Roses & Champagne Kisses Read online

  Roses & Champagne Kisses

  The Heart of the Family Series - Book 2

  Stacy Eaton

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Sneak Peek: Orchids & Hurricane Kisses

  Also by Stacy Eaton

  About the Author

  Copyright 2018, Stacy Eaton, Nitewolf Novels

  All Rights Reserved

  No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the author.

  The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real events or real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

  Created with Vellum

  Chapter 1

  Finley

  “When is the wedding?” I asked my boss and friend, Robin Landry, as she sat across from me at the café counter. Her laptop was open in front of her, fingers poised over the keys as she cocked her head to the side. I could practically see her searching through her memory banks as she pondered the answer to the question.

  “Is it three weeks—or four?” She shook her head, looking a little flustered as she reached for her mouse and began to maneuver to her calendar. I scanned the quaint café as she searched for the information. I couldn’t believe how much I had come to love this cozy café and all that went with it here in Cricklewood Cove in the short time that I’d been here.

  Robin had purchased the business about a year and a half ago from a retiring couple, and she had built it into something so much more than a mere catering company. From what I had heard, Heart of the Family Catering had been in an old building with no room to grow, and it had focused on local events for parties and weddings. That was small potatoes compared to what Robin had created. The business was now located in a newer building that included the Heart of the Family Café and Heart of the Family Bakery, just a walk through the stone archway on the other side of the café seating area.

  The café included a counter seating area like a diner’s, but it was an old wooden bar similar to those normally found in a tavern. We served traditional eggs and bacon, along with soups and sandwiches for lunch, but we also had some incredible culinary specialties that our chefs created for the catering side. Patrons of the café served as guinea pigs, testing new recipes. Our regulars knew that, on Tuesdays, they could expect to receive a small sample of some wonderful concoction, and the café was packed from the time it opened until it closed.

  The bakery, which was the newest addition, specialized in cakes, muffins, cupcakes, and elegant creative pastries for every kind of event. Like most bakeries, they also had the traditional breads and other tasty treats, too.

  I had met Robin at a catered event two months ago, and she’d stolen me from my employer. Well, maybe not stolen, it was more like a rescue. She’d witnessed my slug-boss demeaning me in front of a group of event-goers. It didn’t matter that I had a tray in front of me full of bubbling glasses or that people were waiting impatiently for more drinks. After my ass-of-a-boss stalked away, Robin approached me and asked if he was like that often. I’d been embarrassed and didn’t particularly want to talk to anyone, much less hear a speech about how men shouldn’t talk to women, or employees, that way. I’d sighed and peered at her momentarily. What I’d found in her bright, crystal-clear, blue eyes had stopped me in my tracks. I’d seen anger, frustration, and also understanding, which had given me pause, so I answered honestly.

  “He does it all the time.”

  She’d pursed her lips, glanced around us as if gauging to see who was listening, and then asked, “How would you like to work for me at Heart of the Family Catering?” She smiled as my mouth dropped open. “You’d probably want to move closer to Cricklewood Cove because we’re over two hours from here, but I can help you find a place to live. I own a catering company, café, and bakery there, and we’re the biggest caterer in our county and growing quickly. I could use help in any of those three areas.”

  My jaw still hung open, and I’d wondered briefly if I was drooling. Was she really offering me a job? My eyes scanned her beautiful face and searched above her head for evidence of a halo. She had to be an angel. My luck was never this good.

  “Are you serious?” I’d asked.

  She’d grinned widely. “I’d shake your hand, but your hands are full. I’m Robin Landry, the owner of Heart of the Family. I’ve been watching you work the room, and you’re really good. You deserve better than what that douchebag is doing for you, so—yes, I’m very serious.”

  “Finley Parker,” I nodded as I adjusted the heavy tray of glasses, tempted to set them down and walk away right then and there. Instead, I looked deeply into her bright-blue eyes expectantly. “When can I start?”

  Her laugh had been music to my ears, and she’d told me I could start as soon as I wanted. That night, as soon as the party was over and I’d helped my co-workers clean up, I’d told my boss to kiss my ass, and I’d gone home to pack.

  Robin didn’t know that she had might have saved my life that night. I’d been working up the courage to leave a toxic and slightly abusive relationship, but I hadn’t had any place to go yet. Sure, I could have moved out, but Howie knew where I worked, and he’d figure out where I was living quickly. It wasn’t like Middletown was a metropolis; people talked, and you ran across them all the time. Middletown was the biggest city in this county, but it wasn’t huge by area standards.

  I had packed all my stuff that night and was thankful that Howie had been in one of his snits and hadn’t bothered to come home. I had no doubt that he was screwing some cocktail waitress or stripper, and that was fine with me. I was done with this life, and especially with Howie Wallace.

