Page 55 of Fairy Cakes in Winter

I couldn’t sneak upstairs to my flat either. Becca might come up and ask about Theo and me. She’d obviously figured us out. And she seemed fine with it, which was great and not great ’cause he was gone. So it didn’t matter. Nothing mattered. It was business as usual…

Starting now.

Wait. He’d used my line. “I wish you all the best things in life.” I’d said exactly those words to him when we’d parted for the first time in London.

And he’d said those three words again. They’d tripped off his tongue…so easily.

I love you.

I walked on, moving quickly to keep warm as I sorted through the demons in my head. He was gone and I had to let go.

Let go, let go.

I let myself in at the side entrance of the bakery and started for the stairs before deciding to check on the state of my kitchen. I turned on the light over the counter, marched toward the register, and froze.

Fairy wings and a tiara were perched against the register like a calling card. I fingered the glittery edges carefully, casting a wary gaze around the shop as if on the lookout for ghosts.

There was no one here.

Only me and—

“Hiya.”

I whirled around with my hand over my heart. “Holy fuck, Becca.”

She chuckled softly. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you. I was tidying the kitchen. It was a shambles and I know you can’t work in those conditions.”

“Oh. Thanks.”

Becca closed the distance between us and fixed me with a scrutinizing once-over. “And…I wanted to make sure you were okay.”

I scoffed. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

She crossed her arms and arched a brow. “Don’t be like that, Scott. You don’t have to tell me any details, but don’t push me away. You need a friend, and I’m it.”

“Thanks, but—”

“Don’t argue. Just come into the kitchen. I’ll make a cuppa.”

I obeyed.

I leaned against the counter and idly watched her prepare tea. “I’m…you were right about Theo and me. I didn’t want to talk about it ’cause I knew it would end up here.”

“I know. I like him for you. And to be honest, I didn’t want to,” she replied softly.

“Becs…”

“I came ’round. He’s lovely, really. It’s hard not to like him. Especially when I can tell he makes you happy.” She slid a cup of tea toward me and pointed at a tray of neatly wrapped sweets. “Biscuit or…a fairy cake?”

I shook my head and sipped my tea, letting the silence gather. It wasn’t uncomfortable, though. This felt more like two old friends clicking into place, finding a new rhythm.

“Hey, Becs? Love you.”

“Love you, too, Scotty. And I hope…” She sucked in a ragged breath and smiled. “I hope you’ll be happy.”

I set my cup down and hugged her tight. “Same goes, Becs. Same goes.”

I gave her one last squeeze and stepped aside, pausing to stare at the flicker of glitter from the fairy wings in the next room.