Page 18 of Stirring Up Love
Not that she wasn’t happy for her sister, but sometimes it was hard to see her succeed when her own future was so murky. And judging by the bubbliness in Alisha’s voice, she was about to be served up anotherhelping of her sister’s success. Maybe another food journalist had interviewed her, or she’d nabbed another high-profile wedding-dessert table.
Simone set aside a stack of paperwork and slid her feet out of her shoes, kicking her stockinged feet up on the desk. “Not only am I sitting down, but you have my full and undivided attention.” None of the cooks would show up at the restaurant for at least another hour.
“Okay, check your messages; I just sent you a text.”
Expecting a link to an article, Simone swiped to her and Alisha’s thread. A selfie of her sister hugging her boyfriend, the sweeping Chicago skyline illuminating the night behind them, filled the screen, huge grins on both their faces.
“Uh, sis, I think you sent the wrong attachment. This is just you and Quentin ...” Wait a minute. She zoomed in to confirm. “And a gorgeous diamond on your finger! He already asked you to marry him?”
“Yes!” Alisha answered with an uncharacteristically high-pitched squeal, probably the same way she’d accepted Quentin’s proposal. “But hang on, what do you mean by ‘already’? You knew?”
Loving her secret role in this, Simone grinned. “How do you think he knew your ring size? But he told me he wasn’t going to do it until he got back from summer fieldwork.”
“It was a huge surprise,” Alisha said. “I said goodbye to him the night before. Thought his flight left in the morning. But then he surprised me after I closed and took me down to Lake Michigan. He said I was his forever, Sim.” If anyone knew about forever, it would be a man who dug up fossils for a living. “And a whole bunch of other super-sweet stuff I forgot the second he asked, because I was in shock.”
Simone laughed. “You picked a good one, sis.”
A successful bakery, collaborations with big names in the industry, and now a fiancé. Her sister’s life had swerved into the fast lane, while Simone’s had downshifted onto the shoulder.
Knowing this proposal was in the works was one of the reasons she’d taken the leap and applied to be onThe Executives. She’d turneddown her sister’s offer to use her huge social media following to boost Honey and Hickory’s profile because she wanted to maintain her autonomy. But she needed capital to make the changes she envisioned, or else all she’d be was a cardboard cutout standing in for Pops at the helm.
Pushing aside the unfamiliar feeling of being the one left behind, she said, “You two are so in love it gives me a cavity just being around all that sweetness, but I am beyond thrilled for y’all. Truly.”
“Thank you, Sim. I know bringing a new person into our family is a big deal—”
“A person who happens to be kind, considerate, and treats you like a treasure,” Simone said. “I couldn’t imagine a more perfect brother.” Her heart warmed at the word, jealousy forgotten. “Now, gimme all the details.”
Alisha chuckled, breathy, and Simone got the feeling her sister hadn’t taken a full inhale since last night. What would it feel like to spend forever with someone who took your breath away?
CHAPTER 8
FINN
This was a bad idea.
Finn shifted back and forth on his feet outside Simone’s booth. He’d come over to clear the air, but she wasn’t around. Probably off planning mayhem. He jammed his hands in his back pockets and peered around at the nearby tents.
On the drive here, he’d decided to confront Simone. Tell her he had no intention of backing down but that he was willing to be civil for the rest of the summer. But she was nowhere to be found. Must not have expected retaliation. Not like he planned to stoop to her level.
More likely the local vendors were her eyes and ears, watching and ready to report any sabotage. Nobody seemed to notice him, but he couldn’t shake the feeling of exposure, like the new kid in a middle school lunchroom.
His phone pinged from his pocket, and he fished it out.
Darius:
Quit stalking that woman and mind your business.
Finn glanced over his shoulder in reflex.
Finn:
I’m clearing the air, like we talked about.
Darius:
Like YOU talked about. I said it’s a bad idea. If you can’t play nice, you shouldn’t have gone back.
Finn:
