Chapter Twenty-Eight
Maggie still couldn’t believe it. Colton loved her. The words kept ringing in her ears, but she still felt like it was all some magical cupcake induced dream.
Colton loves me!
Sitting in his truck as it rambled down the bumpy road, she glanced at the man beside her. He insisted on driving her into town after their morning, ahem, celebration. She was so happy she didn’t even mind the knowing grin Dade had given them when they’d emerged from the bedroom. She knew there had been a big goofy smile on her face—still was—but she was so happy she didn’t care.
Last night, she’d feared the end of her and Colton. The end of the most wonderful relationship with the most amazing man ever. But this morning, her whole world had turned upside down.
When Colton admitted he loved her—albeit not in the most romantic way—her head didn’t want to believe it, but her heart almost burst with wanting. There was still a tiny nugget of fear inside telling her this wasn’t real, that it couldn’t last. But, it was time she started letting go of her past, letting go of the men who had hurt her, and start trusting her heart. And her heart was saying, Go for it!
As they pulled up to her shop, Colton put the truck in park and turned to face her.
“How about I come by after you close and help you pack up a few things to bring to the ranch?”
Most of her clothes had already ended up there over the past week, but if she was going to be staying full time she needed to bring the rest and a few things like her laptop and cooking supplies. The stuff at the ranch was okay, but her utensils were higher quality.
“You don’t have to, Colt. Besides, I have to get my car out there somehow.”
He leaned over to place a soft kiss to her lips. Heat rushed through her body from that small touch. Would his touch affect her like this forever? She’d bet all the cupcakes in the world it would.
“You can drive your car back, but my truck has a lot more room. We can fill it with whatever you want to bring over, and then I’ll follow you home.”
Home. It sounded so wonderful coming from his lips.
“Okay.”
His arm snaked around her waist, pulling her closer so he could nuzzle his lips across that sensitive spot that drove her wild.
“Mmmmm, you’re being so agreeable today. I like it.”
A shiver ran up and down her spine. One corner of her mouth quirked. “Yeah, well, don’t get too use to it.”
“Wouldn’t dream of it.” His words were muffled as he gave her a small love bite on her neck. “You know I love it when you get all feisty on me.”
There he went using the L word again. It was so strange to hear coming from his lips. Strange, but wonderful.
“Okay, cowboy. Cool your jets.” She pulled back, giving him a small push. “I have a business to open, and you have chores to do.”
“There’s that feistiness. Love it. And I love you.”
His sky blue eyes gazed into hers with such raw emotions she had no doubt of his words. As much as she wanted to return them, though, there was still a small part of her that held on to her past and doubted, feared saying them out loud. Instead, she placed a hand on his whiskered cheek, leaning in to deliver one scorching hot kiss.
“Now who needs to cool their jets?” he chuckled as she pulled away.
She shook her head, opening the door and hopping out of the truck. “Goodbye, Colt.”
“See ya later, Magpie.”
He waited until she unlocked the door and was secure in her shop before waving and driving away. After a morning like today, she needed two things: cupcakes and a gleeful, tell-all call to her best friend.
The cupcakes she got started on right away because she had to. She started baking the morning batch and before she knew it, time to open.
The day was busy. Everyone had found out about her visit from the blogger and wanted to know how it had gone. Jamie had the day off, so Maggie was busy baking and answering questions. She barely had time to think about Colton, but he was always there in the back of her mind.
By closing time, she was exhausted, but the thought of him coming to help her pack up her stuff to move in with him put a bounce in her step.
She’d just finished her end of day cleaning when her cell phone vibrated. Pulling it from her pocket she smiled, reading the incoming caller’s name.
“Boy, you must be psychic. I was just about to call you.”
“Call it best friend intuition.” Lizzy chuckled. “So tell me, how was the blogger? Did she just die from fantastiliciousness after eating your cupcakes?”
A laugh bubbled out of her chest. “That’s not a word.”
“Well, it should be. Come on, give me some good news.”
“Why? What’s wrong?”
She might be riding on cloud nine at the moment, but she could hear the dejection in her best friend’s voice. Lizzy was never dejected; sarcastic sure, but never dejected.
“No. I called to talk about your rousing success, not my descent into destitution.”
There was that sarcasm, but there was something real behind it. Elation momentarily forgotten, she pushed her friend. “Lizzy?”
