Page 138 of The Spare

Her eyes narrow. "I'm quite confident."

He chucks her under her chin, making her nose scrunch. "Just as sweet as ever," Dad says playfully. He steps back, turning and gesturingan arm towards us. "I want you to meet my family. This is my daughter, Melody, and her new husband, Mason."

Charayl's brows go up, and she side-eyes Dad before stepping forward and holding out her hand to Mason and me.

"H-Hello," I say shyly, shaking her hand and then tucking a lock of hair behind my ear. "I was sort of here for an application…"

She turns her face from me dismissively, looking at Dad. "You didn't tell me you had a daughter, Maximus," she says in an accusatory tone. "You've been coming to me for almosteight years now.What else are you hiding from me?" Her eyes dart around quickly. "And where's your people that you usually roll with?"

She's perceptive, and tough. Damn.

Dad laughs and crosses his arms. "I just wanted to have a bit of privacy with my family today. Is that alright with you, my dear?"

She rolls her eyes before putting them to me and looks me up and down. Though she looks as sweet as her shop, goosebumps erupt along my skin at how intimidating she is.

"Melody, go behind the counter, snag a brownie, and eat it. When you're done, go to the back and bake me a creme bruleé." she says in a no-nonsense voice, her eyes turning sharp. My brows rise, and I toss a look to Dad, who's reached for a menu off a table, only to have it snatched up by Charayl who tsks at him and scrunches her nose. "Are you kidding me, Max? Don't be so fucking insulting.I know what you order."

I huff a little laugh, unsure. Tightening my lips when she shoots me another sharp look and just stares. Her eyes are eerie, making my toes curl."Did you hear me?"she asks, blinking.

I jerk, shoving my purse to Mason who's pulled out a chair next to Dad and made himself comfortable.

Winding through the customers, I head to the front of the store, and slip behind the counter. The clerks spare me exactly one glance as I walk to the little sink and wash my hands before grabbing a little piece of wax paper, reaching in and grabbing a brownie. I step to the side, and watch as the customers flood in, filling each of the three registers at least ten people deep.

The first bite I take almost floors me it's so luscious, and I know right then and there why she had me do this. If I can't deliver at this level, then there's no point in even trying. Despite the sweetness in my mouth, I feel sick. I've only made creme bruleé one time, and that was a year ago.

Fuck.

"Okay, I can do this." I whisper, swallowing the last bite and heading through the steel door that leads to the massive kitchen, finding an apron and pulling my hair back. Not one of the at least twenty women moving around the bakery kitchen blinks at my presence, and I grab a huge mixing bowl and make myself at home.

Two hours later I got the job with a sixty thousand dollar a year salary.

Wow.

Chapter forty-three

I Need You

"I can't believe I got the job!"Melody whoops as she steps out into the night air. Max and I both laugh as her joy is infectious.

She talks our ears off about it the entire drive home, wondering what all she's going to start off baking. Her first day is Monday next week. She goes on and on and on from the backseat, her face lit up in the light of her cell as she no doubt looks up recipes on her phone. Sure enough, a YouTube video begins to play with a technique on how to make a rum soaked cake with a complicated sounding filling.

Thankfully Maximus keeps her occupied because I'm slowly being cooked to death in the driver's seat. Getting uncomfortably hotter one degree at a time until I'm in a oven of red-hot lust with seemingly no relief in sight. I swallow thickly against my dry throat, not even sure I could talk if I wanted to.

One thing I've noticed, Maximus is a very patient man. He's patient about everything. Driving, holding a conversation. He moves with ease through the world, a man unbothered.

I don't share these characteristic traits.

So, I gun it a lot faster than I normally would. Because I need to fuck her.

"Make love to me?"she'd asked earlier in the day, and it's been way too long since her request.

What if she doesn't remember? So yes, I've got to get us home.

We pull onto Maximus' property in record time, and I jump out into the cool night air, ignoring his quizzical look at me as I round the car to their side and open her door. Pulling her out.

"Goodnight, Max," I call over my shoulder, pulling her along with me, still droning on about some recipe.

As soon as we make it to our bedroom I close and lock the door and take her phone, tossing it onto the dresser and slanting my mouth over hers, ceasing her talking with a deep kiss.