Chapter 13
HARPER
Taking a whirlwind long weekend to head to Denver with your newly called boyfriend wasn’t something that I had really put much thought into until it had happened.
We had spent two nights wrapped in each other, with Dorian showing me his world. The big city of Denver, which wasn’t like any other large cities I had been to. It had its own flavor, its own feel. And it was such a far distance from Cage Lake that it felt nearly insurmountable.
Because frankly, it wasn’t just distance.
I pounded my hands into the dough again, working on my kneading. I had a seven-plate loaf to make, and then I’d work on rolls, and a few other baked goods before I got ready for the Valentine’s Day dance tonight. Because of course, it was Valentine’s week.
Cage Lake loved spreading the holiday out over an entire week.
Yes it was good for the town’s revenue and income, but really it was for the town’s spirits.
Yesterday had been the child’s party and fair.
I had baked far too many cookies and other baked goods that had been gobbled up by everybody in sight.
My hands still hurt but it had been worth it to see the smiles on their faces.
Dorian had shown up to help, ignoring the town busybodies as they had stared at him, wondering why he was standing so close to me. It wasn’t like we were hiding who we were. But there were some judgments.
After all, he was a Cage. A millionaire playboy with a tragic backstory who happened to have been best friends of my older brother.
Of course, the busybodies including Ms. Patty had opinions. Even my own team had opinions, but they were doing their best not to spill them my way. At least I hoped they were doing so.
I didn’t want to hear what they thought. My friends were happy for me. I was happy. I just needed to lean into that.
But this past weekend reminded me that while tomorrow was the final day of this Valentine’s break, today was Valentine’s Day.
Today was the dance that all of the locals attended, well, most of them. I wasn’t sure a Cage had ever come, though I thought Isabella might now that she was with Weston.
She hadn’t come last year because she had been down in Denver setting up Weston’s new business. The two had made their forevers work by having two places, and a very organized schedule.
Dorian’s life was in Denver. No it wasn’t that far away, but the hours added up.
And when the weather was too icy or worse, the roads were closed…
And even if the roads stayed closed but the weather turned sunny, Dorian himself had said he wasn’t ready to get on an airplane or helicopter anytime soon.
It cost money, and emotional energy, and so much more to make that work.
My business and my home were in Cage Lake. A town with his name branded on it. My hands cramped, and I forced myself to relax.
I was fine. I had to be okay. But what was I supposed to do?
We had both said something about our feelings. Though it wasn’t exactly telling the other exactly how we felt. But he said he had never felt like this for anyone else. I knew Amy was the only other person he truly dated seriously. So whatever we had wasn’t like that.
But what would happen when he went back to work fully?
I had seen the happiness in his gaze when he had been working.
And how everybody had looked up to him. Had respected him.
He was damn good at his job, and I knew he wanted to open a few more places, and perhaps even work with his brother Theo on another project.
He couldn’t do things like that in Cage Lake.
Sure he could open up any business he wanted here, but the type of places he worked with didn’t fit in Cage Lake.
Maybe something near the resort, but that would be a long shot.
His home wasn’t here. But I was. What was I supposed to do?
No, the more I thought about that, the more my chest ached, and the more I was just begging for trouble.
We would figure it out eventually. We had to.
And then maybe he would tell me what else was wrong.
Because there was something else on his mind.
A reason he was working on that old house, a reason that he was hiding.
We needed to talk it out but I was worried if we popped that bubble, everything would change, and he would realize that maybe the heat we had wouldn’t be enough.
“I didn’t know you were still here,” Ms. Patty said as she waved from the back door.
I shook my head out of my thoughts and smiled over at her.
“I have a few things to settle before I get ready for the dance. You know you’re not supposed to be back here, right?
” I asked. Because while I loved Ms. Patty, I wasn’t in the mood to get in trouble by having a random person back here.
Yes Dorian helped out a bit, but his family owned the building, and I counted that as a cheat.
Honestly, while I loved Ms. Patty, I didn’t want her to ask too many questions.
She knew far too much. Or thought she did.
