Chapter 6 Camille
Red roses. Here. In Granny Jo’s hospital room.
It can’t be a coincidence.
I glance at the arrangement and spot the bright white card. My fingers tremble as I grab it and flip it over to read the message. It’s blank.
Relief washes over me, and I toss the card in the trash.
Granny Jo frowns as I face her, trying to settle the anxious beating of my heart. “Does it say who sent them?”
I shake my head. “No. I guess you have a secret admirer after all.”
She laughs. “It’s because I’m so irresistible.”
“You’re right,” I agree, forcing a smile. She doesn’t need to know about the roses I received in L.A., it’ll only worry her, and that’s something she doesn’t need right now.
I think everything is fine until I notice Rex’s stare. He’s figured out something is wrong. I can see the gears churning in his head. Phantom is watching him and glancing between us.
“Cami, we need to talk.”
“Now?”
“Yeah. Now.” He gestures to the hallway. “Just a few minutes.”
I can’t refuse him in front of Granny. He knows it.
With a sigh, I agree.
Phantom stays in the room with Granny Jo as I leave the room, and Rex follows. He’s tense. His shoulders block the doorway as he shuts it behind us.
The hall is empty, giving us privacy.
“Tell me what’s going on. Please,” he adds like he realizes after the fact that he’s been demanding.
“It’s nothing,” I lie, not wanting to worry about something that isn’t a problem.
“Camille.” He isn’t buying it. “I saw how you reacted. It’s not nothing.”
Fine. He’s not going to drop it. “I have a fan who likes to send me gifts.”
His eyes darken. “Is it the same fan that tried to break into your hotel room?”
Shit. I forgot he knows that. I’ve been so distracted with Granny Jo, I’m not thinking clearly. “Yes. I think so.”
He takes a step toward me. “He sent you red roses in the past.”
“Yes,” I repeat.
“And those,” he pauses to tick his head toward the room. “Are they from your enthusiastic fan?”
“I don’t know,” I answer honestly. “The card is blank.”
Rex moves closer as I back into the wall, trying to keep distance between us. “It’s not been before, right?”
I shake my head.
“What does he say to you?” There’s a growl to his tone like he’s pissed or concerned. I can’t tell.
“He always signs in the same: Your #1 fan.”
Rex places his palm on the wall, leaning closer as I stay locked with his discerning gaze. He sees too much. “When is the last time you received them?”
“Last night,” I whisper.
“But that’s not all. There’s more.”
How the hell does he know that? “Yes,” I tell him, revealing what happened at the studio, waking up to find the roses in my room, about how I felt like someone followed me, but I couldn’t prove it.
“Fuck.” He shoves away from the wall, cracking his neck. “Do you think he’ll follow you here?”
I honestly had no idea. Shrugging, I try to hold it together because this is almost too much. “It doesn’t matter. We need to focus on the bakery and Granny’s attacker.”
His gaze snaps to mine. “They’re equally important.”
I’m not going to argue with him. “Rex, let it go.”
“No.”
Phantom opens the door and sticks his head out. “Everything okay?”
Rex growls at him. “Fuck no.”
I just smile, refusing to indulge this any longer. “Yep.”
Phantom shakes his head. “Damn. What do I need to know, Mountain?”
I’m not sticking around for this discussion. “You too figure it out. I’m going back in with Granny. She needs me.”
Phantom opens the door, and I slip inside under his arm, ducking before I walk to Granny’s bed and take a seat in the chair. The door clicks shut as Phantom moves into the hallway with Rex. I can hear the urgency in Rex’s voice even if the words aren’t discernible.
I know I should be grateful that he’s concerned, but it just makes me think about how he treated me three years ago, and I can’t believe any of it is sincere.
Granny reaches for my hand and holds it. “You’re hiding something.”
“I don’t want to worry you. It’s probably nothing.”
“Tell me, Cami, honey. Holding it in gives it power over you. Cut it loose so you can breathe.”
Such wisdom. My Granny Jo is a brilliant and discerning woman. Keeping secrets never works when she’s nearby. I swear she’s got a witchy sixth sense.
Maybe it’s the Salem bloodline that gives her that ability.
“I have an enthusiastic fan,” I admit. “He sends me red roses.”
She glances at the roses on her table. “Are these from him?”
“I don’t think so because the card is blank and he always leaves the same message, telling me that he’s my number one fan.”
Granny gestures to the flowers. “Throw them in the trash.”
