Page 75 of Spicy or Sweet

She hugs him, and his face softens as he hugs her back, making him look ten years younger.

“This is incredible. You did good,” he tells her when they break apart, and her face lights up.

“Thank you.” She wraps her arm around my waist, almost like she needs to steady herself.

Nico clears his throat, looking at his shoes. “I made you something. Both of you.” He reaches into a bag I hadn’t noticed and pulls out a carved wooden boat. “Shay told me about your picnic on the boat—she sent me a couple of pictures, and I thought it’d be a nice memory for the two of you to have,” he adds, shifting uncomfortably.

The boat is maybe ten inches at the most, and I gasp as I take in the details. Two figures, sitting across from each other, with a tiny cat sitting between them. How he’s managed to make everything so clear and detailed when it’s so small, I have no idea.

“That is… Holy shit. I don’t even know what to say.” I shake my head in disbelief at how beautiful the carving is. It’s wild that such a large man who looks like he wrestles bears for fun created something so perfect, so delicate.

“It’s amazing, Nico. You really do blow me away,” Shay says, sounding a little choked up.

“Thank you,” I tell him, as he presses the boat into my hands. “It’s… Wow.”

“It’s nothing,” he says, and I get the feeling he might turn around and bolt if we don’t wrap things up.

Shay must notice too, because she changes the subject. “Do you want to come in and get something to eat and drink? I know it’s busy, so it’s totally fine if not. I can bring something out for you.”

“No, I want to see it. I’ll be fine.” He squares his shoulders, and Shay blinks, surprised.

“Alright. Well, after you.” Nico walks on ahead, and I breathe a sigh of relief when Rora and my uncle Henry meet him bythe door. I know they probably know him better than anyone in town, besides Shay.

I start to follow, but Shay holds me back.

“Hey. Can we just stay here for a second?” she asks. “I feel like I haven’t had time to take it all in.”

“I know, right? It’s so busy. A good busy, though,” I add, wrapping my arms around her and resting my chin on her head.

“A very good busy.”

We both stare up at the shop sign, quietly taking it all in.

“Who would’ve thought,” I murmur. “You and me.”

“Me and you. We build something pretty amazing,mon délice,”she says, and I know she’s not just talking about the bakery.

“I love you, sweetheart. I’m so happy we get to do this together. I’m so happy we get to have a life together.”

She turns in my arms so she can stand on her tiptoes to kiss me. “Me too. I love you so much.” She takes a deep breath. “Okay. Let’s head back in there.”

We walk hand in hand back into the bakery, our bakery, and I glance up at the sign one last time as we pass under it:

SPICY OR SWEET