Page 47 of Bake You Mine (Port Fortune #1)

thirty-five

“I thought you wanted to be an astronaut this year?’

“Mom, I told you, like, a billion times, I want to be a figure skater! Or maybe a rugby player!” Daphne rifled through the racks at the thrift store two blocks down from Petit Chou.

They’d signed her up for the girls’ rugby team, but the league didn’t pick up until the new year.

Her kid had already asked if Liam could help her practice.

Aubrey hadn’t worked up the courage to tell her what had happened.

How did you explain something like this to a twelve-year-old?

Especially to Daphne, who’d recently seen the collapse of her father’s marriage.

There was no way Aubrey would pay full price for a costume her daughter would only wear at school. Daphne was very adamant that she was far too old for trick-or-treating. Hopefully, she’d change her mind as they got closer to Halloween. Aubrey wasn’t ready to let go of that tradition just yet.

“I wish you could make me a costume. You know how to sew.”

Aubrey stopped at a shimmery bathing suit that could work as a figure skating top. “I do, little bug, but I don’t have the proper equipment. How about this one?” She held up a long-sleeved leotard.

Daphne grinned. “Ooh, that’s perfect! Now we need a skirt and tights.”

Her daughter ran down the aisle, barely missing a pair of elderly ladies. Aubrey apologized for her daughter as Daphne tore past them, but they only smiled.

When Aubrey caught up with Daphne, she’d already picked out a flouncy skirt that perfectly matched the bathing suit top. Once they were back in the van, she bounced in her seat.

“Y’know, maybe I’ll trick-or-treat this year after all. Is Liam coming with?”

“I don’t think so, kiddo. He’s got a lot going on right now.”

She waited for Daphne to press for more information. Instead, she pulled up her tablet and began watching an anime.

After they had unloaded their shopping, Daphne retreated to her bedroom with her homework, and Aubrey got busy making baked potato soup for dinner. Her father, meanwhile, was holed up in his study, likely tending to a task related to his volunteer work.

She moved around the kitchen, preparing dinner. She liked this kind of life—quiet, without much fuss, especially as her work life was set to amp up.

The familiar creaking whine of her father’s study door opening put her on guard.

Her father came around the expansive kitchen island, his face grim.

His volunteer work wasn’t easy, and it often wore him out.

Some cases were complex, especially around the holidays, when many of these vets had no one to turn to.

“Another hard case?”

He pulled out the barstool and settled onto it. “Yes, but I also spoke to Liam today. ”

She ceased stirring the soup. “Oh?”

Her father took off his glasses and rubbed between his eyes. “Were you going to tell me you were trying to put some space between you and Liam?”

She exhaled with relief. It made her a coward, but she was glad she didn’t have to break the news. “I was, eventually. I need some time. And as much as he might not want to admit it, so does he.”

He sighed. “Maybe you should talk to Liam instead of assuming you know what’s best for him?”

Before she could reply, he held up his hand. “I know you don’t want to talk about it. As much as I’d like to help, I know you have to figure this out on your own. I’ll get Daphne, then I’ll help you get dinner on the table.”

Liam drove around town and back again, finding his mind no clearer than when he’d left Elevation. He stopped by Minelli’s florist to pick up a bouquet and headed to Calvary Cemetery on the edge of town.

He arrived as the sun started its slow descent. His dad’s grave had a lovely river view, and a little stone bench was in front of his headstone. He had one of those double headstones with a heart on it, waiting for Liam’s mother to be buried next to him.

Judging by the fresh-swept appearance of the grave, his mother had been by recently.

He’d broken the news of him and Aubrey taking space over the phone, which was probably for the best. She hadn’t said much, for once. He still wanted her opinion on business matters, but that could wait .

Liam removed the plastic around the flowers and arranged them in the vase next to the ones his mother had brought. He touched the marble and said hello to his father.

“It’s been a while, Pops. But you know how it goes. You always said you were busier than a one-legged man in an ass-kicking contest, and I feel that now.”

Liam sighed as he lowered himself onto the bench. He ran a hand over his face. His dad had always told him nobody was too tough to cry, advice he’d stuck by all these years.

“I think I might’ve lost the girl, Pops.

The girl. The one Ma’s been praying for every week at church since my days in diapers.

” Liam paused as if his father would respond.

All he got was the rustling of the wind through the trees.

“I can’t force her to see what we have, but I haven’t hurt like this, ever. ”

“Maybe because you never make yourself vulnerable.”

He whirled around at the voice, finding Sasha. “Jesus Christ.” He leaned out to give her a swat on the arm.

“Move over, you big lug.”

He did, and she plopped on the bench next to him. “I had a feeling you might be here.”

“Aubrey told me she needed some space.”

“I can’t say I’m surprised.”

He bumped his shoulder against hers harder than he meant to. “Like it’s my fault?”

She bumped him back just as hard. The wind picked up again, scattering leaves over their father’s grave.

Sasha leaned down to brush them off. “It’s one of those things where it’s no one’s fault, Liam.

Maybe your timing is wrong. Or maybe both of you are too chickenshit to do something about it.

But all this other stuff is happening so quickly in your relationship.

The contest, renovations, and the space in DC. Maybe you could try again next year.”

His laugh came out bitter, hollow. “It sounds like the title of some rom-com. That doesn’t work in real life. In a year, who knows what could happen.”

Sasha put her arm around him. “A year ago, I was dating a fuckboy with a record. Now, I’m a woman on the verge of getting my nursing degree, with no man to slow me down.”

Liam snorted. “Uh, that was way more recently than a year ago. Besides, I thought you were supposed to encourage me to get in a relationship, lil sis.”

She rested her head on his shoulder. “It’s not the right time for me. Maybe it’s not the right time for you and Aubrey. I don’t think it’s too late, either way. There’s a solution. You need to find it.”

Liam’s phone rang, and he reached into his pocket. Jason’s name popped up on the screen, so he answered it without thinking.

“Hey, I decided to come to Port Fortune for dinner. Can we have a talk when I get there? It’ll be a hot minute with traffic being its usual awful self, but maybe in a couple of hours?”

“Definitely,” Liam said. He hung up, feeling nervous and excited all at once.

“Maybe that’s the sign you’re after, big bro.”

“I doubt it. Knowing my luck, Jason changed his mind and wanted to call it off in person. But I heard what you said.”

“Don’t give up. It’s not what Linleys do.”

“As long as Aubrey gives me a reason to fight, I will.”