Page 74 of Sweet Surrender
“Absolutely,” he replied, kissing her forehead.
“I warn you, it’s a beginner’s class so don’t get too excited about what we’re baking,” she said, nibbling her lip nervously.
He passed her an apron. “Sweetheart, I’m going to love it, no matter how easy it is because I get to do it with you.”
She smiled back at him, taking the apron and then her expression shuttered slightly.
“Everything okay?”
“Yeah, I just don’t want to get confused about what we’re doing here,” she said, pulling the apron on but struggling to tie the strings at her back and he desperately tried to ignore that it saidKiss the Chef. He knew what she meant. The lines felt like they were blurring but he knew that although he wanted to explore what he was feeling, he had to accept that she didn’t. He took hold of her strings and spun her around, tying them.
“I’m not confused, I know what I want.” He nipped the back of her neck and a soft sigh slipped from her. “And I want to beat that couple in front,” he added, trying to keep the mood light and not wanting to spoil the evening. She laughed and shoved him away.
He put his apron on, his reading,I Cook As Good As I Look.Taylor read the apron then her eyes ran over him, scorching, and he tried desperately to think of something else, he didn’t want his apron tenting out in front of everyone.
A petite woman with dark hair and cherub cheeks came to the front of the class. “Hello lovers! I’m Cathy and welcome to Baking for Beginners!” She cheered and the other couples clapped, except for the one in front of them. Beau caught Taylor’s stare and they rolled their eyes then stifled a laugh.
“Today we’re going to be making a classic Victoria sponge cake along with six raspberry and white chocolate cupcakes.”
“Fuck yes,” Beau murmured, and Taylor snorted next to him.
“The couple with the best bakes will win two free spots in the intermediate class,” Cathy added and there was a chorus ofoohs.
“Is this bringing out your competitive edge?” Taylor hissed.
“Absolutely, I need you to bring your sassy A-game because we’re gonna be trash-talking Romeo and Juliet in front.”
She snorted. The sound warmed him, he loved making her laugh, always had. Cathy ran through what to do first and then they were let loose.
“Hand me the cupcake tin,” Taylor said.
“Which one is that?”
“It’s cute that you’re pretending you don’t already know but cut the macho bullshit because we need to win,” she snapped and the couple in front turned to stare at them. Taylor smiled at them sweetly, and the couple spun back around, bumping into each other, and knocking their tins flying with a resoundingclang. As they scrabbled around trying to pick them up they bumped their foreheads together and started arguing.
Beau put his fist in his mouth to stop from laughing. “That’s my girl.”
They worked closely together, dividing up the tasks, watching as the other couples devolved into arguments that would definitely carry on when they got home that night.
“I don’t know about you but I’m feeling pretty smug right now,” Taylor murmured.
“I know. We’ve got this, I believe in you,” he replied.
“Do you think that’s too much sugar?” Taylor asked. He peered over her shoulder. Tendrils of red hair that had long escaped the messy knot on her head now stuck to her neck. Without realizing what he was doing, he clamped his hand around her neck and dug his thumb in, massaging the tissue.
The moan that slipped from her lips was downright carnal, causing another couple to stare at them. The man in front saw what Beau was doing and the effect it was having and tried to copy him. But when he grabbed his partner, she dropped the cake batter all over the work surface, ruining it and then another argument escalated.
“I think we’re showing everyone up,” Taylor giggled.
“Good,” he replied gruffly, possessiveness clawing his chest. He kissed the back of her neck and had the satisfaction of watching goosebumps rise on her skin. “Perfect amount of sugar,” he said then stepped away, hiding his tented apron as best as possible.
A little while later they were putting the finishing touches on both cakes. Another domestic broke out with a third couple, and Taylor and Beau didn’t even pretend they weren’t watching.
“Definitely going to continue that fight when they get home,” Taylor murmured.
“I feel like Cathy needs to have a Singles’ baking class for all the couples that break up in this one. I forgot how much fun we had people watching,” Beau smiled.
“Okay, I’m done with frosting, what do you think?” Taylor said. He came up behind her, her usual scent of cinnamon combined with sugar making his mouth water. He looked down and saw she had piped adorable little love hearts on the cupcakes. He rested his arms either side of her against the workstation, bracketing her in.
