Page 56 of Cakewalk

Sucking in a deep breath, he looked up at his godfather, who was patiently waiting for him to arrive at the same realization he had. “She’s my future, Uncle Field. No doubt about it. I love her.”

“Then, at some point, you’ll be needing this,” he said, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a small, blue, hinged box and handing it to Holden. Holden took it, flipping it open, a stunned expression taking over his face as his godmother’s ring stared back at him. “I’m not saying now. You’ll know the right time. You did before, you will again. But I want you to have that for when the moment makes itself known.”

“Uncle Field…”

“Hey, boys! Dinner!” Holden’s mother’s voice called up the stairs.

Without a word, Caulfield stood up, patted Holden on the shoulder, and turned to head down for dinner. Holden just continued to sit there, staring at the pear-shaped sapphire that his godmother had worn for more than thirty years. He couldn’t believe that Caulfield had kept it all these years, as if he were just waiting for the universe to tell him what to do with it.

Gigi greeted him at the bottom of the stairs, sliding a large platter of ham off the counter. She looked radiant in a 1950s style red dress, her blonde hair loose and flowing. If it weren’t for the rest of his family in the next room, he’d be hauling her into his arms and showing her just how much he appreciated that dress right here, right now.

He silently took the platter from her and followed her into the dining room, where everyone was already sitting in their seats.

“What this?” Gigi asked, looking around at the rest of the group. Holden spun around to see her holding a little black box with just a red ribbon tied around it.

His parents looked at him, then smiled back at her, like they were in on the secret but not going to say a word. Turning to Holden, she gave him a questioning look, but the only thing he could do was shrug. He had no idea what was going on or where that had come from.

Holden walked up behind her and watched as she removed the lid. He heard her breath falter, and her hand raced to her chest as she stared at the pendant. The jade lotus flower was small, maybe the size of a silver dollar, and attached to a corded black necklace. The simple etching on it reflected the light making it seem like it glowed. He knew this necklace just as well as he knew the ring he’d just tucked into his sock drawer, and for much the same reason. But also, a much, much bigger one.

“This is just like the one Anaura wore in At Midnight,” she muttered, unable to take her eyes off of it.

“That is the one that Anaura wore,” Caulfield corrected her. “Or well, I should say that’s the one that hers is based off of. I bought that for Viv in Chinatown while we were on a book tour in San Francisco. She wore it the whole rest of the tour, and every city we were in, someone had a comment for us about what it meant. That’s where the idea for using the color green came from.”

“I can’t accept this, Caulfield. It’s way too much. You guys already got me the mixer. I can’t take this too.”

“You can, and you will, darlin’. I want you to have it, and Viv would want you to have it,” the older gentleman said. Holden’s heart squeezed, thinking about just what Caulfield was saying with this gesture. Gigi was it for him, and his whole family knew it. “I hope that it brings you two as much peace and prosperity as it did Viv and me.”

24

Gigi

Gigi placed the last of the cupcakes she’d made into the display case at the Busy Bean, feeling more than a little proud of herself for how they turned out. The standard vanilla and chocolate ones featured little fondant champagne bottles, complete with matching flute embellishments. They almost looked too cute to eat. Almost.

Thankfully, they tasted as good as they looked. Or so customers had been telling her all morning. Everyone had been thrilled with their Christmas orders, especially the peppermint-bark cupcakes, and she’d even gotten an inquiry as to whether or not she would be interested in making a batch for a birthday party coming up. She’d been so stunned by the question that she had kind of stumbled through the answer, telling the lady to inquire with Zara about the order.

A small letter sign on the counter encouraged everyone to try both the new Arnold Palmer and the Dark Horse Mochaccino cupcakes and then vote on their favorites. Both had gone over so well with Holden’s family, she’d been left unable to decide which to pitch to Zara and Audrey. Hoping the staff at either Speakeasy or the Gin Mill would help settle it, she’d brought some over there as well. However, both flavors had received rave results there too, so she’d opted to let Zara and Audrey decide. The two of them didn’t want to have to choose either, so they opted to put it up to the customers to vote. Whichever one had the most votes come the end of January would be the Busy Bean’s new signature item.

“Are those the peppermint ones?” Kirk asked her, interrupting her thoughts. “What’s-her-face…uh, Lily, over at Speakeasy called earlier and asked if we had more.”

“Really?” Gigi asked, surprised by the request. She had made one small batch of the peppermint ones, just to use up the last of the peppermint bark from Christmas. Catherine had suggested she make those a seasonal item, only available during the holidays, while the two had been cooking dinner, and Gigi loved the idea. So, after these were gone, that was it until next year.

“Why would I make that up?”

Gigi rolled her eyes at Kirk’s dryness, but still couldn’t help but find it somewhat amusing. He might be a strange dude, but you couldn’t help but end up with a bit of a soft spot for him.

“I’ll call over there on my way home and let her know that these are the last ones until next Christmas.”

“Rushing off for some big New Year’s Eve plans?” he asked.

It took her a split second to realize that he’d actually asked her a personal question. Had she entered the Twilight Zone? “Sorta,” she said after a moment, a big grin taking over her face. “We’re spending the night in.”

“That doesn’t sound very exciting.”

“Someday, Kirk, you too may understand why a night on the couch can be very, very exciting,” Roderick added in, appearing from the kitchen. He waggled his eyebrows knowingly at Gigi, and she stifled a giggle.

“Kirk, it’s very exciting when you’ve spent every other New Year’s Eve of your life having to get dressed up and go out,” she told him, pulling off her apron. Turning to Roderick, she added in, “and for other reasons.”

“That’s my girl!” Roderick responded, giving her a high five.