Page 13 of Kylie’s Kakes

As I dried off, I thought about the moment when Kylie kinda gave away her secret. She'd caught herself fast enough that any one else probably wouldn't have noticed.

But I noticed.

And I wanted it. I wanted her.

From the bottles to the stuffie she was so excited about. I wanted it all.

I turned off the water and got out, knowing I was probably projecting my own wants onto her. But I planned to learn her wants too…and then give her every one of them.

The next morning, I got to The Bean Box earlier than usual. I was careful to time it so I could watch her work while I waited in the long line. As expected, Kylie was buzzing around behind the counter with her hair pulled back and a smile on her face. She called out orders in that bubbly voice that sounded like she really loved what she was doing.

Kylie glanced in my direction and caught my eye. Even through the rush-hour chaos, I could see her light up in a way that made something inside me warm up.

Her attention was on each customer she engaged with, but every time she could peek at me from under those long lashes, she did. And every time, my smile got just a little bit wider.

By the time I got to the register, Kylie already had my drink in her hand. "Good morning, Jordan."

“Wow.” I took the cup and pulled a twenty out of my wallet. "Thank you."

“No worries. See you later.” She shook her head and tilted it to look at the person behind me.

Since she didn’t seem interested in my money, I dropped it into the tip jar and stepped out of the way. “See ya.”

My plan had been to stay and hang with her for a while, but it was too crowded and I didn’t want to come off as a stalker. She’d be heading to the kitchen after her shift, anyway.

Besides, I had a plan to execute.

The toy store was about to open, so I made sure to be standing outside the door when it was finally unlocked. The cupcake Squishmallow that Kylie wanted so badly was still in the window where we saw it last night, so I went in and grabbed it. While I was there, I also picked out a little notecard to go with it.

Once I got to the kitchen, I left the plushie and note at her station so it was there when she came in. I hoped it would put that smile right back on her face after her busy morning.

Then I got to work myself.

On my list to work on was a chicken noodle soup recipe I’d been tweaking for weeks. It was elevated enough to serve in a fine restaurant but easy enough for the average home cook. That was the whole point of the cookbook. With just a few drops of truffle oil in the broth and the use of gnocchi instead of noodles, it was perfect as an appetizer or an entree.

For once, it came out exactly as I wanted it to, and that small win led to a few others. I was able to lose myself in the artistry of cooking in a way I hadn’t been able to in months. It felt good to be creating delicious food again.

So good that I didn’t even notice when Kylie came in. I had my head down over some pasta dough I was working when I heard an ear-piercing squeal.

I knew it was her before I even glanced up and saw her clutching the Squishmallow to her chest like a precious heirloom. She spun in a circle and jumped up before she reached for the note. The level of excitement running through her was almost palpable from across the room, but that all changed when she read what I wrote.

Her whole face was in awe as she looked up at me.

I bit the inside of my cheek and waved. I tried to play it cool even though what I really wanted to do was walk over and kiss her right on the mouth. Instead, I just winked and turned back to my food.

I should have known that wouldn’t be enough for her, and she was instantly at my side. “Thank you, Jordan.” She clutched her cupcake to her chest and twisted from left to right. “I love it so much.”

“I’m happy to hear that, and you’re welcome.” I went to the sink and washed my hands. If my dough dried out, I’d just start again. This moment was more important than food. “You were so disappointed last night, and I wanted to make sure no one else got it.”

“It was very thoughtful. And not something I was expecting. At all.” She swallowed hard and exhaled without breaking her gaze. “And, um…” Her cheeks were pink, and she looked down at her new plushie. “I’d like to see you again too.”

“Excellent.” I was about to throw out some options when her phone alarm started ringing from her station.

“Oh!” She immediately turned and ran back. “Gotta get my cakes going. Thanks again, Jordan.”

I just smiled as I watched her place her cupcake in a cookbook stand as she got to work. She was a bit chaotic in the kitchen, and it was really adorable.

By the time I had three complete recipes documented and five containers of soup, bread, and croutons packed up for Magda to take home, I was beat. My sleep had been full of happy dreams, but it had taken me a while to fall asleep after my night with Kylie.