Page 127 of Royal Icing
The gray sky was fading to black, and the wind was bitterly cold when Emma ducked out the door onto the streets of downtown Brooklyn. The smell of urine was strong on the sidewalk, and her eyes watered as she kicked half a dozen pieces of trash on her way to the crosswalk. It couldn’t have been more different than the curving cobblestone streets of Lynoria. She adjusted the blanket on her mother’s lap and headed for the subway station.
This was supposed to be the most magical time of the year. Christmas Eve was in two days, and although she and her mom had resumed their daily celebrations, it didn’t feel the same as it used to. Like someone had put a crappy sepia-toned filter on her world and the colors were stubbornly muted.
Leo’s groundbreaking would be held on Christmas Eve. And she wouldn’t even be there to see the start of the project that had nearly cost him everything.
“Let’s take a detour,” she said to her mom, who agreed.
Without a firm plan, they went down an elevator and boarded a train in the opposite direction from home. She could recapture the Christmas spirit.
They exited in Bay Ridge, and her mother gasped. “Dyker Heights? We haven’t been in years.”
“I thought it might be nice.”
Emma’s hands were frozen by the time the blaze of Christmas lights appeared on the horizon. The neighborhood decorated to the nines every year. They pushed their way through a throng of people shivering in the cold. Inflatable Santas bobbed on balconies. Trees drooped beneath netsof flashing red-and-green lights. Children stared in awe at glittering reindeer and ten-foot-tall nutcrackers. It was Christmas in New York at its merriest and most spectacular. It was beautiful and temporary, just like one of her cakes.
So why didn’t it feel right?
New York had everything she needed.
You know what Lynoria didn’t have? Korean food. Corn dogs. Broadway. The Met. The only feasible market for her business. Not to mention an expansive public transportation system, some of which was even ADA compliant.
Tension was building in her body, and it grew with each elaborately decorated house.
“Are you okay, sweetheart?” Lisa asked. “If we go any faster, we’re going to mow down a Santa.”
Emma pulled to a stop. “I…I don’t know.”
Her mom twisted to look at her. “It’s okay if it doesn’t feel like it used to. That’s the thing about new experiences. They tend to reframe everything.”
“What if I want to do more than just bake cakes?” she blurted. “I could do more. Be more. Help people. But I can’t just abandon my plan.”
Lisa smiled. “It’s okay to change your mind. You should trust the part of you that wants to grow and change.”
“But I’m scared, Mom.”
“That’s how you know it’s the right decision. Growth is terrifying. Admitting you want more, deserve better. You know how hard it was for me to leave your father.”
“I know.”
“It was the hardest thing I’ve ever done. We lost our home, our family unit. But that decision, while it felt impossible, opened up the most wonderful years of my entire life. Watching you grow into this remarkable young woman despite everything I put you through as a child?—”
Emma sniffed. “It wasn’t you, Mom.”
“But I didn’t leave. Not soon enough. I’ll carry that guilt around with me for the rest of my life.” She stroked a hand over the part of the coat covering Emma’s scar. “You are braver and more capable than you know. Don’t wait to do the big, scary thing. Tell Leo how you’re feeling.”
“What if he doesn’t feel the same way?”
“There’s only one way to find out.”
CHAPTER FIFTY
LEO
“Friends.Countrymen. I want to thank you all for joining me today as we dedicate this spot to a new chapter in Lynorian history.”
Leo stood on a small platform in front of the vacant lot that would now—officially—become the site of the project of his dreams. He was joined by Kat and Pierre, the general contractor. A crowd surrounded them, far more people than he expected. It was over-the-top—the queen had insisted on providing a golden shovel—but for once, Leo didn’t mind all the pomp and circumstance. This wasn’t a new storefront for luxury handbags. And it certainly wasn’t another ski resort that no one needed. It was going to be a cornerstone of their community, a safe haven in more ways than the public even realized.
How he wished Emma could see it. Over the last several days, an elaborate plan had begun to hatch.
