Page 13 of The Baby Dragon Cafe
Lavinia took some of the boxes from him, giving him a fond smile. Theo was also Lavinia’s childhood best friend—strictlyher friend, as Lavinia always said whenever Saphira asked if perhaps there was something more between them.
“What do you have for me today?” Saphira asked, excited to see what Theo had brought. There were the usual items—croissants, muffins, scones, cookies—but she wasn’t interested in those. She wanted to see whatTheohad made.
Theo was still a lowly apprentice and delivery boy at the bakery, not allowed to make things of his own for the menu yet. But Theo was really into South Asian fusion desserts. Saphira loved that, and it was perfect for her cafe. She wanted to keep desi touches in her cafe, to feel like Nani-Ma was still with her, and to hold tight to her heritage. So Saphira had struck a deal with the bakery to allow Theo to bring in one original recipe of his own every week as an exclusive for the Baby Dragon Cafe.
“Today’s special is a mini gulab jamun Bundt cake,” Theo said, opening the box to show them. The toffee-colored cakes smelled divine—cardamom and saffron—and were decorated with white icing and rose petals.
“Ooh, I love this,” Lavinia said, going to swipe one.
“Thanks, Theo,” Saphira said. “Can I get you a drink before you head out?”
“I’d kill for an iced latte,” Theo said. His gaze shifted to the espresso machine, which was largely covered with a massive “OUT OF ORDER” sign. “Oh.”
“The new one is coming in tomorrow!” Saphira told him. His face lit up.
“Nice! Go team!” He high-fived her, then stuck around the chat until the cafe officially opened, and customers began coming in, at which point Lavinia became too busy to entertain him, and so he waved goodbye.
The regular customers were equally relieved when Saphira told them the espresso drinks would be back tomorrow. They had missed their lattes and cappuccinos, but everything would be better, everything would be okay.
Saphira had come much too far to give up. As she ate a bite of the gulab jamun cake, she thought of Nani-Ma. I’ll make you proud, she promised.
Chapter 4
Saphira had just sat down for what felt like a moment at the end of the day when she saw a striking figure appear by the front door. Her pulse skyrocketed in the most ridiculous manner.
She ordered herself to calm down—he was her employer!—then stood to answer the door. The cafe was quiet and empty; all the customers had gone, and even Lavinia had left after helping Saphira close. Her legs ached as she walked over. They were sore from standing and running around all day.
But when she opened the door, a burst of energy shot through her, like she’d downed a shot of espresso from the yet-to-arrive machine. She tried to tell herself it was from seeing the baby dragon, and not his rider.
“Sparky!” Saphira said with enthusiasm. The baby dragon perked up; he was happy to see her as well, which only made her happier. He recognized her and her cafe.
He lit up when Saphira smiled.
Aiden gave the baby dragon in his arms a look of disbelief. “I swear he was just hissing at me two seconds ago,” Aiden said, glowering.
Saphira bit back a laugh. “Come in,” she said, scratching Sparky’s black scales.
After Saphira closed the door behind them, she held her hands out for Sparky, wondering if he would come to her.
Sparky responded by leaping out of Aiden’s arms and jumping straight into hers, with such a force that her feet faltered. Aiden reached a hand out to steady her, his touch light at her elbow, and an electric current ran through
her.
Her cheeks felt warm. She avoided looking at Aiden, then, turning her full attention to Sparky: “Hello my little golu-molu, how are you?”
Sparky cooed, clearly delighted to be smothered with affection. Saphira risked a peek at Aiden, who was watching with an amused expression on his face.
“What?” she asked.
“Sparky isn’t used to this kind of treatment,” Aiden replied.
“It’s what he deserves! My little cutie-pie.” Saphira spoke in her babiest baby-voice, which she suddenly realized might have been weird. She stopped, glancing at Aiden, but he didn’t look freaked out—only vaguely entertained.
Saphira still couldn’t read him well; he was stoic and severe. Actually, he came off as a bit harsh because he was so quiet, while she was so loud, but if she looked closely, she was starting to catch the little subtleties of his expression: a crinkle around his eyes, a laugh line by his mouth.
And for some reason, Saphira was looking quite closely.
She convinced herself it was decidedlynotbecause of how distractingly handsome he was, but because she wanted to be a good trainer for his baby dragon. However, at the same time,it did feel important to acknowledge just how gorgeous he was because, wow …