“They probably aren’t from him. You sure?”
She nods. “Yeah. There’s a weird aura around these. I don’t like them.”
I pick up the vase and take it to the sink, pouring out the water before I toss the roses into the trash. It’s then that I see a crumpled, slightly wet piece of paper. It was hidden until now.
I pluck it from the trash and set the glass vase by the sink, slipping the paper into my pocket without Granny noticing.
I’ll read it later when no one else is around.
I don’t have time to second-guess my choice because the door opens and the doctor comes in.
Rex and Phantom linger in the hallway, listening as the doctor tells Granny that she’s healing well and that she can go home.
Good. Once she's settled, I can take a ride to the bakery and see the damage. Rebuilding is a priority. The Butter Bliss is our lifeline. It provides for Granny, and I won’t let the fire destroy what our family has invested in all these years. It’s a part of us and our history.
I’ll contact the insurance company tomorrow and start the claim.
I make a mistake when I look in the direction of the bikers. Rex snatches my gaze and holds it as I lift my chin. I can handle him, the bakery, and my crazed fan. After all, I’m a Parker, and we always persevere.
“YOU WANT TO DO WHAT?” Rex asks, his left eye twitching like I’m being unreasonable.
“I wasn’t talking to you or asking permission,” I snarl. Turning back to Phantom, I give him my best, maybe slightly flirty smile. “Will you take me?”
Rex steps in front of his biker buddy, cutting through the air with his hand. “If you’re going to the bakery, I’m taking you.”
“Phantom?” I ask, ignoring Rex.
Phantom starts laughing, and Rex shoots him a glare over his shoulder. “Man, I didn’t sign up for this. I’m gonna visit with Granny Jo.” He walks away, leaving Rex and me in a standoff.
“It’s not safe, Cami. It’s a fucking pile of ash and ruin. There’s nothing left.”
Ugh. I tilt my head back and sigh. My chin drops, and I know he can see the tears I’m suddenly fighting back. “I need to see it.”
His expression changes in an instant, morphing from a combination of frustration and determination to concern. Understanding finally registers as he nods. “I’m taking you.” His tone is softer, almost pleading.
“Okay.”
Some of the coiled tension in his body releases. “When do you want to leave?”
“Let me check in with Granny first.” I leave him in the kitchen as he refreshes the coffee in his stainless steel tumbler.
It occurs to me that he’s familiar with the layout in Granny’s kitchen, knowing his way around like he’s here often. My jaw grinds as I wonder if he visits Granny more than I’ve heard.
Rex used to have dinner with Granny Jo and me every Wednesday and Sunday night. That was before he broke my heart, and I left town to escape him. I ran because I couldn’t deal with the humiliation and rejection, but I also needed distance from this town and all its memories.
The only reason I’ll ever set foot in Raven’s Crest is because of Granny. She’s everything to me. I’ll do whatever it takes to get the bakery back on its feet, but once it is, I’m leaving.
Rex can have as many dinners as he wants with my grandmother. It doesn’t change the past.
Phantom’s chuckle reaches me before I enter Granny’s room. She’s sitting up in bed, a blanket draped over her lap and a diamond art set beside her. Thank God it’s not a bedazzled penis.
“I’m going to the bakery,” I tell Granny. “I need to see the damage. There probably isn’t anything salvageable, but I have to be sure.”
“Of course. Take photos for the insurance company.”
“I will,” I promise.
“Be careful. The fire spread throughout the whole store. I don’t think the structure is stable. I’m afraid the roof might collapse on you.”
I already thought of that. “That’s why the big mountain will check before I go in.”
Phantom ticks his chin toward the door, and I turn, seeing Rex. “He’s got you.”
His confidence and evident respect for his club brother keep me from saying anything snarky.
“We’ll be back late,” he tells Phantom. “The Fear Farm will be busy tonight.”
Right. The Fear Farm. How did it escape my notice that it’s the busy season? Tourists will be shopping and filling the streets as they visit the attractions and corn maze. The haunted hayride draws in a crowd, and the line is usually long.
It’s been years since I’ve been home. I’ve forgotten how alive the town feels from September through November. It’s like something mystical takes over, the veil between the living and the dead thins, and the shadows feel like they’re watching, waiting, and plotting mischievous deeds.
It’s always been a favorite time because of the candy apples, popcorn, freshly baked pies, and the thrill of the season. L.A. nearly bleached the memory from my brain.
