AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“We have a family home here. My dad has chosen to make it his permanent home over New York.”
“And you don’t like that?”
How could she tell that from what he’d said?
“Your brow furrowed when you said it. And if I had to guess, you’re more of a New Yorker than someone who sees himself in Montana.”
“You could say that.” He leaned back in his chair again. Not much rattled him, but her way of reading him so well threw him a bit. “I like it here. I do. But we grew up in New York. It’s what we know.”
“Change is not for you.”
It wasn’t a question. “I wouldn’t say that. It was never something for my dad, though, so his decision has been difficult to understand. Anyway, I’m here to visit. The Bake-Off thing was a curve ball he threw at me once I got here.”
She smiled. “Ah. Wise man.”
“I wouldn’t say that.”
Her laughter rang through the air. Wes found himself chuckling as well. Hell if he knew why. Being roped into the bachelor thing by his dad was a nightmare. However, sitting across from Noelle, having her ask him about his family, seeing the situation through her eyes, it was feeling less and less awful by the moment.
“What bringsyouto Montana?” She said she didn’t want to talk about herself, but she wasn’t leaving without answering a few of his questions. Fair was fair.
“My sister Holly and I decided to move here. We needed a new start.” Her eyes wandered again as if deciding on whether to share more.
Wes waited for her to continue. His mind raced with what she needed to walk away from. An abusive boyfriend? An ex-husband?
“Our parents died in the same car accident where I was injured.”
Nothing could have prepared him for that information.
“After my leg healed, I was struggling to figure out what to do next. My career was over; our world was turned upside down. Holly suggested moving. Opening the dance studio. Holly runs her own graphic design business so she can work from anywhere. We landed here.”
Wes leaned forward again, the need to be close to her overwhelming him once again. “Noelle and Holly.”
One corner of her mouth lifted, understanding. “My parents had a thing for Christmas. They got married in December and somehow managed to have both of us girls born in December.”
A small glimmer of the light in her eyes returned.
“So are you going to help me learn to bake?”
Maybe because of a moment of insanity, or simply because he was lost in the blue depths of her eyes, Wes blurted out the question. Funny thing, he didn’t regret it. Questioned it, maybe. But no regret.
With wide eyes she picked up the mug in front of her again to sip her tea, giving herself a moment to wrap her head around his question and form an answer. Hell, he was struggling to understand himself.
“Not a baker, are you?” she teased.
“Nope.” He shook his head. “We’ve had a cook our entire lives.”
He was used to people reacting to him talk about his life—the spoils of wealth, his father sometimes called it. Noelle didn’t flinch, but rather nodded as if understanding. Or at least accepting his answer for what it was. The truth.
“I’m no master pie maker. I think you need to know what you’re getting into here. I may be a liability as opposed to an asset.”
“I highly doubt that.”
“Your niece has too high an opinion of me.”
“I highly doubt that as well.”
She raked her bottom lip with her teeth then pursed her lips into a cute little grin. “All right. You’ve got yourself a teacher.”
