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Kendall moved to clean up the decorating tools and icing bags we’d used.
“I stopped in to speak to Ethan.”
“Did you talk to him about his furniture-making business?”
It bothered me that Mark didn’t have a clear plan for the future. Maybe this was just a summer visit, although he’d talked about enrolling Kendall in school. It wasn’t like she’d started yet. It would be easy to go back.
“Yeah, he’s got something good going there.”
“Do you think you’d like to do something similar?” What I’d seen of the new shelves was exciting, but I wasn’t sure if he wanted to do it as a job.
“I don’t know what I want to do yet.”
Kendall pointed at him. “You always tell me I have plenty of time to figure it out.”
Mark laughed. “Yeah, but you’re only nine. You do have plenty of time. I need to figure things out by the time school starts.”
Kendall’s nose scrunched. “I hate school.”
“Why?” I asked. I remembered enjoying school at her age. I loved my sisters, but being in school made me feel like an individual.
“It’s so boring,” Kendall said, and Mark shifted on his feet.
I wondered if it bothered Mark when Kendall wasn’t happy. Taking care of my sisters wasn’t the same bond as a mother had with a daughter.
“If you want to be a baker or run your own business, an education is good to have. It’s a building block, if you will.”
Kendall sighed. “I know.”
“Plus, you can meet more people and make friends.”
Kendall didn’t respond to her father’s comment. I wondered if that’s what she was most worried about—being the new girl and not fitting in.
“Thanks for helping me clean up,” I said when everything was washed and put away, and the counters sparkled again.
“Why don’t you take the cupcakes to the truck,” Mark said to Kendall.
I wondered if he thought I was overstepping with my comments about school and her future. “Is everything okay?” I asked when Kendall was gone.
He moved toward me, his hands going to my hips, where he turned me to face him. “It’s more than okay.”
Before I could breathe a response, his lips were on mine. It was slow and sensual, his tongue exploring the recesses of my mouth before he pulled back with several short kisses. The move satisfied something deep inside of me. The unsettled part that always wondered if I’d ever truly be happy.
“Thank you for being there for Kendall. It has to be tough for her with her mother gone.”
This was my opportunity to tell Mark about Kendall’s concerns about Melanie returning, but it felt like a betrayal to do so. “Of course.”
I had more questions, like if we should tell Kendall about us. But I was too worried about what his answer would be to ask. His daughter would and should come first. I just wasn’t sure where that would leave me.
ChapterSixteen
MARK
Today was the first morning that I wouldn’t be seeing Sophie after my morning run. She now had an employee working with her in the mornings. That chunk of time had become something necessary to start my day, and it had nothing to do with that one time we had sex in her office.
It was like getting to know each other all over again. Our relationship had evolved since we started our little tradition of meeting when she opened, but I still craved it and would miss it. It was tough to find time to spend alone when Kendall was still home on summer break.
At nine, she didn’t have any girlfriends to have sleepovers with, and I didn’t want to impose on Ellie.
