Page 17 of Midnight Whispers (Forbidden Entanglements #1)

Chapter Seventeen

R iley started baking as soon as he got to Zinnie’s inn. He, Griffin, and Zinnie had developed a bit of a routine. Riley’s role was that of baker, and he was happy to do it. He loved it, so it wasn’t a hardship.

He had a few more days until college started, after which he’d have to develop a new daily schedule. But for now, this one worked well.

He made cinnamon rolls. He loved kneading the dough by hand. He could forget about everything except the motion his body made. Even the room disappeared as he used his upper body to increase the gluten in the dough.

He was so far in the zone that he didn’t hear anyone enter the room until something touched his shoulder. He jumped a mile high and turned to face the threat.

Zinnie stood there with an envelope in her hand and an apologetic expression. “Sorry, honey. I didn’t mean to startle you. I called your name, but you didn’t answer.”

“I’m into cinnamon rolls.” Riley smiled and wiped his hands on his apron.

He blushed when Cass walked in.

Cass winked. “Hi.”

“Hi.”

Zinnie’s gaze went from Riley to Cass. Her eyebrows raised.

Cass met Zinnie’s gaze. “Iven and I need a favor.”

“In the form of…”

“Housing two kids and their guardian brother.”

Zinnie frowned. “Danny?”

Cass nodded. “Iven will tell you about it.”

Zinnie turned to Riley again and held out the envelope.

Riley took it. Zinnie wrote his name on it and a dollar amount. “That’s your cut from the muffins. They were a huge hit. So much so the diner wants to sell them.”

Riley sucked in a breath. “Are you serious?”

“I don’t know where you found time to learn how to bake, but you’re good at it.”

“When mom wasn’t drunk, she was a good baker. It was few and far between, but I was a fast learner.” In his mother’s drunk stupor, she sometimes had managed to give him pointers. Riley peeked inside the envelope. He widened his eyes. “This is a lot, Zinnie.”

“You earned it.” Zinnie waved her hand as she left the room. “I’m not arguing about it, Riley Palmer.”

Riley wondered if he should double his recipe. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” she yelled from the hall.

Riley stuffed the envelope in his apron. “I can buy a backpack and a college sweater.”

“Or you can ask Iven for the money and save that.” Cass came further into the room.

Riley shook his head. He didn’t see the need to ask his dad for money when he’d just earned some on his own. Besides that, his dad paid for everything else. Riley had no bills beyond putting gas in his car to get to school. And he was an adult. He’d taken care of himself and his mother until the day she died.

It was nice to make money again. Doing it by baking was beyond surreal. It was the one thing his mom had done well. And the one positive thing she’d passed down to Riley. It was also something he did for fun. It helped with stress.

And he was grateful for Zinnie’s awesome kitchen.

Cass cupped his cheek. “How are you doing?”

“You mean since I freaked out and ditched you.” Riley winced. Thinking about it made him a little ashamed, but also wanting to know if Cass had rejected him, because maybe his reaction wasn’t unfounded.

Cass nodded. “I want you. More than anything. It’s just not safe. Not with the pack alpha acting weird.”

Riley averted his gaze.

Cass kissed him. It was just a peck, but it made Riley’s heart sing. Riley stepped closer. “When will you finish here?”

“Around six o’clock. Why?” Riley liked the way Cass smelled. Maybe it was his laundry detergent or the soap he’d showered with that morning. Cass smelled like pine.

“So we can start over.”

“Start over, as in…”

“Spend the night.”

Riley didn’t even think about how bad of an idea it was, especially considering he would have to explain to his dad where he’d slept. It would set a ball rolling they probably weren’t ready for, but Riley didn’t care. Not when Cass held him and promised to do a lot more than that later. “No bonding?”

Cass flashed his fangs and buried his face in Riley’s neck. He kissed Riley’s neck. “When I’m inside you, I don’t know if I’ll be able to stop myself. If the alpha finds out about you, I don’t know what I’ll do.”

Cass sounded as conflicted as Riley felt.

“Whoa.” Griffin’s voice penetrated through their bubble. “You guys should just fuck and get it over with.”

Riley didn’t even hear the back door open. He jumped and tried to pull away, but Cass held onto him, so he relaxed again.

Cass growled. “We’re Fated mates, Griffin. It’s not just fucking. And besides that, it’s complicated.”

“It looks pretty simple from here.” Griffin sat at the table, grabbing a muffin. “Did you talk to mom yet?”

“A few minutes ago.”

“Are you going to do it?”

“Do what?”

“Bake. For the inn and diner.” Griffin took a bite and talked when his mouth was full, which was gross. Riley got a glimpse of chewed dough and blueberries. “Hey, you know where Capote’s Pizza used to be?”

