Chapter 18
Chapter Eighteen
“ T hese are amazing, Jules."
"I can’t wait for your bakery to open again.”
Every kind word spoken at the community picnic reaffirmed Jules’s decision to follow her dream of reopening the bakery in her hometown. She liked the notion of people far and wide enjoying her food. But she had to admit there was nothing like seeing the smiles and hearing the delighted yums of the people she'd grown up with and cared about. This was what she was meant to do.
“I’m working hard to get it ready as soon as possible,” Jules said as the third person today made the same inquiry as to when the bakery would reopen.
"Yes, I can see," said Mrs. Thompson, who could trace her ancestors back to the first settlers in town. "You and that new husband of yours. With muscles like that, he can do the job all by himself."
As she handed out another tray of cookies, Jules glanced up and saw Fish at the other end of the table. He was delicately putting intricate icing on the pastries they had baked together, his large hands moving with surprising finesse. For such a big and strong man, he was incredibly gentle. Her lips tingled at the memory of his touch, the unexpected intimacy of it still lingering in her mind.
The alarm bells had been going off all day. First her sugar monitor. Then the oven timer. But somewhere in between that, her heart had started racing just from being near Fish all morning.
She'd wanted to kiss him. Or for him to kiss her. Or for them to meet somewhere in the middle and kiss each other.
Shouldn't she feel shame about that? She had a boyfriend, after all. Didn't she?
She'd hardly thought about Amari these past couple of days. But she'd had a lot on her mind. Namely, the bakery. And who was always in the bakery, working on every detail of her plan and making sure her vision was coming to life: Fish, her husband.
Did it even make sense to worry over hurting her boyfriend's feelings when she had a husband to look after? Not that Fish needed any looking after. He was always watching out for her.
Though right now, Misty Douglas was eyeing her man's backside. Fish paid the flirt no mind. He didn't even offer her a smile. In fact, Jules couldn't remember ever seeing the man smile.
Except right now. He was smiling now. But his gaze wasn't on Misty. It was on her.
“You look happy, Jule-bug. Glowing, even.”
Jules tore her gaze away from her husband to give her sister her attention. Jacqui brushed her fingertips over Jules' cheeks. The traitorous skin there heated in a blush.
“It’s just... everything is going so well. People love the pastries.”
Jacqui smiled, her eyes twinkling with knowing. “I’m not even mad that you stole my sous chef from me. He’s doing a great job over there.”
“We can still share Fish, you know.”
"Yeah, I don't think you'd say that to Misty. It’s clear that Fish is all yours.”
The statement caused a flutter of emotion to rise within her. Jules looked over at Fish. He was crouched low among a group of children who'd swarmed his plate of cookies. As he straightened, he caught her gaze and smiled warmly. The connection between them felt tangible, a promise of something deeper.
“You deserve to be happy. And it looks like Fish makes you very happy.” Jacqui squeezed her shoulder, her smile turning gentle before heading off to join Noah.
Jules was happy, and it was largely Fish's doing. She'd always had a smile for Fish when he came into the bakery to help her. Back then, he never said much. He never asked for anything either. Even then, he'd anticipate her needs, fix what was broken, clear the path of the unnecessary out of her way.
Now that he was closer, now that their paths were aligned, Jules had had an easier time of… well, everything.
Suddenly, she felt a familiar touch at the back of her arm. A gentle pressure that she instinctively expected to be Fish. Her heart quickened, and she turned with a smile, ready to see his comforting presence. Her smile faded as she found herself face to face with Amari.
"Hey, babe." His smile was strained. It was the professional one he wore when they were in a crowd of people but something or someone annoyed him. "We need to talk."
A knot tightened in Jules’s stomach. She wanted to jerk away from his touch, an instinctive reaction that both surprised and confused her. Amari was the man she loved, right? The man she had dreamed of marrying. She should feel comforted by his touch, not repelled.
