Page 18 of Grounding the Baker
“No need for that, Maisie,” he said before walking back to the counter and taking a plate off Chloe which had a cupcake on it.
Liam put it on the table in front of Austin. It was decorated in colours that resembled several of his plaid shirts. He laughed.
“Chocolate orange flavour,” said Liam with a grin.
Fuck! This guy was too much.
“Are you going to join us?” asked Austin.
Liam looked at Chloe. She nodded at him, gestured to the coffee machine, and made a shooing motion with her hands. Liam chuckled and sat down. Sadly, he took the seat next to Maisie, but then at least Austin could look at him and hopefully not be too creepy about it.
“What do I owe you for the cupcakes?” said Austin.
Liam shook his head. “Nothing. My treat.”
Austin frowned. Liam had gone to a lot of trouble to make these for his daughter. They weren’t even part of the menu. The least Austin could do was to pay him for his time. Before he could say anything, Liam put his hand up to silence him.
“You really helped me the other night. I can’t expresshow much it meant to me. This is how I say thank you, so will you let me do that?”
Sneaky fucker!
How could he push back against that? Austin didn’t think he’d done anything special, just been there when a friend was in need, because that was at least how he saw Liam now. He’d been walking past the bakery and had caught movement, so he’d looked through the window, worried it might be a burglar. Then he’d seen Liam on the floor. The place had been in darkness, but it was a clear night. He’d looked broken, sitting on the floor by himself. What was he supposed to do? Just walk past and leave him? Austin wouldn’t have done that with anyone, but it being Liam had pulled at his instinct to protect and care.
“How are you feeling today?” asked Austin.
“Better, thank you. I enjoy being here. It helps.”
Liam had his hands clasped together, and Austin had an urge to take his hands and rub them until he relaxed, but he held back. Liam needed Austin to be his friend now, and with Maisie sitting next to them, she’d ask questions. He’d never mentioned his bisexuality to her because it hadn’t been necessary. It was something he’d have told her when she was older. When Ellie died, he didn’t think about being in a relationship again, but now he was clearly open to it, he would need to have the conversation with her at some point soon.
He glanced at Maisie, who was happily eating her first muffin. Austin took a bite of his and couldn’t help but close his eyes and moan. These were always heavenly. He would never say this aloud, but Liam was a better baker than Sylvie. Not that he was biased or anything.
He opened his eyes and saw Liam staring at him, his mouth slightly open, which caused Austin to have somevery inappropriate thoughts. Liam shook his head as if he was trying to reboot his brain. It was adorable. He glanced at Austin again before turning his attention to Maisie with a beautiful blush on his face.
“Are you looking forward to the festival, Maisie?” asked Liam.
“What festival?”
“It’s the Festival of Love in February, which is on the weekend after Valentine’s Day. It’s the first festival of the year.”
“How many festivals are there?”
“A lot. Almost one every month.”
“Oh, wow. Can we go to the Festival of Love, Dad?”
“Of course.”
“Are you coming with us, Liam?” asked Maisie with childlike innocence, but Austin knew his daughter well enough to know she was up to something.
“I’ll be there,” he said. “We have a booth there.”
Austin couldn’t help but feel disappointed. He would have liked Liam to go with them rather than be working.
“Will it be a lot of extra work?” asked Austin.
“We always close the bakery and just have the stall for the day. I’ll bake some extra, but when we run out, that will be it.”
“Do you need any help?”
