Borrowing Love

Chapter 1

1

Ruby balanced her phone between her shoulder and ear as she wound her bike chain around a tree. “Have you decided what you want on your cake? I just arrived at the bakery.”

“I told you, it doesn’t really matter to me. The cake is going to be delicious either way,” Katie said.

It mattered to Ruby. An ache settled in her chest and she paused outside the bakery door. “What about pink baby booties in the middle with the writing surrounding them?”

“Yeah, sure. That sounds great.”

Ruby sucked in a breath. What had she been thinking? She shouldn’t be the one planning Katie’s baby shower, all things considered. But Katie didn’t have any sisters to do this for her, so as her sister-in-law, Ruby felt obligated to offer. She wished Katie had said no.

“Any last-minute thoughts? Now’s your chance, because I’m ordering the cake in about two-point-three seconds.”

Katie laughed on the other end. “Really, Ruby, I’m fine. You’re much better at this type of thing than me. I trust your judgment.”

“Okay, but no throwing the cake at me if you don’t like it.”

“I never throw a cake when I can eat it. Remember at Sam’s and my wedding?”

Ruby smiled. She remembered. Katie had made such a big deal about Sam not smashing cake in her face at the reception, saying that “it would be such a waste.” That girl loved her desserts.

“All right, point taken. I’ll talk to you later,” Ruby said. She hung up and slipped the phone into her purse as she entered the bakery. Only one other person was in there. The man stood at a display that held nothing but miniature brides and grooms. He studied one of the couples and compared it against a picture in his hand.

The ache in Ruby’s chest intensified. She needed to order this cake as quickly as possible and get out of there.

“Hello?” Ruby called out, not seeing anyone behind the counter.

She glanced around the bakery and shuddered. Displays of different styles of wedding cakes surrounded her. Why did people only order fancy cakes for things like babies and weddings? Ruby was tempted to order a three-tier cake with the words, Congratulations, You Made it to the Weekend!

Ruby scanned the room for a bell she could tap, but then Rebecca walked in from the back.

“I’m sorry, Ruby, I didn’t hear you come in,” she said. She wore an apron with a giant wedding cake embroidered on it. “What can I do for you?”

“I need to order a cake,” Ruby said.

Rebecca’s eyes lit up. “It’s for Katie, no doubt.” She opened a large book, found what she was looking for, then spun it so it was now facing Ruby. “We have three pages of designs you can choose from, or you can customize your own.”

“I actually already know—”

The sound of the door opening diverted Rebecca’s attention and she hurried across the store to greet the newcomers. “Let me know when you decide what you want,” she said over her shoulder.

“I have,” Ruby said, but Rebecca was already talking with the small group. Ruby leaned against the counter to wait for her to come back.

The man who had been comparing bride and groom miniatures walked up and leaned against the counter next to Ruby. “How long do you think it will take for her to realize we’re just standing here and staring at her?” he whispered.

“I’m sorry?” Ruby said.

“I bet you it will take thirty full minutes,” he said with a wave of his hand in the direction of another group that was entering the bakery. “Whenever you have a group of people like that, they all want something different. It’s going to take them forever to decide—plus they’ll want to taste test, of course.”

Ruby stepped away from the counter, not in the mood to engage in conversation. “I’d love to take you up on your bet, but I have someplace I need to—” Ruby’s words caught in her throat when she saw who stood next to her.

“Parker?” she half-whispered. He looked a bit older than when she’d last seen him in high school, but he still had the same curly dark hair and obnoxiously beautiful eyes that could suck a girl in. When his eyes lit up in amusement, Ruby spun away and walked toward Rebecca. Ruby tried to get her attention, but Rebecca was engrossed in listening to a girl and her parents, who were all speaking at once.

With a sigh, Ruby glanced over her shoulder. Parker stood in the same spot, watching her. He wore a slight smirk that most women would consider attractive. Showed what they knew.

Ruby stalked to the other side of the store, where there was another book of cake designs, and she flipped through the pages.

“Really?” Parker said, materializing at Ruby’s side. “Are you sure that is the best choice? I mean, I know weddings can be a bit troublesome at times, but seems a bit dark, don’t you think?”

“I’m just making sure I consider all the options,” Ruby said before realizing that the page she was currently staring at featured a gothic wedding cake. It was kind of cool with black lace surrounding the bottom layer and black roses and pearls on the top. Not quite her style, but she could imagine a really awesome Nightmare Before Christmas themed wedding using it.

“So, when is the big day?” Parker asked.

Ruby’s thoughts turned to the baby shower. She hoped she’d make it through the next few days. “Thursday,” she said absentmindedly. Then she remembered who she was talking to. “Not that it’s any of your business.”

Parker c****d an eyebrow. “You waited this long to order a cake? Good luck with that.”

“It’s never been an issue in the past,” Ruby said, wanting nothing more than to abandon the conversation, and the store.

“So…you do this a lot?” he asked, his amused smile returning. “You don’t seem the type.”

“To do what, exactly?”

Parker’s grin widened, like he knew he’d gotten under her skin. “How long do you string the guy along? Do you make it all the way to the wedding day, or break it off right before? You obviously let it go on long enough to have to order a cake.”

He thought she was here to pick out a wedding cake. Alone. Looked like he hadn’t changed over the last eleven years. “It’s been a long time. You wouldn’t know what my type is,” Ruby said.

“I didn’t know what it was back then, either,” Parker said quietly. “Obviously.”

Ruby narrowed her eyes. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

He looked away. “You should know, and if you don’t, I guess I made a lot less of an impression than I thought I did.”

She folded her arms. “I haven’t seen you for over a decade, and you’re bringing up that one stupid date?”

“It’s only a date if you actually go on it,” Parker said. He turned his back on Ruby and approached Rebecca. His presence must have had the same effect on her as it had on everyone else in high school, because she immediately left the family she had been conversing with and followed Parker to the counter.

“You here to pick up the cake your mother ordered?” Rebecca asked him.

“Yes,” he said. “But as a surprise, I’d like to purchase two of your cake figurines to go with it.”

“Ooh, excellent choice. She is going to love it,” Rebecca said. “Which ones would you like?”

Ruby watched the exchange and wondered how long all this was going to drag on. “Rebecca, I already know what I want and wrote it down for you. Can I just leave it here on the counter?”

Rebecca glanced her way. “Of course, dear. Tell Katie congratulations for me.”

“I will,” Ruby said. She placed her purse on the counter and searched for the scrap piece of paper she had written on. She took out her wallet, three half-empty packages of gum, and two bottles of eye drops, but still no luck. Ruby finally had to turn her purse upside down before she found the cake design smashed on the very bottom of her purse. Of course.

Ruby smoothed the paper out the best she could and left it on the counter. She glanced Parker’s way and, even though Rebecca prattled on about how lovely the figurines were that he had chosen, his attention was on Ruby.

Shoving everything back into her purse, she bolted out the front door. Ruby didn’t know what Parker Loveland was doing in town, but she’d have to make sure she stayed out of his way until he left.