The Forget-Me-Not Bakery

He dropped his pen, letting it clatter onto the desk, an indication of how silly he thought this entire conversation was, especially since they were about to discuss a million-dollar advertising campaign proposal. That was the only kind of thing worthy of medals in the eyes of Alex Livingston. ‘I don’t have to try it to know it doesn’t deserve a medal, Paige. It’s a cake, nothing more. Besides, anyone who wants to live their lives baking up a storm isn’t exactly looking to become award-winning. That’s what I’m assuming, anyway. And who would want to live like that?’

The answer hit Paige instantly. Me.

Alex meant a great deal to her. They were colleagues in the office and something akin to friends outside it. For fifteen years, Paige had built her relationship with him and with the company, excelling in her career and earning her managerial title. She was acutely aware that Alex felt more for her than just friendship, but Paige had yet to pull the tether and let her heart open up to him. She didn’t know why she couldn’t seem to do it – they got along well and there was no denying he was an attractive man. She didn’t understand why Alex put up with her wishy-washy responses each time he asked her out.

But in that moment, after Alex’s thoughtless outburst fueled by stress, Paige suddenly couldn’t imagine loving a man who didn’t appreciate the little things in life. Who didn’t see the value in creating something with your hands even if it didn’t result in an exorbitant amount of money or critical acclaim? Wanting to love someone and actually finding love with them were two very different things. And so the sad, vicious cycle continued.

Paige saw things differently, she realized that now. It took his dismissal of someone’s gourmet creations for her to realize she didn’t care about anything as much as she did her childhood dream. She heard Allison’s encouragement, saw the real estate listing in her mind for the rundown bakery her cousin had sent her as clear as if it was sitting in front of her, and felt her blood burn a little hotter in her veins with the physical need she felt to prove Alex wrong.

Me, she thought again. I want to live like that. She’d spent the last months teetering on the edge of a precipice, unwilling to make a concrete decision. Now, she felt like the decision was made for her. Paige’s heart spoke up, loud and clear, and it told her mind the plan: Paige wasn’t going to sit another day idle, wondering what if. She wanted that bakery. Her heart wanted that bakery.

Most of all, Paige wanted to be able to say she’d tried.

It wasn’t any one thing that she wanted to run from, more like a series of many things she wanted to run to.

She’d learned so much in New York, about her strengths and about herself. For that reason, she cherished what she’d left behind there, and always would. But because of that moment, that off-the-cuff comment by a businessman she was loyal to and whom she trusted unfailingly, Paige Henley gave a month’s notice to him – a move Alex made known he didn’t understand but respected. Paige found herself back in Michigan, in the small town of Port Landon, and she was just as eager to see what she could learn about herself there.

This was her new beginning. She didn’t see it as starting over so much as switching gears. She’d spent fifteen years doing what she had to do – and she had done her job well, judging by the praise and letter of recommendation from Alex, should she ever need it – but now it was time to do what she wanted.

For better or for worse, Paige had made her decision. Though it wouldn’t be easy, she was bound and determined to give it all she had.

And today, she was giving it all she had without the aid of her trusty sidekick, Allison. But being busy had never evoked fear in Paige before. Busy meant there was something to do, something to keep her hands and her mind distracted. It was easier to deal with the loneliness that seemed to creep in now and then, reminding her that those distractions were all she had to keep her company.

Fifteen years of living to work had flown by in a New York minute, but the last five years of hearing about Allison’s fun days at the coffee shop and her romantic dates with her boyfriend, Christopher, made Paige open her eyes and realize what her life had become.

Paige wasn’t living; she was merely existing.

It was another thing in the long line of things that prompted the move to Port Landon, along with the hefty down payment on Wilhelmina Morrison’s old bakery. She wasn’t just looking for a new career. She was looking for a new life. A real one. One that included people she cared about, and people who cared about her. One that left her tired in the evenings, but content and happy with the efforts she put forth toward her goals.

And, so far, that was what she had found in the little town of Port Landon. Now, if she could just find someone to share it all with.

The shrill tolling of the bell above the front door broke Paige from her thoughts, and Allison came bounding in as though thinking about her had somehow conjured her cousin up from thin air.

‘Paige!’ she shrieked. As though it was an afterthought, she glanced around the room, confirming no one else was in the shop. ‘Paige, you’re not going to believe this!’