“I was just on my way to the town hall to finish getting everything set up for the dance tonight. Your Mr. Cage will be there with you, right? The town’s tongues are wagging, girl. I mean, catching a Cage? You are a legend.”
The heat of my cheeks burned, and I shook my head.
“I don’t think it’s called catching. Dorian’s just Dorian.
” I shrugged, as I set the loaf out to prove.
My team would finish up everything tonight, since I had started far too early to get everything set up.
I wanted a little extra time to get ready for the dance, since I was going with a date for the first time.
Though now I regretted getting up so early because I was exhausted.
My lungs ached, and my hands shook. I needed to take better care of myself, but taking that time off to go with Dorian, and then coming back and catching up on all of our bonus orders, meant sleep and taking care of myself had taken a backseat. I would do that later. After the dance.
“Are you okay, darling? You look a bit pale.”
“I’m fine. Just getting ready to close everything up. Was there something you needed, Ms. Patty?”
“I was just walking by and saw the door open. I know you keep it open even in winter sometimes to let the steam out. You’re doing such a great job.
Your brother would be proud of you. Your parents too.
” Her eyes filled, but her lips still pressed together in a thin line.
She didn’t know the exact story of my grandparents and why I had come back so different.
But she could probably have guessed. After all, she had known and loved my parents.
And had also known we hadn’t had a relationship with my grandparents until it was too late.
These were the small town things that kept me on the fence.
They were who I am. Because while she knew those things, I knew small tidbits about her.
About her favorite pastry, or how she always started the pay-it-forward.
No matter what she was feeling that day, she would make sure that someone else would be able to have a coffee or pastry even if they couldn’t quite afford it.
She might love gossip, but she loved people. And she was a good person.
What would I do in Denver? I loved this town.
But I loved Dorian too.
“Well, I hope I’ll see you and your man tonight. It’ll be good to have a Cage at the dance. God knows getting Hudson underneath those rafters is like pulling teeth.”
That made me laugh. “I really don’t think getting him to a dance is ever going to happen. We could probably drag him, but he’s kind of strong.”
“That he is. But all those Cages seem to be strong.” She wiggled her brows, and I held back a laugh.
“I won’t ask you for details, just know that I’m proud of you. For many things.” She wiggled her brows again, and I couldn’t help it. I threw my head back and laughed.
“You’re a menace, Ms. Patty.”
“So, Mr. Mayor tells me. Now you go get ready as soon as you can. Though you already look gorgeous. I should be annoyed with how beautiful you look covered in flour. But you’ve always been gorgeous, darling. And I don’t know if you heard, but Isabella and Weston won’t be able to make it tonight.”
My face fell. “What?” I pulled out my phone, then held back a curse when I realized I just covered it in flour. Indeed, my group chat had exploded.
“Everything’s fine, but they had a minor fender bender. And while Weston will fix it, it’s better for them not to chance it with any possible icy roads tonight as a storm’s coming in. So, that’s one fewer Cage I’m going to see. They’re safe though. I’m sure you’ll be able to check your chat.”
She said her goodbyes, and I quickly washed my hands, my phone, and then texted to make sure everybody was okay.
If something had truly happened, I knew Dorian would show up and tell me in person. That’s what he did. He took care of me.
Of course, that just reminded me of Hudson walking into the bakery, showing up to tell me about the accident.
I let out a shuddering breath. Dorian was fine. He was healing.
And I would miss my brother until my dying days.
But wallowing to the point where I couldn’t breathe only made my chest ache more. And considering how hard it was to breathe at this moment, I couldn’t afford any other issues.
I quickly cleaned up and made sure my team was ready to close. We’d be closing in half an hour anyway, and all of the baked goods I had made were either for the party tonight, or sweet doughs that needed to prove overnight.
I loved the fact that the team members that I was slowly adding on could take more responsibilities, and maybe I didn’t need to work sixty to eighty hours a week. I’d done so the past year so I wouldn’t focus on the real world, but now I wanted as much time as I could have with Dorian.
Before he had to go back to his real world.
And my world crashed.