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“No,” Carter said. “That’s not—”

“Absolutely,” Gio said, interrupting the bigger man. “We should make it so no matter what happens between the three of us personally, the business is safe. That means there’s no conflict.”

“Oh, yeah, we can do that,” Carter agreed, nodding his head. “Totally separate thecooking stufffrom theus stuff.”

It all sounded so good. She could have a career and the men. She couldn’t possibly be that lucky. “I don’t think it’s that easy.”

“Nothing is ever easy,” Gio agreed. “I’m only giving you a foundation. Creating a successful business will be up to your hard work.”

Mila felt tears sting her eyes. “And you’re willing to put this all in a contract? Even if we break up, you’ll still keep supporting the business?”

“I’ll always support you,” Gio promised. Why did those words feel like they carried weight to them? As if he meant more than helping her open a bakery?

“Wait,” Carter said, pointing his fork at Gio. “Does this mean no more meals? Now that I’ve had this, I don’t think I can go back to takeout.”

“I can still cook for you!” Mila rushed to assure him, but Gio shook his head.

“No Mila,” Gio said, then looked at Carter. “We can’t expect Mila to spend all day baking and also cook elaborate meals.”

Carter hung his head like a scolded dog. “I guess not.”

She resisted the urge to insist she could do it all. That was the old Mila. The new Mila didn’t make herself take on every burden around her.

“Maybe we could come up with a schedule,” she offered. “I could cook a few times a week. I’d do that for myself anyway. It’s no trouble to make enough for all three of us.”

She could swear she saw Gio grimace even as Carter looked up at her with an eager expression.

“That would be great,” Carter said. “We could do some meals here at home and go out for others.” He looked at Gio. “We could take her to all the fun places in San Diego.”

Gio gave Carter a fond look. “Of course. I’d enjoy that.”

Mila was astonished. Not only had Gio stood up for her and kept her workload reasonable, but he also generously wanted to reward her with dates!

She dropped her gaze to stare at the table. “This is all too good to be true.” She was half afraid she’d wake up tomorrow to find herself back in the van and that this had all been a dream.

“It’s not too good to be true,” Gio said, reaching across the table to put his hand over hers. “It means you’re exactly where you’re meant to be.”

Carter tried to reach across to add his hand to theirs but accidentally sent his fork flying. A blob of cheesecake hit her cheek, making her jerk back and pull her hand away from Gio.

“Really, Carter?” Gio grumbled.

“I’ll fix it,” Carter said. When he stood up, he pushed his chair back with too much force, sending it crashing to the floor.

Gio met her gaze, trying to hide a smile. “Big puppy,” he mouthed, making her laugh.

Carter used the table to keep himself steady as he made his way around to her. She thought he was going to use a napkin to wipe off the dessert, but instead, he knelt next to her chair.

To her utter shock, he licked the cheesecake off her face.

“Oh,” Gio said, getting up from his chair as Mila froze in place. “That’s a much better idea than using a napkin.”

“I know, right!” Carter said and licked her cheek again. “I think I got some on her other side. Could you get that?”

Gio was quick to get up and kneel at her left and put his mouth close to her ear. “I’m going to lick your skin and kiss your lips,” he whispered. “We stop if you say no,bellezza.”

Say no? She couldn’t even remember how to form words at the moment. Her entire consciousness was focused on the chaotic sensations these two men were creating. When Gio licked her cheek, she moaned.

How had she gone from making desserts to becoming one?