I caught my breath, hitching it high in my lungs, and threw open the awning to peek out of the truck. “Hey!” I cried. My voice was just a fraction too shrill. My eyes, a tad too wide. My smile, slightly too rigid.
And if anyone in the world would notice, it would be my big sister.
Sure enough, she paused, examining me. “You okay?”
“Um, yeah. Of course, why wouldn’t I be?”
“Oh… kay. Oh, hey Liam! It’s good you’re both here. I just need your signatures here on the permit, and you are good to go.” Elaina slid the permit and a pen across the counter toward us. I clicked the top of the pen and scribbled my name and date at the bottom, then handed it to Liam to do the same.
“I scheduled you an inspection for nine tomorrow morning. He’s agreed to meet you here in the parking lot, since I figured that would be easier for you, Liam. Don’t be late. He’s squeezing you in as a favor to me so that you can hit your soft open.”
I rolled my eyes. “Why do I feel like you’re talking solely to me about not being late?”
Her mouth twisted and she gave me a look. You know that look. The pointed, judgmental kind that says c’mon without actually saying it. “Uh. Because I know you. I shared a bathroom with you for eighteen years and practically had to drag you into my car every morning for school.”
“And also,” Liam added, “I work here… so, you know, I’m not going to be late.”
I narrowed my gaze at him. “You’re not helping.”
He shrugged, seeming unaffected by my warning. “I had first period calculus with you junior year… and you were never on time.”
“Was it my fault that my locker was on the other side of the building?”
Liam pressed his lips together and shared a look with Elaina. It only lasted for a second before I threw my hands into the air. “That was years ago, guys! I promise I won’t be late tomorrow, okay?”
“Good enough for me,” Elaina said, then lifted on her toes to try to peer into the truck. “You got any sweets back there right now?”
I shook my head, looking around the bare kitchen. “Not a single one.”
Liam hitched his thumb over his shoulder toward Beefcakes. “I’ve got some in there, though. Even got a cupcake that’s made wi—”
“No, no,” Elaina said hastily, backing away from the truck. “I’m fine. I have yogurt and almonds waiting for me at my office.” With a small wave, she dashed off, nearly diving into her car and screeching out of the parking lot.
Liam sighed dramatically. “Wow, just the prospect of walking into the bakery had her pulling a Fast & Furious out of the parking lot.”
“Yeah. I think there’s a lot of memories in there that she’d rather avoid.”
“So, they’re still not talking?” Liam asked.
I shook my head. “Nope. They’re both too damn stubborn.” I turned to look at Liam. “Wait, you didn’t know they weren’t talking?”
Liam shook his head. “My brother and I aren’t like you and Elaina. We don’t really huddle up and share our feelings all that much.”
“Huh.” I couldn’t imagine having a sibling I didn’t talk to every day. Even before Elaina moved in with me, we literally communicated daily—whether by a text or Instagram message. Or even just a random gif. It made me suddenly sad for Liam and Neil.
“You know,” Liam said, “Maybe we could arrange something where they have to both come?”
It was my turn to screw my face together. “Like a setup? Elaina will see right through that.” So would Neil, for that matter.
“If they see through it, then we didn’t do our jobs well enough.”
“Maybe…” I was doubtful, though.
“You know what we should do? A family sampling! I could bake up some ideas for the soft opening and we could have our friends and family do a taste test. Tell us which ones they think are best and what a fair price is.”
“That’s a great idea!” I grabbed his hand before I could stop myself. I stiffened at the feel of his palm against mine and then immediately relaxed as his fingers curled around mine, linking our hands.
“Well, come on Dyker. Let’s get baking.”
12 Liam
My family has been eating my baked goods for almost my entire life…
So why was I so damn nervous as they sat around the table, staring back at Chloe and me, waiting to taste the samples for our food truck? My mom, Finn, and Addy were all here—and so were Chloe’s mother and father. But conveniently missing from what was supposed to be a Neil-Elaina setup… were Neil and Elaina.
Chloe gave me a nervous look, tapping her fingers against her phone, while I did the same, texting Neil to ask him where the hell he was as our parents cordially made small talk.
“Dude,” Finn said, “He’s not coming. I told you, he gave me some excuse about needing to stay behind to do some work at the bakery.”
Sure enough, seconds after Finn spoke, a text chimed in my phone from Neil stating exactly that.
Of everyone in the family, I really wanted your opinion on these baked goods the most, I texted back. Guilt was always a good last resort.
I could feel Chloe peering over my shoulder and I rolled my eyes. “Want me to hand the phone to you so you can read my texts better?”
“Nah,” she said casually, “Just tilt it a little. There’s a glare.”
I snorted a laugh and shook my head at her shameless candor. This girl. This fucking girl.
I sighed and tucked my phone into my pocket as the front door swung open and Elaina came waltzing into Chloe’s and, for the time being, her home. She seemed startled, blinking in surprise at the massive amount of people sitting in her kitchen when she finally said. “Oh, shit.