The excitement coursing through Allison’s veins was infectious, and Paige steeled herself for something huge. ‘What’s going on?’

Allison stretched her arm out across the front counter, waving her left hand in front of Paige’s face. ‘I’m getting married, Paige!’

It took a moment for the words to register, and for Paige to get a look at the shiny diamond on her cousin’s ring finger, before both women turned into the squealing high school best friends they’d been so many years ago, holding hands and bouncing up and down like children. Paige’s eyes were wide and wet with tears, her joy for her cousin spilling down her cheeks.

‘Oh my God, Allison, that’s incredible!’

‘He finally did it!’ Allison laughed, wiping the tears from her eyes with the back of her hand. ‘Chris proposed … and I didn’t even see it coming, Paige. At all!’

If that was true, then Paige figured she was the only one blindsided by it. The whole town had probably seen it coming. After five years of dating, even Paige had been waiting with bated breath for Allison to announce her upcoming marriage every time they talked on the phone or had a Skype call. Allison was the most patient person she’d ever known, and from everything they’d ever discussed while Paige was in New York, she and Chris had a good relationship. A solid one.

This wasn’t the first time Paige was a teensy bit envious of Allison, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t going to cry happy tears and jump at the chance to celebrate her big news.

They were best friends. They were family. And family was something that meant the world to Paige.

‘I’m so happy for you, Allison.’ Paige pulled her cousin into a warm embrace, squeezing her tightly. ‘So, so happy.’

‘I just can’t freaking believe it,’ Allison sobbed, letting go of Paige to stretch her arm out in front of her and admire her bejeweled ring finger again. ‘I’ve got a fiancé! A freaking fiancé!’

‘Yes, you do.’ Paige laughed, reaching out for her cousin’s hand to ogle the shiny square diamond in a rose gold setting. ‘Just wait until you can call him your husband.’

‘Husband!’ she screeched, clutching her hand to her chest. ‘I’m going to have a husband!’

The theatrics amused Paige immensely. ‘Just how long ago did this romantic proposal take place?’

Allison whirled around to glance at the clock. ‘About twenty minutes ago! We were having a picnic lunch and—’

‘Wait, you left your picnic with your new fiancé, who just proposed, to come in here and tell me about it?’ Paige stood there, her eyes widened in bewilderment. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing, even if it was from Allison.

‘I had to tell you! This is time-sensitive stuff, Paige!’ She feigned shock, like she couldn’t possibly understand why Paige wouldn’t understand such a thing. ‘Okay, fine, so maybe I’m not a very good fiancée.’

Paige sighed, shaking her head as she reached out and squeezed her cousin’s hands in hers. ‘It’s not that you’re not a good fiancée, it’s just that you’re too good of a friend to me,’ she explained gently. ‘And as over the moon as I am that you’re getting married and there’s a wedding to plan, I think you’d better go find Christopher and celebrate with him, yeah?’

‘I know, Paige, but I just had to tell you!’ she continued, her gaze becoming a starry-eyed haze. ‘I’m thinking a summer wedding. August, maybe.’ She held her hands out with a Just picture this! gesture.

‘That’s only a couple of months away!’ Paige gasped, surprised. ‘That’s fast.’

‘When you know, you know,’ Allison stated, winking at her. ‘Besides, there’s nothing more romantic than a summer wedding with all the flowers in bloom and the sun high in the sky.’ She sighed, obviously picturing the scene in her mind with vivid clarity. ‘Wow, that’s some serious lovey-dovey voodoo stuff Sonya’s been pulling. It’s turning me into a complete—’

‘What’s Sonya got to do with Christopher’s marriage proposal?’ Paige chuckled.

‘That’s what I’m trying to tell you!’ she shrieked, jumping up and down again. ‘Sonya was just saying the other day that it’s our time! Something to do with the stars aligning and believing in the power of love, or standing the test of time …’ She shook her head, waving her hand to dismiss her further jumbled thoughts. ‘I don’t know, Paige, all I’m saying is Sonya predicted it, and then it happened!’

‘Or maybe Christopher has been planning this for months and it’s just a coincidence?’

Allison, ever the dramatic one, stomped her foot and let out a loud scoff. ‘Okay, smarty pants, but what about what she said about you and Dr Cohen?’

