Series: Little Cakes Series by Pepper North
Total pages in book: 48
Estimated words: 45218 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 226(@200wpm)___ 181(@250wpm)___ 151(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 45218 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 226(@200wpm)___ 181(@250wpm)___ 151(@300wpm)
“Did you buy every sprinkle in town?”
“I tried.”
Unable to believe how lucky she was to find this incredible man, Ellie rushed forward to wrap her arms around his hard torso. He hugged her back just as tightly. Rising on her tiptoes, Ellie pressed her lips against his, feeling the passion combust between them.
“Whoa! There needs to be more cooking and less kissing in here.” Bear’s deep voice made her dance away from her Daddy.
When her eyes guiltily focused on the table before them, the large baker added, “And we obviously need to disinfect surfaces before we start today.”
“Good idea,” Garrett agreed without a speck of discretion.
“Daddy!” Ellie protested, feeling her face heat even more. She slapped her hands over her cheeks.
Bear took pity on her. “I’m going to do a quick inventory.” He disappeared into the walk-in cooler with a pad of paper and a pen.
“You!” Ellie waggled her finger at Garrett. “Go away and let me focus. You are too big of a distraction.”
“Give me a kiss first and I’ll be gone,” Garrett instructed as he swept her into his arms.
Ellie lifted her puckered mouth to meet his.
“You’re still kissing?” Bear laughed as he exited the storage area.
“I’m on my way out. Make her take a break, Bear,” Garrett requested.
“Will do!” came the immediate reply.
“Stop ganging up on me. Out!” She shooed Garrett out the door as she laughed at the two Daddies.
With the door locked, Ellie returned to unpack the box and stow the cardboard in the recycling bin. As she wiped down all the surfaces with a warm face, she conferred with Bear over the state of their supplies. Within minutes, the whirl of the large table mixers and the blowers on the preheating ovens created the background sounds that were music to her ears. Thank goodness Bear was able to come in again this morning. If the shop remained as busy as it had on the first day, she’d need him every night, not just three nights a week.
A few minutes before they were supposed to open, Lark burst through the kitchen door, looking over her shoulder, and almost running into Bear as he carried a fresh tray of rainbow sprinkled cupcakes for the display counter.
“Whoa, Little girl,” he breathed, balancing the teetering tray while steadying Lark with a hand on her shoulder.
Ellie watched with growing wonder. Could her friend be Little, too?
“Ellie! That police officer is here. He’d like to talk to you,” Lark reported, looking agitated.
“Is something wrong?” Ellie asked as she turned off the mixer. Lark was always composed and professional. She’d never seen her so rattled.
“I don’t know,” Lark answered. “You come talk to him.” She rushed back to the front of the shop.
“Okay.”
Wiping her hands on her apron automatically, Ellie walked through the swinging door. The patrolman stood with his back to the kitchen. She followed his line of sight to see him looking at Lark as she tidied the tables. The dangling apron strings swayed over her friend’s pert bottom as Lark unnecessarily cleaned the already spotless tables. There seemed to be a bit more enthusiastic movement than necessary.
Okay, it can’t be anything too terrible, Ellie decided if he was so distracted. She glanced around to find the rest of her staff grinning. They apparently noticed the odd interaction between Lark and the police officer, too.
“Officer Hazelton, is something wrong?” Ellie asked, breaking the silence.
The handsome man in uniform turned with a smile. “Hi, Ms. Willmoth. No, nothing is wrong. I actually have good news today. We were able to round up the other three men that caused the disruption here.”
“Really? They’re behind bars?” Ellie asked as her shoulders relaxed from their tensed position.
“They are. There’s enough evidence against them all. They should be locked up until their trial date.”
“That’s incredible news. Da... Garrett will be so happy to hear this,” Ellie cheered, catching herself just before she called Garrett, Daddy.
There was a collective sigh of relief in the room.
“That doesn’t mean you should stop being vigilant. I teach self-defense classes for women. They’re free every month at the police academy. Everyone is welcome,” he offered, turning slightly to look back at Lark. When he found her watching, he nodded that upward macho way some men did.
Turning back around, he pulled a card holder out of his pocket. After removing several cards, he handed Ellie a small stack. “Feel free to invite anyone you’d like. Get a group together and come. If you have five or more, I’ll give up a day off to offer a private class.”
“We might just take you up on that, Officer,” Ellie answered.
“Call me Wyatt. This is my normal patrol area. I think I’ll stop in often to have a sugar boost.”
“You are welcome anytime, Wyatt. I go by Ellie. That’s Lark, my amazing friend who’s here helping us for a few days. And Sue, Tori, and Riley, along with Bear, make up my staff. You already met Bear. He’s in the kitchen.”