Knead: Contemporary Romance (Creamy's Bakery Book 1) (3 page)

Chapter Five

Mason

A
s soon as the cake is set up and the extra guest sticks are plated in the butler's pantry, I seek out Mrs. Preston to say goodbye. Out on the huge back patio, I hear someone calling my name. Turning toward the familiar voice, I see Amy waving at me with her full belly protruding and Nate right beside her.

“Hey, Mason. What are you doing here?” She gives me a hug from about two feet away. Apparently, she can't get any closer with that belly in the way.

“I did the cake.” Looking down at her stomach, I smile and resist the urge to pat her. “Wow. You look just about ready.”

She blows her bangs off her forehead. “I'm so ready. Been ready for about four months.”

Nate pulls a face and silently agrees beside her.

“Hey, Nate. How's it going?” I offer my hand. He shakes it firmly then slides his arm back around Amy’s waist.

“We’re great.” His free hand cups the bottom of Amy’s swollen abdomen. I don’t know if he’s staking his claim on her or if it’s an instinctive gesture. Either way, it’s sweet.

“I’m happy to hear it.” Honestly, there is a bit of a longing in my gut to have that. I love kids and hope to have one of my own someday, but any attraction I once had for Amy is long gone. I could never compete for her affection with Nate around. She’s beyond just smitten. She’s like his second half. It’s almost painful to watch them together when I’ve been alone for so long.

“So we have cream sticks to look forward to
?” Amy sounds giddy.

“Only the best for the Preston princess.”

Amy rolls her eyes and glances around to make sure no one else is within ear shot. “God, I know. I soooo didn’t want to come, but Natey has a crush on Bella…so here we are.”

“Well, have fun with that. I don’t know if I could handle them as in-laws.”

Amy visibly shudders then leans into Nate’s shoulder.

“Don’t even joke about that.” Nate runs his hand over Amy’s bare arm.

“Hey, I’ve been meaning to ask…” My hands slide in my pockets, unsure if this is an appropriate time to bring it up. But I don't see Amy very often anymore, so I just go for it. “Um, how is your sister doing?”

Amy’s eyes are suddenly brighter and more excited. “Beth is good. She and Isla are great.”

“Cool. Good. She, uh, seemed really nice when I met her at Olivia's wedding.”

“She is really nice, Mason.” The smirk on Amy’s face is a little cute but mostly annoying. I can just see cupid’s arrow aimed directly at me from those turquoise eyes of hers. “As a matter of fact, she's coming over
tonight. She had to come over the hill for something so she’s going to visit us then head back tomorrow.”

Nate raises his eyebrows and looks at her. “She is?”

“Oh, I'm sorry, babe. I've forgot to tell you. She just called a few minutes before we left. She's in San Jose right now and wants to come over later. That's okay, right?”

“Yeah, of course.” He resumes rubbing up and down her spine with his palm. “It’ll be nice to see them.”

“It will be. I miss her, and I know Isla will be so excited to see Natey.”

Nate chuckles. “Yeah, that boy is already turning into a ladies man.”

Amy shudders. “I know. It's terrifying. I don't know if I want another boy or a girl. They both seem scary.”

I chuckle and take a step back. “Well, I'll let you guys get back to the party. It was great seeing you.”

“Wait.” Amy reaches out to grab my shoulder. “Do you have dinner plans?”

“No.”

“Why don’t you come over? We’re having the usual suspects over. Carly and her men will be there. It’s just an informal dinner.”

“Are you sure?” I haven't seen my twin sister in about a month, so it would be nice to catch up with her and the two guys she's dating.

“Of course. We’d love to have you.”

“Yeah, okay. That sounds nice.”

“Great. Come by around seven.” Amy looks at Nate for confirmation and he nods.

“Yeah, I think that's what we told Carly and the boys.”

“Great. I'll see you then.” I take a few steps toward the house then stop and turn back to them. “Hey, should I bring anything?”

“No, no.” Amy waves off the idea. “We have several wine club deliveries piling up for the past eight months. We've got plenty to drink and the food will be catered. Just bring yourself.”

I tilt my head. “Come on. You’ve got to let me bring dessert.”