Paige arched a brow. ‘What are you talking—’

The bell chimed above the doorway again, announcing a visitor. Both women turned to see a young boy enter the bake shop. Paige didn’t recognize him. Allison’s face, however, lit up and her mouth gaped open. She knew very well who he was.

‘And that, I think, is my cue to leave.’ She didn’t look away from the sandy-haired boy, who was too transfixed by the display of mini cheesecakes in the cooler to notice her stare, but she stepped away from Paige, still wearing a haunted expression.

‘What? Why?’ Paige was beyond confused.

Allison cupped her hands around her mouth to respond, but whatever she was going to say was quickly interrupted by the bell ringing once more. Cohen Beckett stepped inside the shop, his focus trained on the young boy near the cooler.

‘I thought we were walking here, not sprinting like the zombies are hot on our heels.’ He wore an amused grin, turning to shut the door behind him. As the door clicked shut, he turned back to face the counter and saw both Allison and Paige staring at him like he had just grown a second head. ‘Oh, hello, ladies.’

‘Hey there, Dr Cohen.’ Allison leaned in toward Paige, lowered her voice, and whispered, ‘See? Lovey-dovey voodoo stuff. Sonya knows what she’s talking about. We’ll chat later … maid of honor.’ She gave Paige’s hand one last encouraging squeeze and disappeared out the front door, letting the bell ring out loudly in her wake.

Paige should have been dancing around like a fool, thrilled to be bestowed such an honor by her best friend, but she was too consumed by the fact that they’d just been talking about Cohen Beckett and then he’d shown up. Just like that.

Almost like lovey-dovey voodoo stuff.

The young boy was still ogling the cheesecake cooler, pointing emphatically at the key lime one with a twisted lime garnish on top, but Cohen was staring after Allison, even after the door had swung closed.

‘Should I be worried about the smug little smirk she was wearing?’ he asked, turning toward the front counter, where Paige still stood, motionless. His tone was light, but it was enough to break the spell that had rooted her in place, and she rounded the counter, untying her yellow daisy-covered apron and tossing it onto the counter as she went.

‘Don’t worry about her,’ she assured him. ‘She’s had a long day, and it ended with some really great news, so she’s bound to be a little scatterbrained.’

‘Great news, huh?’

‘Looks like there’s going to be a wedding in a few months,’ Paige replied, mimicking Allison’s gesture and cupping her hand as though it was a secret. ‘But you didn’t hear it from me.’

Cohen glanced back toward the door where Allison had long since disappeared. ‘Wow, Chris finally got up the nerve. About time.’ He caught Paige’s gaze and chuckled. ‘Don’t worry, your secret is safe with me.’

She dismissed his comment with a wave of her hand. ‘I’m not worried. If the small-town rumor mill is anything like I’ve been warned, I’m pretty sure everyone and their mother is going to know by tomorrow, anyway.’

‘Everyone and their mother’s mother,’ Cohen corrected her. ‘News travels fast in Port Landon, trust me.’ He pointed toward the boy, now beside the front counter, hands pressed up against the glass as he oohed and ahhed over the cookies and selection of cupcakes left over from this morning’s baking efforts. ‘Speaking of that, this is my son, Bryce. And not only has he heard the rave reviews about your bakery, he fell in love with your chocolate fudge cake last night. Bryce, come and meet Paige, then you can choose your next sugar coma.’

The boy grudgingly peeled himself away from the display case, coming over to stand beside his father. ‘Hey, Paige,’ he said in a voice that sounded shy around the edges. He nudged into Cohen’s side as he spoke. Obviously he preferred to focus on the cakes and cookies rather than her. But his manners were stronger than his timid first impression because the boy stuck a hand out to shake hers.

‘Hello, Bryce.’ She shook his hand and watched as Cohen wrapped an arm around the boy’s shoulders in encouragement. ‘I hear you’re a pretty big chocolate fan.’

‘The biggest.’ He gestured wildly to show her just how much. And just like that, the shyness dissipated. ‘You make the best cake. Like, ever.’

Paige beamed, stealing a glance up at Cohen, who looked just as amused. ‘Thank you. That’s the best compliment. Like, ever.’ She clapped her hands together, then waved a hand around the room. ‘What did you have in mind today?’

In true childlike fashion, Bryce theatrically pressed a finger to his chin, contemplating his choices as he took in his surroundings. ‘Something colorful. Something that tastes like … fun.’

