Chapter 4 #2
Calder was soon reassured that while Adam said he wanted to be friends, he was fine with doing all the date-like things Calder could think of.
Okay, not all the things, since they weren’t being physically intimate like lovers, but otherwise, all the elements were there.
They were seeing one another every few days, Calder’s schedule easily able to flex and align with Adam’s hours.
Plus, they’d started texting all the time after their first date—Calder was still calling it a date in his head—everything from funny memes to what they were doing with their day to planning for their next date.
The more time they spent together, the more sure Calder was that the Magic had known exactly what it was doing when it nudged him in Adam’s direction.
He loved hearing every detail about Adam’s life, and Adam seemed to enjoy the same.
And every time Calder reacted well to incidents of Adam’s clumsiness, his witch relaxed more around him and became less guarded.
Calder was determined to make him understand that he didn’t care how many times food or drink got splashed on either one of them, and he certainly wasn’t complaining about needing to steady Adam or outright catch him.
All he cared about was that Adam was safe and happy.
They walked along beaches hunting for seashells and visited bookstores and museums. They went on the Queen Mary paranormal ship walk, and Calder wished they could go another dozen times, because Adam had tucked his arm through Calder’s, cozied up to his side, and clutched at him the whole time.
Calder suggested “infiltrating” other bakeries and sampling their goods, and Adam lips had tipped up into a mischievous grin.
Calder loved this playful side of Adam, and he also appreciated that his kind-hearted mate was always thoughtful.
They didn’t enjoy everything they tried, but Adam always had something nice to say along with any criticism—and in at least one case, he’d actually pulled the baker aside and advised him to lower the temperature of the oven and to bake the cake for a few minutes longer to improve its moistness.
“Aren’t they your competition?” Calder wanted to know.
Adam shrugged. “They’re a fellow baker, trying to make delicious treats for everyone to enjoy. I always want baked goods to be baked well.”
Yes, there was no doubt that Calder was falling for this man.
But he still hadn’t confessed about being a shifter, never mind anything else.
He knew that he had to. It was just that everything was going so well, and Calder didn’t want to jeopardize that.
They didn’t talk much about Adam being a witch, either, so it wasn’t like he was being completely evasive by not talking about being a shifter…
But he was aware that he was getting past the point where he could claim that they were really still getting to know one another.
It felt more like he’d known Adam his whole life—which was absurd, given how long his life was.
Adam warned him that February meant longer hours, including Sundays, and his expression got a little pinched.
“Everything alright?” Calder wanted to know.
They’d met at the bakery and headed down to the beach for a walk, because although Adam was tired, he’d confessed that a ramble with Calder—and often dinner or a snack—was a way to recharge before heading home for an early night.
Adam sighed. “Oh, yes, it’s fine. I just… We probably won’t be able to see one another as often for the next little while. Bakeries and Valentine’s Day go hand-in-hand.”
Eying him, Calder observed, “You don’t sound like you’re a fan.”
Adam huffed a breath. “I mean, I think the day has been extremely over-commercialized and puts a lot of pressure on people that isn’t really fair.
Just the fact that we had to come up with Galentine’s and Palentine’s to try to make space for people who are single…
And don’t get me started on the people who dump someone because their Valentine’s Day celebration wasn’t special enough.
Gauging the worth of a relationship based solely on how much someone is willing to spend on flowers or baked goods or…
or sexy lingerie or whatever is just dumb. ”
Adam’s cheeks had gone pink as he stuttered about the lingerie, and Calder suddenly wondered if Adam liked lingerie and if Calder could buy him some.
But no, that was definitely not the message Adam had been trying to convey with his flashing eyes and the cute furrow in his brow.
Calder said, “But surely sometimes, the day can be a genuine expression of affection.”
“Something people should feel all year round!”
“And I’m sure they do,” Calder agreed. “And hopefully, they’re making their affection evident at other times as well.
But I think it’s the human condition to grow complacent and not always value what’s right in front of us.
Is it such a terrible thing to have a day that helps remind people to be more demonstrative towards their partner or partners? ”
Adam blew out a breath. “I mean, I guess not. But does anyone really need a cake fully decorated in 24-karat gold leaf?”
Calder frowned. “Why would anyone eat gold?”
“Right?” Adam demanded, waving his hand expansively, and Calder captured it and pulled it back before Adam could hit a passerby also trying to walk along the beach. He squeezed Adam’s hand and kept it, because Adam wasn’t averse to these mild forms of PDA, which he seemed to think friends might do.
Adam shot him a small smile and continued, “I’ve decorated with gold leaf before, though we don’t use it frequently.
It can be an eye-catching embellishment.
But covering the entire cake with it? That just makes the cake stupidly expensive, and I can’t think it’s great for anyone’s digestive system.
” He harrumphed. “Gold foil is also very thin and comes in small sheets. It’s not easy to cover an entire cake in it! ”
“But you’re doing it anyway?” Calder asked.
“That was the order,” Adam grumbled. “I explained it all to Maggie, and she checked with me first to ensure that she’d be charging a price that would take into account the ingredients. They still wanted it, so I’m going to make it.”
“You get a lot of extra requests for Valentine’s Day?”
“So many!” Adam exclaimed, his free hand still waving around, and Calder just made sure to steer him to where he wouldn’t hit anyone.
“This year, Valentine’s Day is on a Saturday, so it’s even worse.
And I love baking, you know that, but it’s all compressed for Valentine’s Day—and people seem to feel that it has to be the fourteenth, because heaven forbid that you present your loved one with a beautiful cake on the thirteenth or the fifteenth.
It’s a lot to bake all at once. Thanks to our stasis charms, I can do more pre-baking than a normal baker could; there’s no degradation of quality thanks to the magic.
But my charms aren’t that strong, so I have to recast them every twenty-four hours.
That limits me a little. And we still try to bake a lot fresh. ”
Calder revised all of the half-baked plans he’d had for Valentine’s Day. Clearly, none of them would suit. The last thing he wanted to do was add any more stress at an already stressful time for Adam.
“Can’t the others help?” Calder wanted to know.
Adam shook his head. “For some reason, the baked goods react best if it’s me.
We’re not sure why, since a stasis spell is a stasis spell.
If it’s just a quick spell before delivery day-of, it seems to be okay.
But the ones in advance? They just don’t turn out as well if someone else casts any of the charms.”
That sounded like a lot of work, and Calder didn’t love it, but it was clear that as much as Adam complained about Valentine’s Day, he loved what he was doing.
“Is there anything I can do to help?” he asked, even though he’d spent a lot more time consuming raw seafood in the ocean than learning how to bake.
“No, it’s fine,” Adam demurred. “I didn’t mean to complain.”
“You may vent your frustrations to your heart’s content,” Calder assured him immediately. “I like hearing about whatever’s going on in your life.”
Adam smiled at him, his expression going sweet and soft as he bumped their hips together—and then stumbled and was righted by Calder.
“Thanks. Maybe I’m getting some flashbacks from January. I haven’t had to deal with so much pink icing since then.”
Calder laughed. “I’m very sorry about your accident, but I’m not at all sorry that we met.”
Adam grinned back. “Me neither.” He squeezed Calder’s hand. “Now, come on. You promised me the best shrimp cocktail you’d ever had, didn’t you?”
On land, anyway. He wanted to share everything with Adam, and this was a solid start. Calder happily allowed himself to be tugged off the beach, automatically steering Adam out of the way of a garbage can and not letting him stumble when the toe of his shoes caught in a crack in the sidewalk.