Single Dad Baker: A Second Chance Romance Series (Book 1) Read online

  “We will have an early night tonight, okay pumpkin?”

  Dana agreed and I went outside to wait with her. The customers knew that I would be back soon, but that didn’t stop them from helping themselves while I was outside. I didn’t mind too much, but I was almost always out of coffee when I got back in.

  It was a little while later when I was coming out of the back with a tray of muffins, that I saw a familiar face. It was the same one that had surprised me so much yesterday, but now I saw that she was just as breathtaking as before. She was going to give me a heart attack, popping up like that.

  “So, I see that you’re hiring?”

  I hadn’t even thought about that when I had saw her yesterday. Unfortunately, all I could think about then, was how damn good she looked and what she would look like, without her clothes on. Nothing about hiring her.

  “Do you need a job?”

  She shrugged. “I guess I do. There aren’t all that many opportunities here in Coloma, now are there?”

  I chuckled and shook my head that there wasn’t. “No, I guess not. Can you bake?”

  Belle crinkled her nose up and I had a feeling that she hadn’t baked anything in all of her life. She was the sort of woman that had fake nails and makeup on before eight o clock in the morning. It was hard to imagine that she would be the type now to work. She must have had quite a fall, coming back here to work at my bakery.

  “I have done a little bit with it. I think it will be fine. It’s just little cakes and stuff, right? I am really good at French pastries. Cream puffs are my specialty.”

  I smiled at her, because there was no better answer than the one that she had just given me. I wanted to believe that she was here for a reason. Maybe it wasn’t for my sexual conquest. Maybe it was to take over the position that seemed impossible to fill.

  “You’re hired.”

  “Really!?”

  “Yes, like you said. Coloma is a small town and there isn’t a lot of opportunity.”

  She frowned for a minute like I had taken the air out of her sails. I felt like I had said something wrong, I just wasn’t sure what.

  “Well, when would you like me to start boss?”

  I told her that she could start today or tomorrow. Most of the baking was already done for the day or at least the dough was. I was going to need a little time to come to grips with what had just happened. Maybe I hadn’t thought it through. I needed help, but I had a feeling that Bella was going to be a bigger distraction than anything else.

  “Well, I can start right now if you want me to.”

  I looked at the tank top and the short shorts that she was wearing. I wasn’t going to be able to concentrate if she was dressed like that. I said something about a dress code, and she frowned.

  “Are you telling me that I have to wear one of those shirts?”

  I agreed, but then also commented on longer pants.

  “There is a lot of hot stuff in here Bella. I don’t want you to get burned.”

  She didn’t seem to like the new rules, but agreed. “I will have to find something stuffier I suppose. I will start in the morning then. I have to go shopping. What time do you want me here?”

  I told her what time I got here in the morning and I could tell that she wasn’t expecting it to be that early. In my defense, we always started this early, or we wouldn’t be done and closed by five in the afternoon.

  “It’s the hours that I need. If you can’t do it, I can understand. It’s really early.”

  “No, it’s not that. I just wasn’t expecting that time, that’s all.”

  “Well, just come on in tomorrow and I will put you to work. You don’t know how long I have been looking for someone to fill the position.”

  “I am glad to have been able to fill it for you.”

  “Indeed.”

  I looked her up and down, unable to keep my eyes off of her long legs that were shown off with the shorts. She was going to be interesting to work with, that much was clear to me. Customers started to trail in for the breakfast rush and I told her I would see her tomorrow. I needed to focus right now and the way she was looking, Bella was nothing but a distraction.

  She thanked me again and was gone before I knew it. Her perfume was still in the air and I was able to breathe fully again. This woman was going to be the death of me, I was sure of it. I was feeling something more for Bella, an old familiarity that I liked very much. Bella had me wondering if it was finally time to move on. Maybe it was time for me to find myself a girlfriend, or I could just use the one that had dropped in my lap.

  4

  Bella

  I hadn’t gone to the bakery to get a job. I had gone there, so that I could get my bag that I had left in the back of his truck. While I did need a job, I was still a bit surprised that I had agreed to the one that was offered. I wasn’t into baking. I was a singer, not a baker, but there wasn’t a singing gig in Coloma. They were lucky to have a juke box at the bar, which was the only establishment that even played music.

  When I was leaving though, I realized that it was a good thing. I needed a job, badly and now that I had one, the stress that I didn’t even know was on my shoulders, was now gone. I didn’t have to worry about how it was all going to turn out. I had a job, which meant that soon I could move from my parent’s place and I could start my life back over.

  Getting home, I found that my cousin Angie was over. I hadn't seen her in a while, and I knew from the look on my mother's face, that she had called her over.

  “It's so good to see you Bella! I was wondering if you were ever going to come back home.”

  My mother introjected, telling Angie that of course her baby was going to come home. My mom had been trying to get me home for the past seven years. It did not seem like anything had changed.

  “I know it’s been a while, but I wanted to live it up in LA.”