Nate laughs. “I think we’ll be all cream sticked out by then, but everybody else would probably appreciate that. Thank you.”

“Cool. See you at seven.”

“Looking forward to it.” Amy’s singsong voice is a clear indicator that she’s got something planned that I’m either gonna really love or really hate.

I duck into the house and find Mrs. Preston inspecting the cake. “So what do you think?” Standing beside her, I wait for her response.

“It's lovely, Mason. You did a great job.” Her long fingernails graze across my elbow as she clasps on to me and leans forward. “Your reputation of having a beautiful stick and knowing exactly how to wield it was not exaggerated.”

Gross. Her cheesy innuendo might be flattering if I hadn’t already heard some variation of that line from fifty other horny housewives in this town. They’re all so used to getting everything they want except their husbands’ attention, they use opportunities like these to either make the hubby jealous or make themselves feel desirable. It’s actually more sad than annoying.

Keep a smile on my face, I put my hand over hers and gently release it from my arm. “Thank you, Mrs. Preston. I'm gonna be heading out, but if you need anything else, just give me a call.”

“Mason, darling, you don't have to leave. You're welcome to stay and enjoy the party.”

“Thank you, but I have other plans this evening. I better get going.”

Mrs. Preston huffs out a disappointed breath. “Very well. I'll be in the office
on Monday
with your check.”

“Sounds good. See you then.”

Chapter Six

Beth

After driving aimlessly for about an hour, I finally make it to Amy and Nate's house at seven. I didn’t expect to be this late, but I needed some time to regroup after seeing JR.

The huge driveway leading to Nate's house has a lot more cars than I expect. When I called to tell her we were coming, Amy didn't mention a party. I guess I should have assumed I wouldn’t be the only one here on a
Saturday
night. They like to entertain and have a lot of friends.

With a quick touchup of my makeup in my rearview mirror, I hop out of the car and pull a sleeping Isla out of her car seat.

“Need any help with that?”

A deep voice startles me, but when I look up, I'm instantly relieved to see the baker I met at Olivia's wedding. “Oh, hi. Uh, Mason, isn't it?”

His eyes light up as he grins broadly. “You remembered? I hope that's for a good reason and not because you hated my cream stick.”

I freeze at the back door, trying to make sense of what he just said. Mason’s cheeks pink up a little as he chuckles to himself. “Sorry. The eclairs for the wedding cake.”

“Oh, right, right. Those were delicious.”

“So do you need help with her or anything else?” Mason steps closer and gestures to Isla then looks at the duffel bags on the backseat.

“Sure, if you want to grab those bags, that would be great.”

He reaches into the backseat and pulls them out. “You staying for a few days?”

“Maybe. I’ve got some stuff to take care of in the area, so at least
tonight.
I don't know about after that.”

“Cool.”

Before we’re even at the door, Amy pulls it open and tries to hug me but between her belly and my kid, we can't get very close. She goes for a side-cheek-kiss kind of move.

Amy laughs as she tries to maneuver her belly out of the way to give Isla a kiss on the cheek too. “I can't wait for this kid to be outside of me.” She pats her belly.

“You’re almost there, honey. Just be patient. You’ll actually miss this time once it’s over.”

“Ha!” Amy rolls her eyes. “I doubt that.”

“Where should I put these?” Mason asks Amy.

“You can put Isla and the bags up in the guest room. I left a baby monitor in their earlier so just turn it on before you leave.”

“Thanks, honey.” I reach out and try to take the bags from Mason. “And thanks, Mason. I appreciate your help.”

“Well, it’s not over yet.” He waves my hand away. “I'll take this up. Don't want you tripping with that precious cargo.”

Okay, so he's a little corny, but he's cute. That sounds like something my grandpa would say. Once Isla and our bags are settled in the guestroom, Mason and I sneak downstairs and out to the backyard. I've got the receiver for the baby monitor snapped to my waistband. I’ll hear if Isla wakes up, but she knows her way around this place. If I’m lucky, she’ll sleep through the night. It’s close to her bedtime and she had a busy day. She’ll come looking for me if she needs anything.

