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Too late, and they might congeal.
It was a balancing act akin to judging the ripeness of avocados.
“Gimme!”I demanded.
He laughed, handing over the bags.“And here I was, thinkin’ you were pleased to see me.”
“Of course I am, but we’ve only got a short window to eat those dumplings!They might get cold!Come through to the back, now!”
“You’re really taking these dumplings seriously,” he muttered, a smile in his voice, and followed me.
“Oh, my God.I have not hadxiaolongbaosince before I left London.”
I set the bags down on a clear area of the counter out back.Shaking his head with amusement, Rick settled on one of the two stools in the prep area.
“These things are that good, huh?It hasn’t even been that long since you were home, Maddie.What, ten days?”
“You havenoidea.Nine days, desolate without my favorite food.”I tore open the bags and the scent of spring onions, soy, and ginger hit me immediately.
“Oh my God,”I moaned.
Behind me, I heard rather than saw Rick shift in his chair and get up, and then a moment later I felt him at my back, his broad, warm hands on my hips.
“What do I gotta do to hear that noise when I don’t bring dumplings?”he murmured, his deep voice curling around me.
I turned into his embrace,xiaolongbaomomentarily forgotten.
“Keep doing this,” I whispered against his mouth, “and youmightfind that you end up ranking higher than little parcels of pure joy.”
“That’s a high bar.”He nipped at my lips, watching me from under those gorgeous lashes.
I grinned.“I’m confident you’ll rise to the occasion.”
He gently pushed into me, confirming that he already had.I slid my hands around him and slipped them into the back pockets of his jeans.“How are you so hot?”I wondered aloud.“I can’t stop thinking about you, Rick.”
“The feeling’s mutual, darlin’,” he rasped, his voice low, the pitch deep and intimate.“Been dreamin’ about getting you alone—”
The door behind us was unceremoniously pushed open, and Jenny stood there, framed by the architrave.Her cheeks flushed when she took in our close proximity.“Oh.Sorry.I, ah, came to get dumplings.Sorry.”
She backed out.
I laughed, and after a moment, Rick joined in until mirth overcame us and we were weak with it.
I slid my hands out of Rick’s pockets, and he took a very deliberate step away.
It was probably for the best, but I ached to pull him back into me and finish what we’d started.
“Can I see you tonight?”he asked, opening one of the containers and passing it to me.The aroma bathed my face, and I sighed deeply.
“I can’t.I have to make the fondant decorations for your cousin’s cake, over a hundred of them.The wedding’s on Saturday, and I plan to make the cake over tomorrow and Thursday, allowing myself time to correct any mistakes.”
“You won’t mess it up,” he reassured me, that irresistible grin sketched on his delicious mouth.“It’ll be great.But I don’t wanna distract you.”
“Good.Because that’s exactly what you would be.A distraction that I’d find very much impossible to ignore.”I playfully pushed at his arm as he shot me another grin.He fuckingknewhow irresistible he was, the bastard.“We’d better eat so I can get back to work before my aunt breaks her other arm trying to reach something, or Jenny starves to death.”
* * *
That evening, true to my word, I focused on decorations for the wedding cake.They had to be perfect.If Jenny was to be believed, this wedding would be the talk of the town, and I wanted the cake to live up to every other part of the event.