  “And did you?”

  I was about to say something, then thought against it. There was a lot my mother didn’t know about, and I certainly wasn’t going to spill the beans in front of her. There were some things that she didn’t need to know.

  “I will tell you about it later.” I glanced over at mom and Angie got the hint.

  “So, what’s new with you Angie? I hear that you got married to Donald Hignett.”

  “Yes, I did.”

  She showed me a ring on her finger, and I could see that my red-headed cousin was happy. She looked like she was glowing and though I had never liked Don, I knew that she was happy, so that was all that mattered.

  “We have a lot of catching up to do Angie. Why don’t we go down to the lake, soak and get some sun? Then you can tell me how in the world, you ended up with Don.”

  Angie smiled and agreed. We did have a lot to talk about and I was thankful that she was willing to go with. I didn’t want my mother Caroline, to hear about my adventures, or about Billy, the man that changed everything and made me realize that coming home was the only way.

  After getting some towels together, me and Angie got our flipflops on and walked down to the beach. It was one of the only good things about Coloma. There were several freshwater lakes and rivers, which made any sort of waterplay easy and fun to do. I was trying to get back into the groove and getting back to the beach with my cousin, was always a good way to go about that.

  “So, are you going to tell me why you are really here?”

  We were a few blocks from Smitty beach, and I was finally able to speak, without mom finding out about my time in California.

  “I was just tired of being there. I had a boyfriend that was a real jerk and if I didn’t leave, I think he would be the type that would stalk me and track me down. He was never going to let me go, so I had to leave.”

  Her brows went up and she pushed the red hair back from her face. Finally, she gave up and started to pull it back with a hair tie.

  “You had one of those boyfriends, huh?”

  Angie knew all about it. She had dated Jeremy whe
n she was a senior and that had not ended well. Jeremy had been bossy from the get-go, but slowly, he had taken on a controlling role that was stifling and it had been hard for Angie to leave him. I hated to admit that even watching her go through it, begging her to leave him for months, I found myself in the same position.

  “Yeah, I did.”

  “How long?”

  “Too long. It was almost three years.”

  She shook her head and I know that it was bringing back her own memories.

  “Yeah, that’s way too long. I wish I would have been there to get you to leave sooner. Like you did for me. If you wouldn’t have been around for all of that, I may have still been with him, had children…”

  I saw a chill run through her, and I wanted to get off the subject. “So, tell me about Don. How did that happen?”

  The expression on her face changed immediately. I wanted to get her back to smiling and it would have appeared that he was the key. Whoever Don had turned out to be, he was perfect for Angie and I could see it written across her face. I felt just a tiny pang of jealousy. I couldn’t help myself. I couldn’t help but wonder if I was ever going to look and feel that way about someone else. I wanted to believe that I could. One day.

  The water wasn’t as clear as the ocean I was used to swimming in, but the muddy bottom was more normal for me. It brought back all of the summers that we spent squishing our feet in the best sand that you could find in Michigan. It was almost as good as the coastline, almost. If I closed my eyes and floated on the top of it, the water drowning out the sounds, I could have imagined that I was right where I was supposed to be. Nothing had changed. My life hadn’t blown up.

  Then reality set back in and I was bumped by Angie. She was trying to get my attention. I looked over at her, squinting in the sun.

  “What’s up?”

  “Look who it is.”

  I looked towards the two people walking up to the pier and all I could see was hard muscles. There was a tattoo across the man’s chest, as well as on both biceps. He was tanned, toned and hot as hell. I was going to scold Angie for bothering me, but this was worth it.

  The guy had a little girl with him, less than ten I would guess. It was only when he got closer on the pier, that I realized who it was.

  “Fuck.”

  I turned around and started swimming away from the pier. I felt like I was going to die. I was sitting there, practically drooling and to find out it was Jack, was hard to come to terms with. Of course, it would be Jack. What was he doing here?

  “What’s wrong?”

  “That’s my new boss.”

  “The baker?”

  I sighed out loud and shook my head, looking back at the man with the rock-hard abs and knowing smile.

  “Yeah, the fucking baker.”

  She giggled a bit, though I wasn’t finding much to be happy about. I couldn’t believe that he was here, and it felt weird to see him when he was supposed to be at work. I wasn’t supposed to see him like this. How was I supposed to work with him, knowing that he was hiding all of that underneath his clothes?

  “Damn, I should change jobs.”

  “You’re married, remember?”

  She agreed, but only reluctantly and not before she didn’t get another long look at Jack. I didn’t like her looking at him like that, though everyone that was around and female, was doing just that. He was a work of art.

  “I am married Bella, but that doesn’t mean that I am blind.”

  I shook my head and then asked her if there was another way out of the water. I couldn’t see him right now. I had borrowed a bathing suit from Angie and my top felt like it was going to pop out. The little red bikini was going to draw too much attention. It was something that I wanted when I first got here, but not from Jack. He already thought I’d been throwing myself at him for years, which I had. Things were different now. I told myself after Billy, that I wasn’t going to get tangled up with another man like him and like Jack. They knew that the world wanted them, and that confidence morphed into cockiness that I didn’t want to deal with.