Mason beelines it for his sister, wrapping his arms around hers from behind and lifting her off the ground. Even with her squirming, he carries her to the edge of the pool and holds her there, dangling above the deep water.

My eyes are wide as I wait for him to let go, but she's laughing and squirming and trying to kick his shins. After some unheard words between them, Mason turns around and sets her feet on the ground.

I briefly met Carly and the two men she's dating at Olivia’s wedding. But it’s still such a foreign concept to me to be in a threesome relationship.

I've only had a few boyfriends, and JR and Michael are the only two I even slept with. I’ve had a few opportunities to date since Isla was born, but I haven't been ready.

I don't really trust random men around my daughter, and I've been afraid JR might make an appearance back in our lives. Unfortunately, that's exactly what's happening now.

Amy appears at my side with a plate of food. “Here. You have to eat, girl. You’re looking too skinny.”

I take the plate and bite my tongue, holding in the self-deprecating comments I’d usually bust out after hearing my size two sister say that. I've never been the skinny one between the two of us. She's really only saying that because she's feeling huge with her baby bump. “Thanks, Aims.”

I grab a bacon wrapped beef medallion off the plate and inspect it. “Wow, this is fancy.”

She shrugs. “We have a friend who owns a catering company. She insists on trying out new recipes on us. I asked for barbecue, but we're getting the gourmet version of Menlo Park barbecue.”

“Nice.” I bite into the tender filet. In the hippie town of Santa Cruz where I live, I’d probably be getting tofu dogs and medicinal brownies. “I'll take your gourmet… What is this thing, anyway?” I grab a bread-like object from the plate and twist it in my hand, trying to figure it out.

Amy laughs. “I don't know, but it's made with goat cheese and it's delicious.”

“Good enough for me.” I pop it in my mouth and practically moan out loud. “Wow. Can I move in?” I give her my best puppy dog eyes.

“The guest house is empty. You know you're always welcome to it.”

“Make sure you save room for dessert.” Mason stops beside me with a plate of his own. “I hear it’s full of dairy and gluten.”

Amy busts up. “Oh my god! Those were the worst.” She turns to me. “We were at a party earlier for some brat that goes to Nate’s school. Somehow I ended up with a gluten-free cream stick and almost puked.”

Mason makes a face. “Sorry. Those aren’t our specialty. I really should put some effort into a better GF recipe, but sometimes you just need the real stuff.”

“Amen to that,” I say over a mouthful of brie and cranberries.

“Shit. I’ve gotta pee. Again. I'll be right back.” Amy disappears into the house and leaves me and Mason alone.

“So, how’s life treating you?” Mason casually leans against a brick pony wall surrounding the garden.

“Good.” At least it was good until JR called the other day. “I guess it’s fine.”

Mason frowns. “That doesn't sound very convincing. Everything okay?”

“Yeah, I think so. Just a crazy couple days.”

“Sounds like you need a drink. We can’t let that bar go to waste. What can I get you?”

There’s a full bar set up on the other side of the pool with two attractive men in Hawaiian shirts. I guess that’s as barbecue-ish as this place is gonna get.

“Thanks, but I probably shouldn't. If Isla wakes up, I’ll have to keep a close eye on her around this pool.”

“How about something light? They’re making an amazing mango mojito. I can ask them to go easy on the rum.”

“That does sound really good…”

“I'll be right back.” Mason shoves off the wall and is gone before I can stop him. Oh well. One drink won't hurt.

When Mason returns with a high-ball glass filled with an amber liquid, he hands it to me then points toward some lounge chairs near the DJ. I nod and follow him to an open chair.

“This is a pretty extravagant party for just throwing it together.” It looks like a wedding. A really nice wedding.

“Yeah, I think they have a full party planning committee on staff for every weekend.” Mason laughs. “This is a pretty typical
Saturday evening
here.”

I look up just in time to see Amy walking out of the house holding Isla’s hand. Oops. I didn't even hear her.

Isla waves to me then runs in the opposite direction, away from the pool, to where Natey has a caged trampoline set up. “Well, she'll be busy for the next four hours.”

Mason chuckles softly. “I guess I'll just have to entertain you, then.”