Page 90 of The Cupcake Standard

“Um, just give me a second, guys.” I hurried after him, the captain’s hat dangling from my fingers.

Derek leaned with one hand against the wall in the hallway, his back to me.

“Hey, Derek, you okay?” When there was no response, I edged my way around to see his face.

He didn’t look at me. Just uttered one word, a deep, guttural question. “Why?”

The raw emotion caught me off guard. “What do you mean?”

As he straightened up, his gaze zeroed in on me with an intensity that stole my breath away. “Why did you do this, Avery?” He took a step closer, searching every inch of my face. “Why would my fake girlfriend go through the trouble of throwing me a surprise party on her birthday?” Another step, his voice edged with a desperation that cut through all my walls, all my bullshit. “I need to know why.”

And it was time for me to stop pretending. Our games were done, especially in the face of his rawness. This moment mattered, my reason mattered, and he was asking me if it was real, if we were real. He deserved the truth, no matter how open, how vulnerable it left me. “Because I care about you, Derek. More than I should.” It was as much as I could give him.

He let out a breath, his broad shoulders moving down a full inch.

I reached up to touch his cheek. “I know we have a lot to talk about, starting with what’s really going on between us. But no matter what else this is, you are first and foremost my friend.”

My thumb ran along his strong jaw. “That room in there is full of people who love you, people you have touched and protected and helped. People who see you every day, just like I do. You’re not invisible, Derek. Not to us. I wanted to show you that the moment Yolanda sent the picture of you and the Three Musketeers on your birthday.” I wrinkled my nose. “You looked like you’d just eaten a snail. And, I thought, no one should have a party that bad.”

“So you threw me a birthday party?”

My smile was soft, tentative.

“On your birthday.” His lips twitched, trying to hide his amusement.

But I could read between the lines, and my smile grew in response. “I was told I had to be cunning because you’re way too good at spoiling surprises.”

He rested his forehead against mine. “Well, you certainly surprised me.”

I pulled the captain’s hat from behind my back. “C’mon, Captain. We’re celebrating you tonight.” Using my worst pirate accent, which wasn’t much better than my best, I said, “Or I’ll make ya walk the plank.”

The look he gave me was tender and full of something I was scared to name. “Avery, promise me we’ll talk tonight. I got us a room—”

“Yeah, I told Liam to tell you to do that. Good job for listening.” I shot him a patronizing grin.

He stayed serious. “I didn’t bring your present here. I wanted to give it to you in private. Promise? We’ll talk later?”

I touched my lips to his, ignoring the flutter of worry in my stomach. “I promise. Now, let’s go party.” Our second entrance garnered just as much attention as the first, so I kept it light. “Sorry about that, guys. He wanted to thank me privately.” I tapped the brim of his captain’s hat, smirking as the jokes poured in. The tour of the bar was next, explaining the twenty-one theme and giving credit to all my helpers.

We made him start the line for the food, and he thanked Patty for all her hard work, especially the ravioli. We sat down at one of the tables, but everyone kept coming over to say happy birthday, hug him, introduce themselves to me. His smile never dimmed, and his hand never left my waist. Liam kept bringing him small samples of the whiskeys, hoping maybe he’d fit all twenty-one tastes in without getting trashed.

I’d just finished dessert when Rhonda breezed in.

“Hi, Ave.” She air-kissed my cheek, then stepped back to look at me. “We did a damn fine job on that dress, didn’t we? And happy birthday!”

Derek stared at her skeptically.

She placed a hand on his arm, turning to him with a similar megawatt smile. “Happy birthday to you too, big brother. I’m sorry I’m late.”

He rolled his eyes. “Yeah, we all know how you like to make an entrance.”

The smirk on her face nearly masked the hurt in her eyes, but I caught its flicker before she hid it completely. “This time it wasn’t all my fault. Your gift came with a little something extra.” She moved aside, flinging a hand to the wide-open door. “Your birthday present.”

A brick wall of a man strode in, a huge grin splitting his face. Derek lit up like a kid at Christmas.

Rhonda chuckled. “Roy Cobalt, meet the birthday boy, Derek Elgin.”

Derek said nothing as he stared at his favorite quarterback, just gaped until the man was right in front of him. Then Derek shoved back his chair, standing up to eagerly shake Roy’s hand. “What? How?” he stammered.

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