She couldn’t hold back her soft chuckle. ‘Fun, huh? Well, I don’t think I’ve ever had a request for that flavor before, but maybe, since you’re the expert and all, you and I can come up with something together?’ She held a hand out for him to take, giving Cohen time to intervene if he thought she was overstepping. Cohen only nodded, watching with a crooked smile as Bryce slipped his fingers between hers. ‘So, tell me, dear expert, what does fun taste like?’

The boy looked up at her, stopping in front of the cheesecake cooler once again, his eyes twinkling. ‘It’s not any one thing, Paige,’ he explained. ‘When you know, you know.’

Chapter 4

Cohen

Cohen’s day had been jam-packed with back-to-back appointments, not to mention the emergency call that had come in from the Richardsons stating their German shepherd, Lulu, had tried to make friends with a porcupine and it became a prickly situation. Luckily for Lulu, she’d had enough sense to back away at the first cluster of quills in her nose, so there hadn’t been many to pull, and the ones that were there were removed easily enough without the use of heavy anesthesia. Lulu even accepted a few treats as a truce with Cohen after the ordeal.

Needless to say, by the time the clinic sign had been turned from Open to Closed, Cohen was ready to head home and relax. In theory, anyway. His promise to Bryce hadn’t been forgotten.

The boy was vibrating with excitement by the time he careened through the clinic door and announced his arrival. The first words out of his mouth were, ‘I’m ready to go to the bakery, Dad!’ Cohen knew he had no chance of getting out of it today.

Thankfully, there was still a small part of him that was anticipating the trip, which was a fact he couldn’t bring himself to contemplate too closely. He fed kibble to Jazz, being careful to put warm water on it and stir it up just the way she liked it before setting it down. He checked her water dish and filled it, too. Jazz slept at the clinic at night instead of trudging through the path in the backyard to Cohen’s house. Everyone adored the dog – everyone except Bryce’s cat, Norman, who seemed to think Jazz was a little too rambunctious and in-your-face for his liking. Jazz never seemed to mind her makeshift bedroom in the downstairs office. Most days, she was so tired after a full day of greeting clients and being the clinic’s entertainment that she was already snoring loudly in her oversized dog bed before they even left for the evening.

With the promise to return and take her for a long walk in a bit, Cohen walked through the back path toward home and changed into jeans and a plaid shirt over a plain white T-shirt. He shoved the on-call cellphone into his pocket, feeling rejuvenated at having somewhere to go. Someone to see. Again, he shook his head, not wanting to ponder that thought.

No amount of rejuvenation was going to help him keep up with Bryce, though. The ten-year-old’s energy and ambition were no match for the weariness he currently felt at thirty-six. Most days, he could handle the fast pace of the clinic and the physical demands that came with it, but sometimes it was hard to keep up. Sometimes, the tiredness became too much to bear, something he couldn’t see past and couldn’t get around. The exhaustion wasn’t just what he felt, it was who he was. What he’d become.

When Cohen bought the clinic eleven years ago, he never dreamed he and Stacey wouldn’t be side by side to run it together. His wife had been a veterinarian, one of the best as far as he was concerned. Buying the clinic had been a joint venture.

A joint venture he now tackled daily. Alone. Not even his career could give him reprieve from the loss he harbored since Stacey’s passing, being just another cruel daily reminder that his life was a jigsaw puzzle with missing pieces that would never be found.

Cohen would never blame Stacey, but the demands of running a veterinary practice, coupled with the struggles of raising an adolescent by himself … it was a lot to handle for one man. He did it, every day, and Cohen thought he did it reasonably well, all things considered. But he lived for the moments when work, responsibilities, and old-fashioned adulting weren’t the only things he had to keep him company.

‘Slow down!’ he hollered after Bryce. ‘This isn’t a race.’ But Bryce had already disappeared around the corner. He believed that’s exactly what it was. Cohen chuckled to himself as he rounded the corner, far behind him, and saw the heavy glass door about three shops up swing closed. His son was lightning-fast, he would give him that. And he’d probably have six cakes on the counter ready to purchase by the time Cohen got there to stop him. But it was good to see him excited about something that wasn’t electronics related. The kids his age needed more stimulation than just video games and apps to advance their minds, and Cohen was happy to see Bryce so enthralled with something.

