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“They’re always here with you, not just at Christmastime.” His voice was warm, the deep rumble of it soothing the ache inside her chest. “And you can be close to them even without the party. They would have loved little Lazy Susan, I’m sure of that. And now we get to love her a little extra for them too.”
Lacy held his gaze for a moment, reaching out to trail her fingers over the strong line of his jaw. She was still disappointed, but Derek was right. As they were getting closer and closer to her due date, she couldn’t deny that it was getting too hard to keep up with everything. And it made sense for the Christmas party to be the thing that they had to let slip away for now.
“Okay,” she said as she nodded. “We’ll skip it this year. But next year, I’m making it extra big and extra special. We’re going all out next Christmas.”
“That sounds like a good plan to me.” Derek leaned up, pressing a kiss to her forehead. “Now for some better news: there’s Indian food in the kitchen.”
Lacy’s face lit up, and as if on cue, her stomach grumbled. She hadn’t realized how hungry she was until that exact moment, and she was grateful that her husband had thought to stop and pick up her favorite.
He stood, holding his hands out for her to take to help pull her off the couch. When she was situated in the kitchen and the takeout counters were arranged, she loaded up her plate with the Palak Paneer and fragrant Jasmine rice that had been her one, overwhelming craving throughout her entire pregnancy. She bit into the food, letting out a happy, contented sound as the flavor exploded across her tongue. As disappointed as she was about having to cancel the Christmas celebration at St. Nick’s Place, at this moment, all was right in her world.
* * *
Sarah puffed out a breath as she leaned forward to grab the remote off the coffee table in front of her. It had been a long day at the bakery, and she was incredibly glad to finally have a bit of a respite. She could hear William in the kitchen behind her, preparing dinner for the both of them. She’d offered to help him when she’d gotten home, but he had waved her off, telling her to get a bit of rest.
Glancing over a shoulder, she shot a sweet smile to the man that she loved so very much. The man she was now set to marry. She smiled to herself as she tore her gaze away from him and glanced down at the beautiful ring nestled on her finger. She turned her hand this way and that, looking at the way the diamond sparkled and gleamed in the light, showing a brilliant prism of tiny rainbows dancing within the gorgeous gem. Ever since he’d slipped that ring on her finger, Sarah had had a perpetual smile on her face.
She pushed a button on the remote, shifting her attention back to the TV as she changed the channel, wanting to catch the tail end of the local news segment. When she got to the right program, she pulled her favorite pillow—one that was shaped like a croissant—onto her lap and settled in to watch. She had come in right at the end of the weather forecast, and she was glad to see that the snow would be tapering off soon. She loved snow, but she didn’t want it to accumulate too quickly and cause problems that the town couldn’t keep up with.
As soon as the forecast wrapped up, the local newscaster’s smiling face filled the scene. He was on location somewhere, smiling a toothy grin at the camera. Sarah’s eyes flicked down to the chyron at the bottom of the screen, and as she registered the words scrolling past, her stomach fluttered.
New Bakery to Open in Snowy Pine Ridge.
Sarah pressed the volume button to turn it up as she scooted to the edge of the couch, her gaze glued to the screen. The camera panned away from the newscaster’s face, showing more of the scene. He was inside a space that had ornate wrought iron tables and chairs spread out across it. Everything was decorated to look like an Elizabethan era tearoom, but with more pizazz and bright colors.
The woman standing beside the newscaster was smiling at the camera. She had short, curly blonde hair that was adorned with clips to hold the wild curls in place. She wore a white and pink polka dotted dress, and dangly cupcake earrings in a matching color. The chyron ribbon at the bottom of the screen read:Mindy Harvey, Owner.
Something inside Sarah bristled a little as her gaze stayed fixed on the screen. The anchor began speaking, and Sarah listened with rapt attention.
“I’m here today with Mindy Harvey, who just opened Baking Fiend, located on the far side of Main Street as you get to the overpass,” the news anchor said as he glanced away from the camera to look directly at Mindy. “So tell our viewers, Mindy, what made you want to open up a bakery here in Snowy Pine Ridge?”
“Well, Tom,” Mindy said with a wide smile. “I’ve always dreamed of owning a bakery, ever since I was a little girl. When I graduated from culinary school, I…”
Mindy continued speaking, but Sarah couldn’t quite get the words to make sense in her head.
Another bakery in Snowy Pine Ridge?
For years, Sweet Thing Bakery had been the only shop of its kind in the little town, and Sarah couldn’t help but wonder if this would affect her business.
“Will,” she said, waving him over without looking away from the TV. “Come look at this.”
He must’ve picked up on something in her voice, because William immediately stopped what he was doing with dinner and turned to face her.
“What is it?” he asked, stepping into the living room.
“There’s another bakery opening up in town.”
“Oh, really?”
He glanced from her to the television, where Mindy was still being interviewed. They watched in silence for a few moments, and as the camera panned around the space again, Sarah chewed on her lip, worry twisting inside her.
“Do you think Snowy Pine Ridge has room for two bakeries?” she finally asked, her voice quiet.
She couldn’t bear the thought of losing her family business. She loved the bakery, loved its history and the fact that now it was all hers. It had turned her passion into a career and a livelihood, giving her a chance to do what she loved every single day. She couldn’t imagine anything jeopardizing that.
William sat down next to Sarah on the couch. The newscaster was still interviewing Mindy, but William ignored the television for the moment, all of his focus on Sarah. He took her hand, lacing their fingers together and squeezing reassuringly.
“We’ve been almost busier than we can handle lately,” he pointed out. “So yes, I think it’s safe to say that this town has room for two bakeries. There will always be someone who needs a sweet treat or a pick-me-up coffee drink to give a little boost to their day.”
