Sally turned and said, “I just can’t help it.” Then she hugged Adam again. “Oh, sweetie. I’m so happy for you.”
“Thanks, Mom,” Adam said, unable to conceal his grin of masculine satisfaction.
“Glad he’s not shooting blanks?” Brandon said wryly.
“Oh, you,” Sally said, and smacked his arm lightly. “Just wait till it’s your turn.”
“Whoa. Threats?” Brandon gave her an incredulous look. “Sorry, Mom, but you’ll be waiting a long time for that day.”
“We’ll see about that,” Sally muttered, then gave him a pointed look before turning back to join the girls.
Brandon’s shoulders shook violently and he glanced at his brothers. “Did anyone else feel that sudden chill?”
“Yeah, I saw that look she gave you,” Cameron said, his lips twisted in a wry grin. “I’d say you’re screwed.”
Brandon glared from one brother to the other. “Whatever happened to our sacred vows? We made a pact. Blood brothers forever, remember?”
“We’re still blood brothers,” Adam said amiably, then took a long sip of beer. “Always will be.”
“Yeah, but come on,” Brandon groused. “First, there’s your marriage. I could almost handle that. But then Cameron went and did it. That blew my mind, I’ve gotta tell you. And now, more kids?”
“Stuff happens,” Cameron said by way of explanation. What else could he say? He couldn’t figure it out, either.
Brandon shook his head. “And now I’ll have Mom on my case, bellyaching for me to do the same. And that’s never going to happen.”
“You think not?” Adam said.
“Never,” Brandon said decisively, and pointed his beer bottle at both of them. “I understand you two are feeble-minded amateurs when it comes to women, but I’m a professional. I’ve got standards to uphold.”
Adam threw back his head and howled with laughter. “Standards. That’s a good one, bro.”
“Yeah.” Cameron patted Brandon’s back. He understood standards. They were a lot like rules. Sometimes both were meant to be broken. “Lots of luck with those standards.”
“You guys are killing me,” Brandon muttered, then slugged down the rest of his beer. “Getting so you can’t trust anyone anymore.”
“Why don’t you just tell him how you feel?” Karolyn asked as she filled the refrigerated display case with more freshly wrapped sandwiches from the Cupcake kitchen.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Julia said. She grabbed a large tub from the busboy tray behind the checkout counter. “Lynnie took a break so I’m going to bus the tables out front.”
“You’re avoiding the conversation,” Karolyn whispered.
“Yes,” she admitted. “But I’m working, too.”
Karolyn rolled her eyes and went back to tucking and folding the small, white boxes used by customers to carry home their bakery goods. The word Cupcake was embossed in navy blue on the top, under the outline of a fluffy cupcake.
The white box and the navy-blue ribbon tie had become an iconic symbol in Dunsmuir Bay. When mothers arrived home carrying a Cupcake box, children turned into angels. When the boss showed up at the office with a Cupcake box, it was better than getting a promotion.
Julia stacked empty latte cups, pastry plates and utensils in the tub, then wiped down the tables. She greeted three of her customers who always met here for lattes and a snack after their morning workout, then answered a question about the sandwich special of the day.
Glancing around the cafe area, she assured herself that everything was clean and tidy. She was proud of what she’d created here. Even before her customers walked inside, they could smell the mouth-watering aroma of baked bread, puff pastry and sweet chocolate chip cookies all the way down the street.
Julia returned the filled tub to the busboy tray behind the counter just as Lynnie finished her break.
“Julia,” Karolyn called from the kitchen. “Can you come back and check on the cheese bread?”
Julia made sure Lynnie was ready to work and checked that her young assistant’s apron was tied securely to cover the tacky saying on her T-shirt before walking into the kitchen. Karolyn grabbed her arm and pulled her all the way to the back door leading to the tiny, fenced-in patio.
“Now, sit,” Karolyn said.
Julia glanced around at the colorful flower boxes and miniature potted lemon trees that decorated the space. “No cheese-bread emergency?”
“No.”
With a slow, heavy exhalation, Julia sat at the small table they’d set up for staff meetings and coffee breaks. “All right. What do you want?”
Karolyn pulled another chair around to get closer. She grabbed Julia’s hand and squeezed it. “I’m worried about you.”
“I’m perfectly fine,” Julia countered breezily. “Business is booming. I’m married to a gorgeous man who is a terrific father. We have a wonderful life. Cameron loves Jake, and it’s so sweet to see them together. He treats me like a princess. He’s sexy and attentive and warm, and I’m…I’m happy.”
“Honey,” Karolyn said, shaking her hand to get her attention. “Don’t you think he deserves to know you’re in love with him?”
“Oh, God.” Julia dropped her chin to her chest in defeat. “I never should’ve told you why we really got married.”
“I’m your best friend. Who else can you share your deepest, darkest, dumbest secrets with?”
“True,” she mumbled. “But why do you think I’m in love with him?”
“It’s only written all over your face.
Julia laughed, then sobered immediately. “What, exactly, did Lynnie notice?”
“That you’re humming all the time, that your eyes have taken on a dreamy glow, that you leave early now. You never used to leave early.” Karolyn leaned close and whispered, “She thinks you’re in deep.”
“Of course I leave early,” Julia said, pouting at the idea that she was so transparent, even her employees were starting to notice. “I have a baby at home.”
“That never stopped you from working all hours before.” Karolyn grinned. “And you still have a devoted nanny who will stay all night with Jake if you need her to.”
“Oh, God, even Lynnie noticed.” Julia laid her head on the table. “That’s pitiful.”
“Sad but true,” Karolyn said.
“What am I going to do?”
“You’re going to go home and tell him you love him,” Karolyn instructed. “And if he’s got any guts at all, he’ll tell you the same.”
Julia stared forlornly at her friend. “He doesn’t love me, Karolyn.”
Karolyn laughed. “Oh, Julia.”
Julia blinked. “It’s not funny.”
“Honey, he’s so in love with you, it’s ridiculous.”
“No, he’s not.”
“I saw him at the wedding. He was smitten then, and it’s even worse now.”
Julia pursed her lips in discontent. “He wants me, I know that. But
Karolyn sighed. “Every time he walks into the bakery, the air becomes charged with electricity between you two.”
Julia shook her head. “That’s just lust.”
“You can ignore the signs, and he might deny it to kingdom come, but take my word for it, Cameron Duke is a man who’s in love with his wife.”
