Page 94 of The Soulmate Bakery

‘And with ten minutes to spare,’ Orion teased. ‘That must be a record somewhere.’

A laugh escaped from me again, and my hand squeezed his. I was bursting with affection, and every part of the feeling swarmed my body. I tilted my head to look up at him, and I finally gave him the words he deserved.

‘I like you too, Orion Hawthorne. In case it wasn’t blindingly clear,’ I declared, entirely unafraid of confessing my feelings for the first – and last – time to someone.

Orion’s silver gaze softened. ‘And I can’t wait, Maya Reverie, for all the dreams we’re going to make come true together.’

Epilogue

One month later

I know what you’re thinking: hasn’t this witch learned her lesson yet?

Well, I’ve learned a lot of lessons over the last month. But not baking at 12 a.m. when I was gripped by an epic idea was not one of them.

I stood before the oven, watching as twelve cookies baked; the scent of cinnamon and promises filling the air. I was giddy with excitement, barely feeling any hints of lingering exhaustion.

‘Tell me,’ Raven asked, her voice only sounding slightly far away given she was on a call with me while I was in the Treasure Trove’s kitchen. ‘Are you allowed to do this?’

I leaned back against the counter with my arms folded over my chest and a grin pulling at my mouth. ‘Well, I own half of the Treasure Trove now, so, yes, I’m allowed to use my kitchen whenever I want.’

‘Ooh, someone’s smug,’ Sofia teased, but I could hear the pleasure in her voice. Sofia had been the most excited when I told her about co-owning the bakery, mostly because I wanted her advice on what flowers should fill the shop.

‘I’m going to call Melodie and report you for using the kitchen for your own nefarious plans,’ Raven added, taking a long slurp of her coffee.

‘Melodie will tell you to stop calling her at 12 a.m. and get back to studying for the MAC exam,’ I shot back, glancing at the frame newly added to the wall that showed Melodie and I holding up our signed contract of my co-ownership.

Melodie had come to me with the plan only a few weeks ago, while I was finishing up my shift at the Wishing Well Bakery.

Would I like to co-own the Treasure Trove with her and help her build the bakery into something even bigger?

I had stared at her, dumbfounded, for so long that Ivy actually came out of the kitchen to see what the hold-up was. Melodie had brazenly shared her request with Ivy, who I thought might have been miffed at the idea of me working at another bakery again. But Ivy had all but pushed me to consider it, saying she wasn’t going to make the same mistake of underestimating me twice.

I’d taken some time to think about it – talking it through with everyone important to me. Rani, Raven, Sofia, Mum and Orion. Even Granny Fable at one point.

Days later, I confidently approached Melodie and Ivy with a plan: I still wanted to be Ivy’s apprentice when the year ended, because I had more kitchen magic to learn, but part of my learning would involve mapping out some new, exciting recipes for the Treasure Trove. That way, I’d get to live out both dreams. After that, my days were filled with school, shifts at the Wishing Well, baking at the Treasure Trove and a whole other whirlwind of activities that made this month fly by.

That was part of the reason why I was so looking forward to the weekend trip I was about to embark on. I needed a break.

‘Also,’ I continued, suddenly offended. ‘My plan isn’t nefarious. Even my mother knows about where I am right now, so it can’t be that bad.’

‘Your mother feels guilty for how she’s been treating you,’ Raven argued, blunt as ever. ‘You could ask her for the moon, and she’d give it.’

I snorted, shaking my head. ‘Tell that to the lecture I got yesterday about the importance of knowing defensive spells, even if I was going to be a kitchen witch. It came with diagrams, guys.’

‘I think it’s sweet,’ Sofia cut in. ‘She’s worried about you going on your first weekend getaway with your soulmate tomorrow.’

When Sofia said the word soulmate, I felt the silver bracelet I now wore around my wrist begin to glow brightly; I glanced down at it, feeling that tug of delight in my stomach at the sight of it. At the reminder of what it meant.

‘Your mum shouldn’t be worried,’ Raven said. ‘But my brother should be. I mean, my best friend is going to poison him.’

‘I’m not poisoning him,’ I insisted, loudly. ‘I’m just going to make our weekend a little interesting with some enchanted cookies. What’s the harm in that?’

Raven snorted. ‘This is a bad idea.’

The timer trilled, telling me it was time to take my cookies out. I slid the metal tray out of the oven and to the wire rack to cool.

‘You always think my ideas are bad,’ I remarked, staring at the twelve perfectly baked cookies. ‘And anyway, it’s way too late now.’