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“Who are they for?” She didn’t seem impatient with him.
“A friend’s daughter.”
“Ooooh.” Faith waggled her eyebrows. “Is this ‘friend’ someone you’re dating?”
“No, not at all.” Although he wished he could convince himself of that.
“Kids like the chocolate options best,” Megan said. “What about spiced hot chocolate with marshmallow cream frosting?”
Grateful, he smiled at her. “That sounds wonderful, thank you so much.”
“No problem.” She grabbed a cardboard box from beneath the counter. “Just the one of those, and then a carrot and an apple?”
“Yes, please.”
She packed three cupcakes into the box and slid it across the counter. He paid, thanked her, then made the short drive to Bex’s gym. He parked on a side street and walked around, letting himself into the building and stopping at the door to the apartment. He knocked.
“Who’s there?” a little girl’s voice called through the door.
“It’s Michael Briggston,” he said, wondering if she’d even know who that was.
“Mr. Briggston!” The door flew inward and then he was staring down into the world’s brightest smile. The tempo of his heart picked up. She was so damned cute. “Are those cupcakes?” Izzy reached for the box, but he held them out of range.
“These are for your mother. Is she here?”
He peered past her, seeing a square dining table to the left, with the linoleum floor of an open plan kitchen behind it, and a door opening onto what may have been a lounge to the right.
“Yup, come see.” She bounced on the balls of her feet, waving her hand to invite him in. “Then can I have a cupcake?”
“Depends on what your mum says.” He didn’t want to get off on the wrong foot and make Bex think he was trying to undermine her. “Can you get her for me?”
Izzy scowled and swiped a tangle of curls off her forehead. “Mum’s in the shower. She’s been in there forever.”
His brow creased. “She lets you open the door to strangers?”
Izzy shrugged, and danced away, leading him further into the apartment. “You’re not a stranger.”
There was something defiant in the way she said it that made him think she’d already had this conversation with Bex. He pulled out a seat at the dining table and she dropped cross-legged to the floor, scooping a ratty stuffed kiwi into her arms.
“Listen, honey,” he said. “Until your mum says someone isn’t a stranger, you should treat them like they are. Even me, okay?”
“But I know who you are.”
A sound in the doorway snagged his attention. Bex stood there, hair wet about her shoulders, wearing jeans and a snug amber-colored sweater. Her floral scent drifted over to him, and his gut clenched at the sight of her. She was effortlessly alluring.
“Thanks for trying,” she said wryly. “Izzy thinks everyone is her friend.” She nodded toward the box on the table beside him. “Are those Megan’s cupcakes?”
“Yeah, a carrot one for you, an apple one for me, and a hot chocolate with marshmallow flavor for Izzy.”
Bex sighed. “Pure sugar. She’ll be bouncing off the walls in no time.”
Doubt assailed him. Had he done the wrong thing by bringing them with him? “I’m sorry, I can get rid of them.”
She dismissed his concern with a shake of her head. “Don’t worry about it; she was bound to get high on sugar at the fair anyway. It was nice of you to think of us, and you got my favorite.”
Of course he had. He’d never forget a detail like that about her.
Izzy raced over to Bex and leaned on her legs. “Can we have them now, Mummy? Pretty please? I’ll be super good at the fair, I promise.”