  Early the next morning, I had loaded everything important to me into my car and had made the journey to start over again. As I had passed the exit for Celebration Township I’d thought to myself, smiling, I might just have a reason to celebrate now.

  A little over an hour later, I had pulled into the parking lot of Heart of the Family and had turned off the engine. I’d glanced at the clock on the dashboard: almost nine-thirty in the morning. As I’d closed my car door and glanced around at the lot full of cars, I had felt happy for the first time in a really long time—I could finally breathe. The heavy weight that normally resided like a howler monkey on my shoulders was gone.

  Now, two months later, I leaned on my elbows at the counter of the café and smiled at my slightly frazzled boss and friend as she finally pulled up the information. “Three weeks—the wedding is three weeks from now. Oh, crap! I really need to get her to finalize her decisions.”

  “And you’re only now meeting with her?”

  “No, this is the third meeting with her in two weeks. She keeps changing her mind. I’m hoping she will finally
decide. Do you know that she has over one thousand roses being flown in for her wedding? I heard she changed her mind six times over the color of them. Plus, she has thousands of yards of tulle going up as decoration around the hall.”

  “Isn’t that a little over the top? Who’s doing the decorating?”

  “I hired a couple of part-time interior designers to help with that—and it is over the top, but so is she.”

  The front door opened, and the little silver bell above made a sweet ding-a-ling sound. A pair of dark hiking boots stepped into view and my eyes slipped up two dark-denim-clad pants legs that were nicely filled. I straightened as I took in his trim waist and the light-blue dress shirt that fit snugly over a wide chest. The body hesitated as if unsure where it was supposed to go and then it began to move in my direction.

  My body temperature must have spiked five degrees as my gaze stayed locked on that wide chest. Fantasies flashed through my mind of those solid forearms that poked out of the rolled-up sleeves curling around my body.

  “Robin,” a deep voice called as the man approached, and I finally tore my lust-filled stare from his body to land on his holy-crap-he’s-handsome face as Robin spun in her chair.

  “Roan,” she replied happily and burst off her stool to hug him. His dark-green eyes landed on mine as he pulled her into his arms and held her tightly.

  Holy-I-think-I-just-died-and-went-to-heaven shit, this guy was freaking gorgeous—not like, man he’s cute, but more like I-need-to-stare-at-this-magazine-page-a-little-longer-and-keep-drooling-model-gorgeous. The fact that the corner of his mouth lifted in a slight smirk as he watched me told me he knew exactly what I was thinking, too. The gleam in his amazing green eyes disappeared as he pulled back and gave Robin his attention. Obviously annoyed with my gawking, he peremptorily dismissed me.

  I tore my gaze from him and busied myself with making a new pot of coffee. Although my forward focus was on the industrial coffee machine, my ears were directed to the conversation behind me.

  “Are you meeting Chris here?” Robin asked.

  “Yeah, and other things. I’m a little early. How are you doing? I didn’t expect you to be here.”

  “I’m good, crazy busy, but really good. Have a seat. Do you want a cup of coffee?”

  “Sure.”

  They settled into seats behind me, and I steeled myself to turn and face them. Before I did, I reached under the counter and collected a mug. Unlike most café coffee mugs, ours weren’t those little six- or eight-ounce cups that only held two swallows of coffee. Our mugs could hold twelve ounces, large enough for a real cup of coffee.

  The mugs also had cute little sayings on them, such as, Love is cuddling with my Coffee, which was what was printed on the mug that I placed in front of him. I turned immediately away and took a few steps to the back counter to wait for the coffee to brew.

  “So business is still going well for you?” he asked Robin.

  “Yes, it is. In fact, I can’t believe how well it is going. I’m looking at locations outside of Middletown to add another catering kitchen because we are getting a lot of requests from that far away. It makes for a really long day for our people if they have to travel two-plus hours, do all the cooking, serving, cleaning, and then travel back.”

  “I bet it does.”

  I closed my eyes as he spoke. His deep voice slid down my spine like butter melting over a stack of fluffy pancakes fresh off the griddle. “I’m glad things are going so well for you. Wade told me that Abigail is getting ready to crawl.”

  Wade? Wait, wasn’t that a friend of Robin’s stepson? Is that how these two knew each other? He’d mentioned Chris, so maybe they were family friends—could I be so lucky?

  “She’s trying, she really is. Did Wade get his paperwork done for college?”

  He chuckled huskily, and that added sweet syrup to my fluffy short stack. I wanted to liquefy onto the floor, but I inhaled deeply and pulled out the now-full pot of coffee. I turned to fill their cups, making sure to keep my attention on what I was doing and not on the man behind the mug.

