Chapter 3
THREE
AUSTIN
Liam Wells was the most beautiful man Austin had ever seen.
He looked to be about five feet eight, which he loved.
He had a compact build with nice biceps and thick thighs – yes, Austin was a thigh man – and his dark brown hair was wavy rather than curly.
It looked like it could fall into his eyes at any moment, and Austin felt an urge to brush it away with his fingers.
Of course, that would be very inappropriate, but he couldn’t help himself.
Austin had definitely seen a spark of interest in those deep hazel eyes too.
But the man was grieving his mother, and now wasn’t the time for Austin to be flirting, although he hadn’t been able to stop himself.
They’d left Sylvie’s Slice, and he heard Nathan trying to suppress a giggle.
“What?”
“I told you so.”
Austin snorted. “I’m not admitting anything.”
“You didn’t need to. I felt like I was intruding.”
“You know, I prefer it when you’re less chatty.”
Nathan looked at him with a frown, but Austin was smiling at him to be clear he was being sarcastic. Nathan smiled back, but it was his shy smile, so Austin knew not to push it anymore.
“I think you’ll like him even more when you try his muffins,” said Nathan, completely deadpan.
Austin cracked up laughing. He couldn’t help it. Nathan was smiling, so he must have said it deliberately, or realised he’d made an accidental joke quickly after.
“What are you going to do?” asked Nathan.
“About what?”
“Liam. Are you going to ask him out on a date?”
“Let’s say . . . not yet.”
“But it’s clear you both like each other, even I noticed that.”
Austin was pleased to know it wasn’t just him picking up on Liam’s interest, but the timing wasn’t right.
From what he knew, Liam didn’t even live in Heartwood.
He was based in London, which wasn’t far away, but still not close.
His mum had just died, and Austin knew what that felt like.
He might have seemed friendly and flirty, but Austin had seen the tiredness in his eyes.
He had a lot going on right now, so he was just going to get to know him, and when he was certain the interest was reciprocated for something more than a quick fuck, he’d ask him out on a date.
“Dad, we’re going to be late.”
“We’ve got half an hour, sweetheart.”
Maisie pouted, which made her look so much like her mother.
She was basically a mini-me of Ellie. She had the same blonde hair and pointy face as her mum, but she had Austin’s eyes.
Ellie had said she had the best bits from both of them.
He never understood that. It was usually blue or green eyes that were called out as being special, not brown.
But then Liam had hazel eyes, which were mesmerising.
Austin hadn’t been able to stop thinking about the sexy baker for the past week since they first met.
He may have been into Sylvie’s Slice every day since to get one of those incredible chocolate orange muffins, which Nathan had not been wrong about.
Austin would need to get his arse back into the gym.
He usually got all his exercise from being outdoors, but since he’d scaled things back at work, he’d needed to use the gym as a way of working out his frustrations at the unfairness of everything.
There was an independent gym in town, so he would find some time to check that out.
“I need time to meet my new friends.”
Austin smiled. That was his daughter. There were no nerves about starting a new school where she didn’t know anybody. She was already assuming all the other people in her class would be her friends.
“Alright, let me just finish doing your lunch.”
He wrapped the ham and coleslaw sandwich in foil and put it in her lunchbox with some healthy snacks and a mini chocolate roll for balance.
He wasn’t a monster. Austin had a few design jobs to finish this morning, and then he’d be able to invoice a client.
With Ellie’s life insurance, he didn’t have a mortgage, but he didn’t have an infinite pot of savings either.
He needed to get the business up and running again so he could go back to doing what he loved.
Dropping Maisie at the school gate, Austin had nothing to worry about. Within ten seconds she’d run over to a group of girls who were skipping, introduced herself, and was joining in. That was something she also got from Austin. He could talk to anyone, whereas Ellie had been more reserved.
Unable to stop himself, he walked down to Sylvie’s Slice for his morning coffee, even though he’d already had one at home. Walking in, his heart sank – Liam wasn’t at the counter, it was just Chloe. The place was as busy as usual.
“Morning, Austin. Usual?” she asked.
He nodded. “Thanks, Chloe.”
Austin looked at the display counter to see the sweet treats on display. They looked as delicious as always, but he noticed one omission.
“Chocolate orange already sold out?”