Even if it was a place that sold sugar highs.

The bell chimed above his head as he pushed the door open, and while he had expected to see Bryce’s wide eyes staring at him as he begged for more baked goods to take home, Cohen hadn’t expected the other two sets of bulging eyes that stared at him like he’d just done something outlandish.

While he couldn’t be certain, he had a sneaking suspicion they had been talking about him. That’s why he’d switched topics so quickly once Allison’s big news came up; it was an easy out from the awkwardness.

Things became anything but awkward, though, when Paige took the reins and led Bryce on a hunt for the perfect treat to buy. Watching them together, seeing his son so animated and comfortable, and seeing Paige interact with him so effortlessly – it made his heart ache with a swell of pride and joy. It was good for Bryce to converse with other adults. He was like a little adult himself, so maybe that was why he did it with such finesse. Cohen was still gawking around the shop, taking in the intricate designs and garnishes that topped the tower of cake slices in the countertop display case, trying to pretend he wasn’t eavesdropping on Paige and Bryce’s conversation about the importance of cream filling in relation to the decadence of a homemade doughnut, when his son’s cheering erupted from behind him.

‘Eureka!’ Bryce cried. Cohen turned to see the young boy holding a silver plate high above his head like a trophy. On it, a massive slice of bright orange cheesecake was displayed, piled high with lush strawberries, blueberries, and an orange slice, all buried underneath a generous dollop of whipped cream. ‘Look, Dad, it’s fun on a plate!’

Cohen burst out laughing. ‘I’d say.’ He closed the gap between them, turning the plate in Bryce’s hands from side to side, admiring it. ‘I think this is where you invite me to share it with you, because, son, I don’t think you can eat that whole thing by yourself.’

‘Challenge accepted!’ Bryce exclaimed, grinning from ear to ear.

‘Yikes,’ Paige interjected. ‘If I’d known this was going to turn into a battle between you two, I would have brought the second piece out quicker.’ She held out an identical silver plate for Cohen, shrugging as she whispered, ‘I wouldn’t want you to have to fight him for it.’

‘Good call,’ Cohen quipped. ‘My bets would be on him.’

‘Mine, too.’

‘We’ll take both pieces!’ Bryce took his plate and pushed it up onto the front counter.

Cohen pursed his lips, shaking his head at his son’s antics. ‘Which, I guess, is code for I’ll pay for both pieces.’

‘Just one,’ Paige insisted. ‘My treat. I got you roped into it, after all.’

‘Just wait till the sugar high kicks in. I’ll be sending him back your way to deal with him until he crashes.’

She chuckled, ringing the sale into the register. ‘Good thing it’s closing time.’

‘It’s a small town, Paige,’ Cohen joked. ‘I know where you live.’

‘Yeah, that’s not creepy at all,’ she replied ruefully.

Cohen pressed a hand to his chest, feigning hurt. ‘Damn, creepy, huh? Not my best joke, then.’

‘Not the worst I’ve heard,’ Paige countered. ‘But definitely not your finest, I’m sure. Besides, everyone knows where I live.’

‘See, that’s creepy.’

She laughed softly, a sound that resonated somewhere deep inside him. ‘No, that’s just small-town life,’ she replied. ‘Or so I’ve been told. Repeatedly.’

‘Sounds to me like you’re getting the hang of small-town living, Paige.’

‘You might be right,’ she agreed. ‘With a little help, I’ll get by just fine.’ The twinkle in her eyes made him hear questions she wasn’t actually asking, and the flicker of a flirty grin made him wonder if he was seeing things. The expression showed off her natural beauty, a simple femininity that went far beyond the bit of makeup she wore. He let out a long breath.

‘Right. I …’ Should say something. Offer her help if she ever needed it. Or maybe—

‘Dad …’

Cohen glanced down to see Bryce bouncing anxiously on the balls of his feet.

‘We’ve still got to walk Jazz before I can dig into this monstrous cake, remember? Can we go now?’ The boy’s eyes pleaded with his father, but Cohen just patted him on the shoulder.

‘Easy, now. Don’t be rude. We’ve got to pay, then we can go get Jazz.’ He pulled a twenty-dollar bill from his wallet and passed it to Paige. ‘Keep the change. You and I both know we’ll be back before long.’