and the most mesmerizing hazel eyes that seem to see right through me. Right behind him is an older gentleman with a warm smile on his face.
Without thinking, I find myself walking towards them until I’m standing directly in front of the striking stranger. We lock eyes, and time seems to stand still.
“Mom, no need to set me up because my boyfriend is here,” I confidently announce to my family before whispering to the stranger, “Please just go along with it.”
“Your what?” my mom and sisters exclaim in unison.
The older man chuckles and extends a hand towards me. “Yes, you must be Piper. Caleb has been telling me all about you. I’m his grandfather, and I’m delighted to finally meet you.”
Caleb’s expression changes from confusion to pure panic. “Grandad, what are you doing?” he mutters under his breath.
“Living,” his grandfather replies with a mischievous grin before we turn together toward the stunned faces of my family.
“Coffee is served—” Mia comes out from the back and stops abruptly. Her gaze shifts from the three of us to my trio of female family members, who are staring us down. “Nope, not dealing with this drama,” she says, then pivots back to the kitchen without another word.
Complete chaos ensues. My family bombards Caleb with questions and demands answers from me. Before I can even process what’s going on and what I just did, Dad walks into the bakery, his presence bringing a sense of calm to the chaotic scene.
He has no idea of the situation he just walked into. He greets my mother with a kiss on the cheek, then turns to Olivia and Missy before finally acknowledging me, the youngest in the family.
“Dad, this is Caleb, my boyfriend, and Grandad,” I introduce them.
“I’m John; nice to meet you,” my father says to Caleb.
“Nice to meet you too, sir.”
Now that there’s some peace and quiet, I take the opportunity to properly introduce everyone.
“Caleb, Grandad, this is my mother, Evelyn. And these are my two sisters, Missy and Olivia.”
“You must come over for dinner tonight,” my mother insists. “The whole family will want to get to know you.”
“You mean interrogate him,” I mutter under my breath.
“Piper, you’re the one that just announced a new boyfriend on us. Naturally, we all want to get to know him,” Olivia interjects.
I try to diffuse the situation by giving Caleb what I hope are dreamy eyes and say, “This is a very new thing, and I want to spend time with Caleb these first few days. I promise we’ll catch up with y’all soon.”
3
Caleb
I think I’ve fallen into some alternate universe where beautiful bakers suddenly declare we’re dating. And then, to top it all off, my grandfather decides to hop on the crazy train and back this woman’s claim. I wait until the other ladies leave and Piper closes the bakery with a flip of the sign on the door.
“Well, that was fun,” Grandad chuckles.
“Did you close?” The woman who retreated with the coffee pops her head out of the back.
“Yes. Thank you, Mia. Are you switching over to cookie production now?”
Mia nods and disappears again.
“We usually close in the early afternoon and then move over to our cookie subscription business,” Piper confirms.
