Page 2 of One-of-a-Kind Bride

He smiled. “I know. Maybe you would if you tried it more.”

“If I say yes, what’s your promise to me?”

“Um…what if I…uh, make you something from my dad’s shop? Something out of wood?”

“You’d promise that? What would you make?”

“I promise to make you a…a little treasure box.”

“Really? Wow! I’ll write these down.” She would love that. Taylor picked up her pen and wrote out the promises on two pieces of paper. “All done. Thanks, Coop.”

“Hey, wait a minute. How am I going to know if you kept your promise to me?”

“I’ll send you pictures and then when I come back next summer, you can ask my mother.” Taylor rolled up the two papers. She wasn’t happy about having to eat peanut butter. Yuck. But once a week wasn’t so bad, and Coop didn’t say howmuchpeanut butter had to be in the sandwich. “Let’s hide them under the gazebo.”

Coop grabbed the papers and ran down the steps first. He searched for a place at the back of the gazebo. “This board is loose,” he said, wiggling the wood free. “We can put the papers under here. It’s a good spot.”

“Yeah, nobody will ever find them here.”

Coop tossed the two papers inside, under the gazebo floor, and then put the board back in place. He rose and smiled at her. She smiled back. She was glad Cooper wanted to play this promise game.

It made going home a little easier.

She was going to miss Last Stand.

And Coop and Julie most of all.

Chapter One

This was thebiggest day in Taylor’s life, in recent memory that was.

And the morning called for coffee. She crossed the street, fighting heavy winds, one hand clutching her oversized design briefcase, the other reaching for Coffee Corner’s doorknob. New York never did anything on a small scale so when a gigantic gust pushed her inside the coffee house she hung on for dear life and came to a quick stop when the door closed behind her. It was warm inside and homey, the aroma of freshly brewed coffee helping to calm her nerves.

“Look what the wind blew in,” Melanie said from behind the counter, her smile wide.

“Literally, right? I thought it was supposed to be spring.”

“Apparently, the Big Apple didn’t get the memo. So, today’s the day, Taylor. Are you excited?”

“Jitteryis a better word.” Taylor removed her coat, set down her briefcase and shook out her hair. This morning she’d spiral curled it and spent extra time with her makeup, hoping to make a good impression with the design executives at Boutique Bridal. Too bad downtown weather wasn’t cooperating. The wind had gobbled up her curls and spit the strands out into an unruly mess.

“Well, I’ve got your sustenance ready. Two hot vanilla lattes and sweet treats.”

“The cinnamon rolls look amazing, but I think I’m too nervous to eat.” She grabbed one of the lattes and wrapped her hand around the cup. Soothing heat seeped into her fingers as she blew away steam and took a sip.

“Take them to Simone along with her latte,” Mel said. “And your other coworkers. On me. To celebrate your new designs.”

“That’s sweet of you, Mel. But I can’t—”

“Tut, tut, tut,” Mel said, her polite way of shutting her up. “You can. And you will.” She shrugged. “That’s what you get for being my best customer and friend. You didn’t abandon me when they built that giant-sized coffeehouse that shall remain nameless across the street.”

“I promised you, didn’t I? Besides your coffee is better and so are your pastries.”

“Your promise goes a long way. Don’t think I don’t know that you’ve sent customers my way. I really appreciate it, Taylor. More than you know.”

Melanie’s business had dropped off by fifty percent when the competition opened its doors.

Taylor had given her a promise and she’d been supporting her coffee shop ever since. “You deserve it.”

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