“We didn’t get any today. Liam had to go into London for a meeting at work this morning.”
“I thought he said he was working from home?”
Chloe gave him a knowing look, but Austin would not apologise for trying to learn everything he could about Liam over the past week.
He’d enjoyed their daily chats. She shrugged, so Austin let it go.
It wasn’t like he could text Liam to check he was okay.
They hadn’t even exchanged phone numbers, and why would they?
To Liam, Austin was just a customer in his mum’s bakery.
“He just said it was an important meeting. He left last night, but said he’d be back today. Should I tell him you came in and asked for him?”
Austin chuckled and shook his head. “I’m sure you’ll tell him whatever you like.”
“Austin Calder,” said a familiar voice.
He turned round. “Good morning, Giselle.”
“Austin will take his coffee to have here. You can bring it over.”
She linked her arm in his and practically dragged him over to her table, which was in the corner. It was the one she always occupied, as did her wife.
“Where’s Henrietta?”
“At the shop, but we’re not here to talk about my better half, are we?”
“Should I be nervous?” he asked warily.
“It depends on what your intentions are with our Liam.”
He snorted, remembering what the gossip was like in this town, and Giselle was always at the epicentre. Even when she was younger than Austin was now, she’d been like this.
“What do you think you know, Giselle?”
“No, no, no, Austin Calder. I’ll be asking the questions.”
“Okay, then. To answer your questions, I don’t have any intentions . . . yet.”
She smiled. “So, you are interested?”
The coffee arrived at that moment, so he said nothing as he took the first sip. It was the perfect temperature and just the right amount of bitterness. He didn’t have sugar in his coffee. He considered his next words.
“I’m aware what shit timing it is, but . . . I’m happy just getting to know him. It’s not like he lives here anyway. I know he’s only staying here to support his dad and he’ll go back to London at some point.”
“That’s not the case anymore,” she said with a twinkle in her eye, which he knew meant she had gossip. But he’d need to work for it. “Does that change your thinking?”
“If he is sticking around, then yes, I would be interested.”
“In what?”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, do you want to date him or fuck him?”
Austin spluttered his coffee, feeling his cheeks heat. He’d forgotten Giselle had no filter. Henrietta had a bit more tact than her wife, which was still not a high bar. Giselle was looking at him with one eyebrow raised. He would not give her the satisfaction of answering.
“I see,” she said.
“See what?”
“You want to do both!”
He chuckled. She wasn’t wrong, but he wasn’t admitting to anything. His face felt warm, but he was deluding himself that it was just the heat in the bakery.
“Can I offer you some advice?” asked Giselle.
“I have a feeling you’re going to anyway, so do you really need my permission?”
“Well, I was trying to be polite. Look, I think you and Liam could be . . . God, you could be perfect for each other. Well, I know Liam better than you, and you are his ideal man.”
He couldn’t help but smile at that. Was he really?
“But . . . the timing is lousy.”
He nodded. Liam was going through a lot right now. Austin would never push anything.
“And I don’t just mean for Liam. You’re still grieving as well, Austin, and you’ve just uprooted your life to move back here. And why did you do that?”
“For Maisie.”
“Precisely. And Liam isn’t going anywhere. In fact, that’s why he’s in London today, to quit that big job he has and stay here.”
“What?”
“I don’t know all the details, but he earns a lot in that job, over a hundred grand a year or something.”
Jesus Christ. How did he earn that much before he was thirty? Austin could never imagine earning that kind of money. Sylvie must have been so proud of him. Austin couldn’t help but be proud of him, and he barely knew the guy.
“But he’s going to give that all up so he can run this place, for Sylvie.”
“What about his dad?”
“He hasn’t been in here since she died, and he was never the baker anyway. That was always her and Liam. The plan was for him to take it over one day. That day just came a lot earlier than any of us thought.”
Austin’s heart went out to Liam. He was giving up his career to follow his mother’s dream and be there for his dad, but who was there for Liam? Did he have people supporting him who were just for him?
“I just want to be his friend, Giselle. You’ve nothing to worry about.”
“You can’t bullshit me, Austin Calder. I can see in your eyes how much you want that boy.”
“Please don’t call him a boy. You make me sound like a pervert.”
“Just think about what I said, will you?”