“I’m going to change, and then we’ll go,” I tell Rex before I leave the three of them alone in Granny’s room.
I take the stairs up to my room, entering as I see that nothing is out of place.
Granny hasn’t changed a thing since I left.
My shelves are still stocked with all my cooking books and romance novels.
The awards I’ve won in baking competitions are the only addition.
Granny has added them to the big board on my wall.
Newspaper clippings and online articles she’s printed.
Every accomplishment I’ve had since I left.
“Oh, Granny,” I whisper. I love her so much.
Once I change my clothes and grab my purse, I meet Rex at the front door. He’s taken a few minutes to freshen up. His flannel is a different color, and I can smell his woodsy, fresh pine-scented cologne.
“You ready?”
I nod. Let’s get this over with.
The drive into town is quiet. We don’t say more than a few polite sentences to one another. Even so, it’s not uncomfortable. More like a temporary truce.
The second he parks and I exit his truck, I’m hit with a wave of nostalgia.
It smells like fall in the air. I close my eyes briefly and inhale all the delicious smells, enjoying all my favorites like cocoa, cinnamon, and pumpkin.
The Mystic Emporium is already busy with a few employees dressed as witches handing out bubbling cups of hot cider to customers from a massive cauldron.
All the shops are open late. It’s a tradition in the fall and during the festival season.
Now that it’s October, they’ll fill every hotel, bed & breakfast, and RV park within at least thirty miles of Raven’s Crest. The business will keep everyone fed and the lights on through the winter.
It’s a blessing to our small town, one that the townspeople have embraced.
I’ve missed it.
Fall isn’t the same in L.A.
It’s only a short walk to the Butter Bliss, but when I see it, I stumble.
Rex reaches out to steady me as we approach the entrance.
It’s been blocked off with caution tape and steel barricades, which probably won’t keep everyone out of the bakery, since there’s always someone who thinks it’s okay to trespass.
That’s when I see Boomer. He’s the sheriff and Scythe’s brother. He nods to me as if he knows what I’m thinking. It’s a relief to see security, because it means no one will be hurt or trampling the bakery’s ashes. “She can go in. It’s secure enough.”
Rex doesn’t look happy about it, but he thanks Boomer before leading me around the back to the employee entrance. I use the key to let us in, and gasp. It’s worse from this side.
The bakery is burned to a crisp, blackened and charred until it’s unrecognizable. Nothing about the pink and white décor remains. It’s an ugly, dead thing now—a burial site for the Butter Bliss.
It’s so shocking that I can’t hold the emotion inside. A cry leaves my lips, and Rex steps towards me. I launch myself into his chest, clutching at his flannel shirt as the tears fill my eyes and overflow.
“It’s gone,” I blubber.
Of course, I knew that already. But it’s one thing to be told about it and another to see it.
All the hard work we put into the Butter Bliss.
The years we spent making memories. These walls will never smell like vanilla and cinnamon again.
They’ll never witness the happy customers who ooh and ahh over the baked goods we set out each day.
Rex’s arms slowly envelop me in his embrace. He murmurs soft words as his hand soothes the sorrow building inside me, smoothing over my back as he comforts me. I feel his lips press to the top of my head. “I’m sorry, Blissy Girl.”
Wait.
This is Rex. I can’t be in his arms.
The moment is shattered as I push away from him, dashing my fingers under my eyes to wipe away the tears.
I hate that I’m crying, but it also feels appropriate.
I’m mourning the loss of something that means a lot to my family and me.
Rebuilding won’t be the same. It’ll never be the shop I grew up in, helping my mother and Granny Jo in the kitchen, trying new recipes.
Smelling like brown sugar and spices. Tasting the first bites of buttercream frosting after it’s whipped.
I sniffle and hiccup as I pull my phone out of my purse and start taking photos. I’m meticulous for our records, taking much longer than necessary to get what we need. It takes me that long to recover from the shock of seeing the bakery in ruins.
“Hello?”
I turn around and find two people entering the bakery.
The first is a stranger. He looks around the interior and then at me. “I’m the insurance agent Josephine Carter called. My name is Gary. Are you Camille?”
I nod. “Yes.”
He moves forward as I see Emma Johnston saunter toward Rex. She swings her hips like she’s ringing a goddamn dinner bell. I don’t have time for her or whatever drama she’s got going on with Rex.
I turn to the insurance agent. “Walk me through the process.”