“Oh fine! Things aren’t going great at the restaurant at the moment. Bill is pissy as hell, but not like that’s anything new.”
Bill Collins, owner of Le Central, was a high stress kind of guy. Some of the wait staff had a running pool on when the tyrannical owner was going to keel over from a heart attack. It seemed cruel, but the guy was an ass. He screamed at everyone, especially Lizzy. Every little thing seemed to set him off, even when nothing was wrong. Maggie always figured the guy got off on making people cry. It was one of the reasons she’d been willing to move to Peak Town and take over her grandmother’s shop.
A horrible thought sparked her mind. “Oh no. It’s not because of me is it? Because I left and the new guy isn’t quite up to par yet?”
A very indelicate, but Lizzy-like, snort came across the line. “First of all, I fired the new guy two days ago. The man couldn’t reach the par of a cake maker for a kiddie party place, let alone achieve your culinary status. Second, Bill always has a bug up his butt about something. You leaving was just another thing he could complain about. If you hadn’t left, he would have blamed me for the dishwasher quitting or the hostess getting poached by Antoine’s. Seriously Maggie, the guy will use any excuse to call me a shitty manager.”
“He said what!” If she wasn’t four states away, she’d go kick Bill’s pompous butt. “You should quit. He doesn’t deserve you.”
Her best friend laughed sadly. “I know, but we can’t all inherit the family business. Some of us have to take what we can get.”
Lizzy could get better, but the job market was hard. Quitting a good paying job without another on the horizon was career suicide. And there was no way the proud woman would take money from her parents. It would inevitably come with strings. Lizzy hated strings.
“Aren’t we a pair.” She let out a sad sigh. “You dealing with a jackass of a boss and me being too chicken to say—”
She cut herself off, but not fast enough.
“Whoa, what was that?”
Dammit it. She hadn’t meant to say anything. Yes, she had been going to call later and relay her giddy excitement over Colton and her stupidity at not being able to say three little words, but now it didn’t feel right. She didn’t want to brag about her amazing morning when her best friend was obviously struggling with problems. What kind of shitty friend would that make her?
“Nothing. Forget it.”
“I don’t think so, Maggie Marleen Evans.”
Why had she told Lizzy her middle name? It made her feel all of six years old when someone used it. As her friend intended, she was sure.
“You were too chicken to say what to whom?”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to bring it up. You called to talk about your problems.”
“Bill is a jackass! There, my problems are done. Your turn.”
No bullshitting with her bestie.
When she remained silent her friend prompted. “Does this chickenness have anything to do with a certain cowboy?”
She rolled her eyes. “Chickenness isn’t a word.”
“Stop avoiding the question.”
There was no stopping Lizzy when she wanted answers. It was better for everyone just to give in. “Yes, it has to do with Colton.”
“Hold on. Let me grab some ice cream. I feel this is going to be an ice cream type of conversation.”
It so was.
She heard some shuffling on the line, a freezer door open and shut. Then her friend was back.
“Okay. I’m ready. Go.”
“Elizabeth Audrey Hayworth, are you eating out of the carton?” Two could play the whole name game.
“Yes, and stop changing the subject. You, Colton, chickenness. Go!”
She sat in her desk chair and proceeded to reveal the morning that should have ended in tears, but instead made her heart soar in the clouds.
****
She stared across the street at Cupcakes Above the Clouds. Never before in her life had she been so angry. That bitch, Maggie Evans, had accused the wrong person. It was just one more thing to add to the list of why Maggie had to go. Time to force the bitch cupcake maker to leave.
Slipping her hand into the deep pocket of her coat, she fingered the .44 magnum revolver. It had been her husband’s. The only useful thing that bastard had left her after he died.
Now, it was going to fix her problems. Maggie would be leaving town tonight…one way or another.
She’d watched the shop from across the street all afternoon. The young woman had locked the door about an hour and a half ago. Not that it mattered. She’d stolen a spare key to the bakery from the upstairs apartment when she trashed it. The stupid whore never even noticed.
The streets were quiet. Everyone was heading home for the night.
It was time.
Crossing the deserted street, she kept one hand in her pocket firmly gripping her gun.
This ends tonight.
Maggie Evans had been a thorn in her side for too long. Time for that cupcake-making slut to leave. She was going to give the bitch two choices: leave Peak Town forever or stay forever.
Six feet under the town.