Series: Little Cakes Series by Pepper North
Total pages in book: 50
Estimated words: 46837 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 234(@200wpm)___ 187(@250wpm)___ 156(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 46837 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 234(@200wpm)___ 187(@250wpm)___ 156(@300wpm)
“Baby.”
Riley looked up to find Milo leaning on the bar. “Go away!” she hissed.
“Not happening without a kiss,” he assured her with a confident grin that made her heart beat a bit faster.
Before she even knew what she was doing, Riley bounced up onto her toes to offer him her lips. Her reward? A kiss that almost seared a tattoo off. As she watched him walk away, all she could think was, Damn, that man can kiss. I wonder what else he does well?
Chapter Three
Riley watched the clock as it got closer to three. Milo said he would be there before her shift ended. She expected him not to show. People got busy and didn’t follow through on their promises all the time.
“Who’s coming?” Tori asked, appearing next to her at the display counter with a fresh tray of strawberry-cream cupcakes.
As Riley stepped back to open the glass doors so Tori could slide her burden into the rack inside, Riley answered, “Hopefully, lots of cupcake customers. I just had to tell a teenager skipping school that we didn’t make doughnuts. He was majorly bummed.”
“I bet you sold him a cupcake to ease his sadness.”
“Three. He decided the fates had screwed with his navigational skills to get him into ‘sugar heaven,’” Riley answered, supplying air quotes around the young man’s words.
“Converting one addict after another,” Tori answered with a soft laugh. “Do you know what Ellie’s cupcake of the week is going to be?”
“I haven’t heard. I think she’s in her office.”
“I’ll go check. I wanted to practice before I draw it on the board.”
“You’re an amazing artist, Tori. I should have you design a tattoo for me. Maybe a cupcake?” Riley suggested.
“Like something permanent in your skin? Too much pressure! Maybe one of those temporary tattoos that wears off,” Tori joked.
“That’s actually an amazing idea. You could make a bunch of different designs and kids would have to come in to get a different one each month. They’d drag their parents in for that,” Riley enthused.
“Hmm. Maybe I’ll mention it to Ellie.”
As Tori walked away, Riley knew the quiet woman would never dare to suggest that they could use her art to draw customers into the store. Tori had loads of talent—she just didn’t have confidence. A jingle from the bells on the door drew her attention.
Milo Dante, aka Knot Master, handsome devil, or whatever other names he’d earned over the years, strode into the sweetly decorated cupcake bakery, grabbing every woman’s attention by the ovaries. Does he have to be so magnetic?
Riley tried not to be tickled that he didn’t even glance at the flashy blonde who couldn’t make her mind up at the counter. Instead, his gaze roamed the room until it landed on Riley, and he walked straight to her.
“You didn’t run,” he complimented.
“Not my style,” she assured him.
“Ellie needed you here, did she?”
Dropping her gaze from his, she nodded. “But I wasn’t going to run away.”
“Good girl.”
She shouldn’t have felt pleasure at his praise, but Riley did. “I’m not off for twenty minutes or so. You’re early.”
“I thought I’d come try to guess your favorite cupcake again. Give me a hint. Is your favorite color blue?” Milo asked as he looked carefully over the choices that day.
“No way!” burst from her lips. She’d never liked blue before the incident that often entered her mind and left her shuddering. She really didn’t like it after.
“That knocks out Blue Raspberry. I’ll try the Shamrock Shake one,” he pointed to a bright green cupcake that was the complete contrast to blue.
“Ooh! Good choice.”
“Your favorite?”
“Not even close, but it’s a very popular flavor,” she assured him with a laugh.
“I’m going to figure it out,” he promised as he pulled the list Ellie had given him out of his pocket to scratch through a second cupcake.
“You may lose those chiseled abs,” she remarked as she leaned into the case to pluck his selection from the tray.
“You’ve been checking me out, huh?”
“What? No!” When he raised one skeptical eyebrow, she relented. “You’re in good shape.”
Riley handed him the cupcake over the counter. She’d mark it down on her tally for the week. Ellie permitted each employee to give away a few cupcakes a month in addition to a discount on a dozen to take home.
“Ring me up, baby. I want to support you and Ellie.”
The look on his face convinced her not to argue. Milo was a man who expected his directions to be followed. Just like a Daddy. Riley shook her head to dispel that thought from her brain. Where had that come from?
“No, what, baby?”
“Sorry, I just had a hair in my face,” she excused herself quickly, thankful she hadn’t been working in the kitchen that day in a hairnet to give away her lie.
“Come join me when you’re ready. No hurry. This is a happy place to hang out.”