  “Where are you going, are stuff is that way?”

  I was swimming to one of the docks by the beach. Several of the houses had private docks. They wouldn’t take too kindly to it, but there was no way that I could face him. Not like this. Not when he had a kid with him, and he was looking so unlike a baker. No baker should look like that.

  “I can’t see Jack like this. Will you go get the stuff?”

  Angie was smiling and I had a feeling that she was going to make it worse than it had to be. I wanted to tell her that there was nothing to be done about it, but there was. I could have gotten the courage and got it myself, but she finally relented, so that I didn’t have to.

  “Fine, but you owe me. You weren’t the only one that went to school with him.”

  Yes, we both did, but she knew dang well, that I was the one that had been crushing on him, since I started to like boys. Jack had always been the one for me and that sentiment was hard to push aside, now that he looked even more like a god.

  I pulled myself up and my top had to be retightened. I could see Angie getting our things from the dock. It wasn’t that far away, but it was far enough that I didn’t have to hear what was said between the two of them.

  Whatever it was, I saw them looking my way and then waving. I had to wave back. Even worse, they were motioning me over. I decided right then and there, that I was going to kill my favorite cousin. She was now living on borrowed time.

  5

  Jack

  To say that Bella had grown up, was an understatement. Bella had the body of a goddess and even from the distance I was looking at her now, I knew that to be true. She had long legs and a huge rack. With every step that she took to get closer, I could see the bathing suit top, fighting to do its job. How badly I wanted something to break and for the creamy breasts to fall forward. I had to know that it would be the greatest thing I’d ever seen.

  When she got closer, I got a good enough show that I didn’t even need to consider the rest. She just looked that good and my mouth was dry by the time Bella got to us.

  “Where are you running off to stranger?”

  “No where. It’s just getting late. I would think that bakery would be open.”

  “Lost power in town and at the school. Went and picked up my daughter and with no air conditioning, the lake seemed like the place to be.”

  She was barely looking at me, but she had licked her lips twice, like she was nervous. I really liked to think that it was because of me standing there. I was trying not to be so obvious about checking her out. My only saving grace was the sunglasses that hid my roaming eyes.

  “Yes well, it was good to see you. We have to be going.”

  Angie smirked at Bella, but Bella was not finding anything funny about the situation. She had taken the towel away from her friend and she was wrapping it around her waist. It hid the long legs and thick ass that I had been admiring, but it still left much for me to take in. Maybe more than enough.

  “Are you sure? It’s such a pretty day.”

  Bella shook her head and moved back like she wanted to make some space. She wasn’t throwing herself on me now, though I would have prayed that she would. Now I wanted her to. I wanted her badly and nothing was going to keep me from wanting her.

  “Yes, we have to go, don’t we Angie?”

  Angie grinned and said something about not minding staying a little while longer. I thought that Bella may hit her right then and there. She was not happy with the answer given and I was finding it all amusing. Dana was already in the water with some kids she knew from school and wasn’t paying us any attention.

  “Stay for a while Bella. At least dry off a bit. I was about to lay out. You can join me and tell me how California was. I don’t know if I will ever get out there, at least not for a while.”

  I didn’t leave much room to say no and I got the answer that I was looking for. I knew that she did
n’t want to be in the situation with me, but I was pushing it. I had to. There was no other way for me to be. I saw something I wanted, and I did what was necessary to get it. I could have any woman I wanted and now, I wanted Bella. Why hadn’t I saw all of this before?

  We laid out the towels in the sand by the water’s edge and I could see that Bella was nervous. She was babbling about how much she missed the water, but I think it was more to get my attention away from her. I know that I wasn’t thinking straight. I didn’t want to believe that she was able to either.

  “So how was California?”

  Bella shrugged. “It was okay. Pretty beaches, but a lot more people. Though, you don’t run into people much out there.”

  I grinned. “Was it really so bad to run into me here?”

  “Honestly?”

  “Of course.”

  “I was trying to get away without running into you. We have to work together, and we have a past that I would like to forget Jack. Seeing you like this, is not helping.”

  I liked that she finally stole a look and I could see that she liked what it was that she saw. I would have thought that I would have been able to ignore the looks, I got them all the time. But it was different when it came from her. Bella was shyly checking me out and it was endearing. Most women were more straightforward, but it really took the hunting out of the game. It was by far, one of my favorite parts.

  “I think it is helping loads. There used to be a time when you would have desired my advances.”

  She almost immediately looked down and if I didn't know any better, I would say that she was blushing. It was strange to see a woman as old as Bella, that couldn't look me in the eye after saying something. It was rather innocent.

  “That was a long time ago. I was younger than and I didn't know any better.”

  “Ouch. Are you saying that you know better now?”