Little Cowgirl on His Doorstep. DONNA ALWARD
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was her favorite time of year, and this year she and Nell would cozy up together during the longer evenings and she could knit to her heart’s content.
They stopped at a bakery and Avery paid closer attention. This was her world—sugar and flour and butter and all the other mysterious, wonderful things that went into baking. The plain storefront window and shelving showcased a good selection of what she guessed to be high-quality items—good home-cooking if she were any judge. The bread was golden-brown and looked beautifully light, the pies were heavy with fruit, the crusts perfectly fluted and the meringue on the lemon ones stood a good two inches thick, the swirled peaks golden. There were cookies, squares, and cakes, too, but the cakes were boring: vanilla and chocolate, plainly decorated, without a bit of creativity. There was no fondant or sugar flowers, just buttercream piped through various tips. And only one lonely tray of chocolate cupcakes. Nice, but lacking in imagination and technique for sure.
She bought a cupcake and ventured back outside to eat it. Two stores away she spied a bench and she pushed the stroller to it, locked the wheels, handed Nell a rattle to keep her occupied and finally bit into the cake.
It wasn’t bad. Not imaginative by any stretch, but the texture was good. A higher grade of cocoa would make a big difference. It wasn’t quite to The Icing on Top standard, but then Avery made her living at the boutique bakery, specializing in cakes and cupcakes to order. She was always looking for new variations to experiment with, and loved how every day she always made something new. Lately her favorite had been making custom decorations for the tops of cupcakes. Her favorite so far had been the tiny mortarboards she’d done for June graduations, complete with gold leaf tassels. For one party she’d done red velvet cupcakes with white buttercream to match the redand-white school colors. They’d been a huge hit. And last month had been insane with weddings. More and more brides were choosing cupcakes over a traditional wedding cake. The lemon chiffon cakes with edible flowers on top were to die for.
She’d just licked the last of the frosting from her fingers when a shadow fell over the bench. She angled her face up to see Callum standing over them. At least this time his shirt was neatly tucked in and his hair had been combed…sort of. It still hung past his collar, giving him a rough and ready appearance, and he hadn’t shaved, either. She usually didn’t go in for facial hair, but she had to admit his rugged appearance made him seem both a little dangerous and incredibly sexy.
Her heart began to pound faster as she looked up into his eyes. Not because it was him, she assured herself, but because she hadn’t planned on seeing him again and having him appear out of the blue felt like trouble was on its way. She should have known better than to let down her guard—should have known it had been too easy yesterday.
“Hello,” she said quietly.
“Hi. I stopped by the bed-and-breakfast looking for you. Jim and Kathleen said you’d decided to have a look around town.”
Her heartbeat quickened even more. “So you came looking for me?”
“Yeah. I did.”
The sidewalk traffic was sparse and while Avery didn’t want anyone eavesdropping on their conversation, there was a small comfort in being in a public place. “Do you want to sit down, Callum?”
She’d used his first name, she realized. Up until now it had been Mr. Shepard. Even this small familiarity seemed intimate and she made a point of breaking eye contact, looking down at Nell. She fussed with the baby’s outfit even though everything was perfectly fine.
“You don’t want to go somewhere more private?” he asked, and her pulse skipped.
“There’s no one around, and Nell likes it outside. See how contented she is?”
Some “ba, ba” sounds came from the stroller, along with rattles from the toy as Nell batted her hands up and down.
The shadow disappeared as Callum moved to the side and took a seat on the bench.
Avery looked over at him. He was staring at Nell, his face unreadable. Like he was looking for something and not finding it. She waited a moment or two and then nudged. “Is there something you wanted to talk to me about?”
He sat back, resting his hands on his jeans. “About yesterday…”
“I believe you made your thoughts clear.”
“I was shocked.”
“Clearly.” Nell dropped the rattle and Avery picked it up, dusted it off and gave it back to her.
“Wouldn’t you be?” he asked quietly. “If someone showed up on your doorstep with news like that?”
“So you no longer think I’m a con artist out to scam you?”
“I never called you that.”
She looked him square in the eye. “You thought it.”
He looked away first this time. “Yes, I did.”
Last night she’d had time to consider his response. Yes, he’d been rude and boorish but she put herself in his shoes and understood the skepticism. Then she’d spent too much time wondering at the change in him. The man she remembered had been friendly and fun, though at times he’d stood away from the others, looking lonely. But he’d been impeccably groomed with not a hair out of place, and he’d lit up when Crystal walked into a room…
“Look, Miss Spencer…Avery.” He, too, dropped the formality and it did something funny to her insides, hearing him say her name like that.
He sighed. “Why did you come? What did you expect me to say?” He paused. “How did you really see all this playing out?”
“Which question do you want me to answer first?”
“Whatever explains it best,” he replied.
She waited for a couple of ladies to pass by. They paused and smiled down at Nell—she really was an angel—before carrying on their way.
“I meant what I said about you having a right to know,” she began, fighting to keep her voice even. “And Nell has a right to know about you, too. But I also meant what I said about not wanting anything from you. I didn’t come here looking for money or…material support. Crystal gave me guardianship of Nell and we have a good home together. It’s not big but it’s comfortable and cozy. I love her as my own. I want to watch her grow up and when she’s old enough I want to be able to tell her the truth about her parents.”
“You mean like how she has a dad who couldn’t be bothered with her?”
Avery’s gaze snapped to him in surprise. Damn him, she still couldn’t read his expression. Was he saying he believed Nell was his now? Or merely speaking in generalities? She took her time coming up with a response. After all, she didn’t want to antagonize him. She was walking a precarious line.
“That would rather be up to you,” she said softly. “But perhaps more accurate would be a dad who cared enough to see she was brought up in a home where she was wanted and loved.”
“You want me to give up my rights.”
She could feel his eyes on her, penetrating like they were boring a hole right into her skull. “Do I want to legally adopt her? Of course. This isn’t about denying you anything, Callum. It’s about a secure future for Nell.” She made herself face him. “Just yesterday you were certain you didn’t have any rights. Have you changed your mind?”
His eyes were dark and rich, like the deepest espresso she used in her mocha fudge recipe. They were the kind of eyes that a woman could get lost in if she let herself. The kind that held dark secrets. A man like Callum Shepard was a broody, wounded warrior that a lot of women would see as a personal challenge. The kind that would make a woman want to be the one to break down the walls and get to the man underneath.
Assuming, of course, they didn’t get their hearts broken first. Avery certainly couldn’t afford a challenge like that. That sort of thinking almost always ended in disaster. She’d seen way too