“I’ve been a resident of Fortune Falls for ten days. How would I know what you’re talking about? And can you please eat with your mouth closed?” If Riley weren’t wrapped around Cass so thoroughly, he’d call for his dad to make Griffin stop.

Instead of answering with words, Griffin flipped him off, and at the same time, he took another bite. But he finished chewing before speaking again. “It’s on Main Street. Dad took us for pizza there every time you came home for the summer.”

Riley remembered the live bands that would play sometimes and drinking strawberry smoothies.

“I don’t think it would be hard to grab up. It needs lots of work. It’s been abandoned for a while.”

Cass pulled Riley against his side. “You’re talking about Riley opening a bakery.”

Griffin shrugged. “It might make a good space for one and Fortune Falls has a need. We don’t really have one. That place is in the heart of town where the college students hang out.”

The idea bloomed in his chest. He hadn’t thought about anything beyond having the cool job of making muffins and cinnamon rolls in small batches for the inn and the Diner. It was a job he could love, and it worked for his upcoming college schedule. “Two problems. I don’t have the money or the time for that type of project. But it’s an amazing idea.”

“Well, it would take a while to renovate. It would give you time to figure out how to make it work. Or just take a few business classes to help you run the bakery.” Griffin shrugged. “It’s just an idea.”

“I’ll help you with the cost,” Cass whispered to him.

“Plus, if you’re only taking a few classes, then you’d have all that money Dad saved for you. I bet he would let you spend it on that as well as school. And Mom will want to invest.” Griffin took another bite.

Holy shit. Was he really thinking about it? “It’s a huge step.”

“Seems like you’re taking a lot of those lately, anyway. What’s one more?” Griffin shrugged again. “That place isn’t going anywhere. And besides, there’s another place downtown. That one will be more expensive, though.”

Riley met Cass’s gaze. “What do you think?”

“Are you ready for it?” That was a good question. One Riley really needed to contemplate.

Riley met Griffin’s gaze. “I’m seriously thinking about it.”

Griffin smiled. “Good. It would make a good business, especially in this town.”

Riley pulled out of Cass’s arms and made his way to Griffin. He hugged him. “Thank you for being so brilliant.”

“It’s about time you recognized how great I am.” Griffin hugged him back.

Riley chuckled. “You’re funny, too. The full package.”

“Spread it around to all the cute college boys, will ya? Maybe I’ll get laid in this damn century.” Of course, Griffin had to make the moment weird.

“I’m not your pimp, Griffin.”

“You could set me up, though.”

“With someone I haven’t met yet.” No pressure or anything. Riley rolled his eyes and went to Cass again. Cass put an arm around him.

Riley turned to Griffin. “I want to talk to Dad about it first.”

“About setting me up with a college boy?”

Riley sighed. “About your bakery idea.”

“What do you want to talk to me about?” His dad said as he entered the room.

Riley jumped and pulled away. Cass tried to pull him back, but Riley slipped out of his grip. Riley gave him a look. They needed to talk about Cass holding onto him against his will. Well, not against it. He loved it when Cass reeled him back in, but doing it in front of his father was inappropriate. Especially considering they were supposed to keep their relationship secret.

Riley went back to his cinnamon roll dough. “Griffin had an idea about me starting a bakery.”

Griffin launched into a sales pitch that was better than the one he’d given Riley.

Riley snuck a peek at Cass and smiled when their gazes met.

Cass winked.

When Griffin came up for air, Cass asked, “Is Danny settled?”

“Zinnie’s mothering him, so he’s fine,” Dad said and stepped closer to Riley. “What are you making?”

“Cinnamon rolls. I’ll bring some home in the morning.”

“Why not tonight?”

“I…I’m staying over at my…um…”

“My house. I’m taking him to a jock party with some of my old hockey buddies.” Griffin grabbed another muffin and then handed it to Riley. He smirked. “Can I get this one to go?”

Extortion. Great. Riley returned the smirk. “Sure.”

He wrapped the muffin in plastic. “I’ll see you later.”

Dad almost bought it. Clearly, he didn’t know if it was a lie or not. “Do you talk to any of them anymore?”

“How else would I know about the party?” Griffin headed to the back door. “See you later.”

Griffin hightailed it out of there.

Dad sighed and shook his head. “I can never tell when he’s lying.”

Cass patted Iven on the back and snorted. “Go with your gut.”

Riley didn’t contribute to the conversation. Griffin might be good at lying, but Riley wasn’t. He was also stuck in the kitchen with his dad and Cass. He couldn’t leave his dough unattended.

His dad glanced from Cass to him and back again. “My gut, huh? I don’t think the two of you want to know what that’s telling me.”

They probably didn’t.