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The scents of sugar and cinnamon filled Kayla's nose, helping to ground her. For Fox Sake Cupcakes was her version of heaven on earth. She didn't need to work, not since she'd come into the trust fund from her dad's death, but if she ever needed a job, this place would be the first spot she would apply.
She knew that bakery work wasn't all sitting around and eating baked goods. Margot worked her ass off—especially this week, since her manager, Kim, had just left for a vacation in Hawaii. But right now, Margot was taking a break during a lull in the rush. She sat at a big table with Kayla, Erena, Nina, and Gemma. And as far as Kayla was concerned, working in a bakery was pretty freaking awesome.
"So you're really going back to the Bitterroots?" Nina asked her from across the table.
Kayla's bite of cinnamon roll suddenly felt dry in her throat. She took a swig of coffee to wash it down. "Yeah. I mean, there's a lot to see there. Sloan and I still have some talking to do, you know?"
She hated the pity that showed in everyone's eyes. They all had at least some limited knowledge of what a creep Sloan was.
"Guys," she said. "Nobody's dying, come on. I owe it to him to see if there's anything between us."
The lie tasted sour in her mouth, but nobody called her on it. She took another swig of coffee.
"Well, I always thought he sounded like a dick," Erena said in her beautifully blunt way. "I didn't know him—you guys left the RCC before Margot and I first arrived. But it's...brave of you to go over there and talk things out. I hope you get everything you want tomorrow."
Kayla's stomach churned, and she set down her cinnamon roll. Tomorrow. It seemed too soon.
The worst part was that she really didn't expect this to be her last visit to Sloan and the Bitterroots. They weren't going to trust her again so soon, especially not Rhiannon. She and Rhiannon had never been friends, but they'd at least exchanged a few friendly conversations. From the way Rhiannon had watched her from the pool the other night, Kayla knew that bridge had not only burned, but been demolished, spat upon, and dumped into the sea to swim with the proverbial fishes.
"Well, sometimes you have to date the wrong asshole before you find the right one," Margot said pointedly, looking at Erena. "And I say that only with sisterly affection for Matt."
Erena laughed, and everyone joined in.
Nina added, "I used to call Jameson an alphahole. But seriously, we're failing the Bechdel test here. Let's talk about something other than guys."
"Well," Margot said, "one of my original cupcakes won an award."
Gemma clapped. "Seriously? That's fantastic! It's the Gemma cupcake, isn't it?"
Margot had named some of her unique cupcakes after the RCC women. The "Kayla" was a white cake with bubble-gum-flavored frosting covered in glittering sugar sprinkles. The "Gemma" was something with salted caramel, if Kayla remembered correctly.
"Actually, it's the 'Erena,'" Margot said.
Erena gave a very un-Erena-like squeal.
The door opened at that moment, and Rex and Parker walked in. Kayla's heart did a flip in her chest. Just the caffeine, she told herself. The flippy-floppy heart had nothing to do with the six-plus-feet of tiger-y goodness stalking into the shop.
A dark bruise marred his cheek, and before she could stop herself, Kayla blurted, "What happened to you?"
Parker's gaze zeroed in on her. "Practice at the gym."
"We're here on a break," Rex said with a grin. He looked around to make sure they were the only people in the shop, then added, "Parker here needed a breather after getting socked in the face. By a human."
Kayla risked the magnetic pull of Parker's gaze to look at his face again. The bruise was already fading, but she could tell this news was only noteworthy because Parker hadn't intended to take the hit. Was he as distracted as Kayla had been, ever since their sexy interlude in her shower?
Face flushing with heat, she quickly looked away. She'd told him to leave afterward, and she stood by that. Until she could get what the clan needed from the Bitterroots, whatever was developing—or not—with Parker had to be put on hold.
A faint buzzing sound came from her bag, but she ignored it. She'd promised herself a reprieve from Sloan for as long as this date with the girls took.
The guys wanted coffee, and Margot waved at them to help themselves while the women talked about Margot's award. Kayla grinned throughout the entire conversation. Margot deserved the recognition for all of her hard work.
"I'd like to order two dozen of the Erena cupcake for the clan," Kayla said.
"What?" Margot said. "Kayla, you know I'll make them for everyone, anyway."
"No, this is your business, and I want to sponsor the celebration of your awesomeness," Kayla said. "Can you have them done tonight?"
"I can't." Margot's shoulders fell. "I have a birthday party to bake for all afternoon. But I can have them ready tomorrow."
"Sounds great," Kayla said. It was only then that she remembered that tomorrow, she wouldn't even be around—she'd be heading to the Bitterroots. Well, that was okay. They'd save her a cupcake.
The guys left the bakery, Rex with a friendly wave, and Parker with a serious nod.
Nina looked at the door as it closed behind them. She turned her attention back to Kayla. "You know, he's gonna drive you to the Bitterroot territory."
"Yeah, he did last time. He said he didn't mind," Kayla said.
"He didn't mind at all," Gemma confirmed.
"Not Rex," Nina said. "Parker."
"What?" Kayla asked. "Why?"
Nina frowned. "I've probably said too much already. I just wanted to give you a head's up."
"Said too much?" Erena asked, raising a dark blond eyebrow. "And there's more? What the hell is going on, then?"
"I really should get some writing done today," Nina said, standing up.
"What, you can't go now," Gemma said. "Not when you obviously have some delicious gossip..."
"No, let her go," Kayla said.
Nina shot her a grateful look. "Walk me outside?"
"Sure."
Kayla waited while Nina grabbed her bag, then followed her to the sidewalk. A couple of cars slowly rolled past, and on the other side of the street, a woman was pushing a stroller while checking out the florist's display of late-spring blooms.
"You know I'd tell you everything if I could," Nina said in a low voice.
Kayla nodded, although she hadn't really known that until now.
"Jameson wants our cabin treated as...I don't know how to describe it. Almost a therapist's office? We both want that, actually—we want everyone in the clan to feel like they can come in and talk about everything, and not have it shared around."
"It makes sense," Kayla said.
It sounded like Parker had come to Jameson and Nina and talked about something sensitive. Had he talked about Kayla? She wondered what he had said. Or, from what she knew of Parker, it was more about what he hadn't said.
Nina continued, "If I thought there was anything you absolutely needed to know, I'd be moving heaven and earth to make sure I could tell you. Us RCC women have to stick together, watch each other's backs. Can you trust that I'm watching yours?"
Nina's eyes were wide and guileless, and they looked wet with emotion.
"Hey," Kayla said, pulling her into a hug. "It's okay, I get it. And I do trust you, completely."
Nina sniffed. "Okay. Thanks. I love you, Special K. Sorry for all the sniffles. Pregnancy hormones, probably."
Kayla took a step back. "Thanks for watching out for me. You're gonna make the best mama."
She watched Nina walk to her car, thinking about what it would be like with Parker driving her to the Bitterroot territory. Confusing, maybe. Heartbreaking, probably. Infuriating, definitely.