Jules glanced over at Fish. He was still at the other end of the table applying icing to a new set of pastries as kids surrounded him, peering down at his work. He looked like a giant among Lilliputians. Just the sight of him brought her a sense of calm, a feeling of rightness that settled her racing heart. His presence was like a soothing balm, easing the turmoil within her.
"Jules." Amari called her name again, his tone tinged with impatience.
She reluctantly turned back to him, feeling a swirl of conflicting emotions. She owed him her attention, at least for now. But turning back to him felt like turning into the face of a snow storm. The cold seeped into her bones as though she felt the weight of ice piling up around her.
"What is it, Amari?" she asked, trying to keep her voice steady.
"I've changed my mind."
"About what?"
"Us."
He was breaking up with her? That should make her feel upset. But it didn't. She felt relief.
"I want us to get married."
"You want… what?"
Jules felt as if she’d been plunged into a full-on blizzard. The world around her lost all its warmth. She wasn’t shocked—she was numb. Amari's words echoed in her mind, but they felt distant, as though she were hearing them from far away.
“It’s not going according to plan. Everyone in town knows my girlfriend is married. It’s not looking good for me—people are talking. My prospects at the hospital are being affected. I can’t afford to be passed over for promotions because of this.”
She stared at him, disbelief and a growing sense of anger bubbling up inside her. But her tone was ice cold. “So…you want me to just dump Fish and marry you to save your reputation?”
Amari nodded, as if this was the most logical solution in the world. “You’ll tell everyone it was a mistake. That you got swept up in the moment, but now you’ve realized who you really love. We can plan our wedding for the summer, right after the hospital’s annual gala. It’ll be perfect, Jules.”
The way he said her name, like he was offering her a gift, made her feel like she was coming down with a cold. She took a step back, her body suddenly feeling too hot, too confined. “Amari, are you even listening to yourself? You’re not asking me to make things right for us—you’re asking me to make things right for you.”
He frowned, clearly not understanding her hesitation. “I’m doing this for us, Jules. We had a plan.”
“Yeah, your plan. You’re not thinking about what’s best for me, Amari. You’re only thinking about what looks good for you. You’ve always been like this, haven’t you? Always so focused on your image, on what other people think.”
Her words hung in the air, sharp and pointed. She saw a flicker of something in his eyes—maybe it was realization or maybe just annoyance. But he quickly masked it, his expression hardening.
“So what? You’re going to stay with Fish? You don’t love him.”
She hesitated, her mind racing. Did she love Fish? She didn’t know—not yet. But what she did know was that he cared for her, respected her, and never once tried to make her fit into a mold that suited him.
The numbness began to fade, replaced by a rising tide of clarity. Jules realized with startling certainty that she didn’t want to divorce Fish. Even more importantly, she didn’t want to marry Amari.
Before she could tell him so, she felt a warm presence behind her, a comforting light that chased away the cold. She knew without turning that it was Fish. His nearness brought a sense of peace and protection, something she desperately needed at that moment.
In a deep, growly tone that sent shivers down her spine, Fish spoke. “Take your hands off my wife.”
Amari’s eyes widened in surprise and anger, but he dropped his hands from Jules’ arms. “This is between me and Jules.”
"There is no you and Jules. You forfeited that right the moment I put my ring on her finger."
Fish's ring wasn't currently on her finger. It was around her neck on a chain. No one batted an eyelash when she explained that it was because she rolled dough on a daily basis. But the ring was never far from her person. In its resting place over her heart, it gave a jump as the organ beat fiercely at the scene unfolding before her.
"We made a deal," said Amari.
"The only deal I made was with Jules. And unless she asks me for a divorce, I'm not going anywhere."
Fish turned his gaze on her and said the six most amazing words that anyone had ever said to her. Words that made her heart not so much as skip beats as it made them pound harder, stronger. His words made the blood rush to her head, which was a bit dangerous for a diabetic. But Jules threw caution to the wind because no one but Fish had ever said anything like this to her before.
"Tell me what you want, Jules."