  I’d met handsome men before, and not just handsome men, but ones that knew they were good-looking and had the arrogance to rival their looks. I much preferred average-looking men that didn’t turn every woman’s head when they walked into a room. I was pretty sure he even turned the heads of some men, he was that freaking gorgeous.

  “Finley,” Robin said excitedly, “this is our friend, Roan.” I gave all my attention to Robin, not the man with the fan-spanking-hot name. Roan—seriously, could it be any sexier? “You know Matt’s best friend, Wade. This is his father.”

  I pasted my most professional smile on and turned to Roan. The minute my eyes landed on him, my knees began to protest, and I struggled to contain the moan inside my chest. “It’s nice to meet you.” I must have been a glutton for punishment because I held my hand out to him pretending that my entire body wasn’t panting with need. My girlie parts were having a party in my pants at his mere smile, so what was his touch going to do to me?

  “It’s a pleasure to meet you, too, Finley. I’ve heard nice things about you.” Another moan almost burst from my lips as my eyelids fluttered at the firm feel of his hand in mine.

  The start his words gave me was the only reason I’d stayed upright on my jelly-filled legs. “You have?”

  His grin broadened. “Yep, Wade told me that you make the best chocolate chip milkshakes, and you always give him an extra berry muffin.”

  My excited woman-bubble burst, but I tried to keep the smile plastered on my lips. I hadn’t expected him to say his son had spoken about me. I thought maybe Robin had mentioned me to him because, if I wasn’t mistaken, Roan was a widower, and Robin was a matchmaker.

  “That’s nice that he mentioned me. He’s a nice kid.” I kept my voice light and didn’t let the weight of my disappointment drag my tone down. “Well, it was nice to meet you. I need to check on the other customers and finish my duties like a good little waitress.”

  His brow furrowed just the slightest as I turned and briskly began to walk away. I noticed Robin’s mouth open wide in surprise, and I knew she’d be asking me what my problem was later. I glanced around the café and suddenly realized that we didn’t have any other customers. Damn, the two people who had been over in the far corner had left while I was drooling over the hottie on the stool. I did an about-face and went into the kitchen instead.

  Martin, our cook, wasn’t in the kitchen which was good since I wouldn’t have another witness to my mortification. I walked straight to the walk-in freezer and jerked open the door, prepared to throw myself through the long, clear, plastic flaps that hung to keep the cold in. Just as I was about to break the plane of plastic, a distorted face appeared on the other side, and I screamed and jumped back.

  Behind me was a crate of vegetables that had just been delivered, and I lost my balance as I tried to keep from falling on them. Instead, I tipped to the side and hit the counter, bouncing off and falling toward the floor as my hands landed on a bag of powdered sugar precariously settled on the counter. The two of us went to the floor, and as the twenty-pound bag of powdered sweetness caught the edge of the stainless-steel counter, it tore wide open. A white cloud exploded into the air as gravity pulled the rest to snow down over me. A few seconds later, the kitchen door burst open, and I literally wanted to die as my alarmed eyes landed directly on Roan standing behind Robin.

  Martin reached for me, and I waved him off. I closed my eyes for a moment and internally groaned at my lack of luck.

  “Finley! Are you alright?”

  Robin rushed toward me, and I held my hand up to stop her. Unfortunately, I was too late, and she stepped into the sweet powder in her flats and her foot went right out from under her. I saw the twist to her ankle as she went down, and I cringed as I heard her scream.

  I rushed to my knees. “Robin? Are you okay?”

  Roan instantly showed up on her other side.

  She held her ankle
with both hands. “Shit! Shit! Shit!” she exclaimed as she rocked back and forth and tears streamed down her cheeks. “No, I think I just broke it.”

  Chapter 2

  Roan

  I had two reasons to be here today, one was good, the other was semi-required, and I was—as usual—early. Might as well grab a cup of coffee and maybe a snack before Chris arrived, I thought as I climbed out of my Range Rover and headed into the café.

  I was happy for my best friend, Chris Landry. We’d been friends for a few years mostly because our sons went to school together and they had been close for years. It wasn’t until after Chris had won the lottery and moved into his new house that we had really gotten to know one another—not that I was interested in his lottery money, I couldn’t have cared less, but he’d started a business that required my skills on occasion.

  Lately, with the spectacular growth of his business, he needed me more often and even had me doing background checks on the employees that his wife, Robin, hired for her company.

  That’s why, when I entered the café, my day was looking up as I took in Ms. Finley Parker at the counter. Her pictures hadn’t done her justice; her incredibly long, thick, dark hair, and her deep-emerald eyes were way more vibrant in person even from across the room. They were also a bit glazed as they slid up my body.