I pressed into him and whispered, “Yeah.”

I got another squeeze, another lip touch (this one on my forehead) then he let me go but lifted a hand to cup my jaw before he murmured, “Later.”

Then he was gone.

I followed him out, moved through the back and front telling the girls we had two new helpers, approached Joel and Rex at their table where they were finishing up devouring a slice of carrot cake (Rex) and a red velvet cupcake (Joel), told them what they were going to do to earn their keep and at this news their eyes lit.

Only kids would think clearing tables and washing up coffee cups, plates and forks in a bakery was cool.

Or maybe it was only Brock’s kids.

And lucky for me they did because I could use the help.

* * * * *

“Aunt Tess!” I heard shrieked, I turned from loading a cake stand on the back shelves with cupcakes just in time to see Ellie darting through the shop, heading for the opening at the end of the counter and rounding it.

Luckily, although her speed was akin to an Olympian who, with great dedication trained daily and maintained an athlete’s lifestyle twenty-four, seven, I had time to brace before she hit my legs, arms wrapped around them.

My hand not holding the cupcake tray settled on her head and then dropped as she arched her back at an impossible angle without releasing her hold and grinned up at me.

“Mom’s buyin’ us pink cupcakes!” she screeched then jumped back and clapped, “I can’t wait! ”

I smiled at her and was surprised to see she’d ditched the princess attire and was now a mermaid complete with flashy, green, iridescent tail and flat, lilac shells as bodice however this ensemble was marred by a winter coat and a cute, fluffy wool hat with a bobble on the top both of which didn’t exactly say “under the sea”.

“Ellie, come out from behind that counter right now,” Laura snapped, standing at the end of it. “What did I tell you about when your Aunt Tess is working? You don’t go behind the counter when Aunt Tess is working.”

This wasn’t true. Ellie always came behind the counter when she visited Tessa’s Cakes, that was, she came behind the counter if Aunt Tess was there in order to do what she just did.

“She doesn’t care,” Ellie shot back and this was the true but Laura instantly got a Mom Face that clearly stated without words that she was not in the mood for backtalk. Ellie read her mother’s face, she scrunched her face, looked up at me, unscrunched her face, gave me a toothy grin then skipped out from behind the counter.

“Go, sit down with your friends,” Laura ordered. “I’ll be there with cupcakes and milk in a second but I won’t be there with cupcakes and milk if you don’t behave.”

I could tell by Ellie’s face she took this seriously and I could also tell it by her ensuing actions for she did not delay in rounding up her three also mermaid-attired friends (obviously this slumber party had a theme) and herding them to an open table at the window.

Suni took my tray of cupcakes, I shot her a grateful smile and moved to Laura and the minute I arrive she started bitching in an undertone.

“Remind me never but never to do this again. I knew it, I’ve done it before but, like childbirth, you forget how freaking painful it is in between times and therefore convince yourself you’re good for another go. And Ellie gets invited to slumber parties all the time and it was our turn. I shouldn’t care. Turns don’t matter. Peace of mind matters. Not losing your hearing due to the constant shrieking of little girls matters. Sanity matters. If those girls’

mothers are fool enough to take on that energy and noise level, great, fine, more power to them. But I… am… not. ”

I nodded like I understood (when I actually didn’t) and opened my mouth to say something soothing but she kept bitching.

“And Austin abandoned me. He had four hours with the girls last night and he took off first thing this morning leaving me a note. ”

Oh man. Not a smooth move on Austin’s part. I had a feeling Austin was in the doghouse.

Laura kept right on going.

“Okay, so, he took the boys out to breakfast and then to a movie so I don’t also have Grady and Dylan to deal with but Grady and Dylan are a piece of cake compared to four four year old little girls. Ellie told them all about you and your cupcakes and that’s all they’ve been talking about so, to shut them up, I had to bring them here. But I have to tell you, Tess, I’m uncertain about injecting even a teaspoon of sugar into those four. They’re bouncing off the walls now. With sugar in them, they might explode through like four year old little girl Hulks in mermaid outfits.”

I bit my lip and waited for her to continue complaining so she could get it all off her chest but she didn’t. Her eyes suddenly wandered to a blackboard but she wasn’t reading it. They’d glazed over and I knew she was on a mental deserted island with a very strong mai tai and a romance novel.

I waited a moment to allow her to experience her fantasy before I was going to lift my hand and wave it in front of her face but I didn’t get the chance.

“Aunt Laurie,” Rex called, moving through the swinging doors followed by Joel.

Laura’s body jerked, her mouth tilted up into a smile and she said, “Hey kiddo,” and accepted a hug around her h*ps as she ruffled his hair then her eyes went to Joel and she said,

“Hey there, Joey.”

“Hey Aunt Laurie,” Joel replied, two years older than his brother and those two years were the two years you grew out of giving your Aunt a hug around her hips.

At the arrival of the boys, I took charge.

“All right guys, I’ve got a big job for you. Your Aunt Laura needs a breather so I want you to go over to Ellie’s table, get cupcake and milk flavor orders from those girls, put the cupcakes on plates, get the milk and get Kalie to make your aunt a coffee. And also, find out what treat your aunt wants and sort that out. Then I want you to hang with the girls and make sure they’re good. Can you do that?”

“Sure,” Joel said.

“Cool,” Rex said then asked, “Like, we’re waiters?”

I smiled at him. “Yeah, like that.”

“Awesome,” he muttered, his eyes alight.

Jeez, kids.

“You do the girls, I’ll do Aunt Laurie,” Joel ordered, all bossy big brother. Rex nodded, all used to being bossed little brother and took off. Joel headed to his cousin Kalie.