Together they packed the few items Robin had brought, then carried the totes out to the van, stopping briefly in the hall to reclaim their jackets.
Outside, a breeze had kicked up, chasing away the clouds and turning the stars into frosty diamond lights. Robin shifted her tote to a hip and opened one of the van’s back doors. She stowed her load inside, then stepped aside for Sammy to do the same. When he moved back to shut the door, Robin was leaning against the other door, her face tipped to the sky.
“Beautiful night,” he said. His mouth dried.
“Beautiful,” she echoed. “Almost a shame to go home.” She gave him a slow smile.
“Want to take a walk?”
“I’m game.”
The road running to Jean and Palmer’s house was quiet. They walked in silence for a few moments.
“Thank you again for your help tonight,” Robin said. “I’d never have finished without you.”
“You never would have needed to scramble if I hadn’t dropped that cake.”
Robin stopped. She put her hand on his arm. “Don’t blame yourself for that. I never should have started feeding that stray cat.” Her cheeks were flushed, and the tip of her nose was pink. “I’m glad you were with me.”
Sammy could hear the sound of Lake Superior washing onto the shore a few streets away. A scent of pine hinted the air. “This is pretty much a perfect Deep Haven night,” he said. “I’ve always loved winter.”
“Mm-hmm,” Robin said. “Makes me almost want to reconsider leaving.” She glanced up at him under her eyebrows. His heart pounded in his ears. Her gaze dropped to his lips and her own parted.
She shivered and Sammy put an arm around her. “Let me warm you up,” he murmured. She leaned against his chest, face still tilted up. “I think maybe I can’t be just friends with you, Robin.”
“What do you have in mind?”
Did she mean…He searched her eyes. Seeing her gaze flick to his mouth, he dipped his head and pressed his lips to hers. Chilled at first, they soon warmed under his touch. She sighed and leaned into him.
She moved her hand from his arm to the back of his neck. Heat flared and he tightened his grip around her. She smelled like vanilla and buttercream. Before he completely lost himself on this public street, he pulled back.
Smiling into her eyes, he put his forehead on hers. “What do you think? Can we be more than just friends?”
She kept her arm around his neck. “Yes, I think we could try it.” She reached up and brushed his lips with hers again before nesting herself at his side and leading them back to the waiting van.
His heart lifted and set sail with the stars.
thirteen
A girl could be forgiven for basking in her success.
Robin sat in the kitchen of the bakery, reflecting on the past two weeks. First the cake disaster with Sammy and their near miraculous recovery. The photo shoot at the Adamses’ anniversary party.
And then the, ahem, celebrating with Sammy afterward. She felt again the warmth of his lips on hers, the grip of his arms around her under the stars.
Then the whirlwind of prepping and delivering the cupcakes for Jacob and Emily’s wedding two days later. Sammy had really come through for her at the wedding by bringing a piece he’d built to hold the cupcakes. Small pieces of aspen saplings held up several tiers of round pine shelving. Sprawling out from the main section lay more round platforms. Bisecting the right side of the structure, the extra piece of lace delicately flowed over the pieces, forming a stream-like decoration. Sammy had strung twinkle lights through the edges and over it in an arc. Here and there, greenery popped through. When her flower-topped cupcakes were placed, the overall effect was stunning, like a garden in the middle of an aspen grove. Sammy had taken her vision and run with it.
She stood and paced the few steps from one side of the kitchen to the other. The past weeks since her grandparents had flown to Florida had passed so quickly. They’d called this morning and said their flight home was on time.
She sat down again, drummed her fingers on the counter.
The clock on the wall read ten minutes after eleven. Grandma and Grandpa were due back on the shuttle from the airport in twenty minutes. She got up and moved to the dining area, wanting to see them the minute they pulled in.
She tried to tell herself not to be nervous. They were her loving grandparents for crying out loud.
But, a nagging voice reminded her, in all the excitement she hadn’t told them about the changes to the bakery. She chewed on a corner of her fingernail, a habit she’d kicked years ago. But really, had any of those things turned out to be an emergency? She just hoped her grandparents felt the same way.
A white fifteen-passenger van pulled into the lot. Several people got out, including her grandparents. She pushed out the door, suddenly eager for a hug from her grandpa.
