Two years later
The café was buzzing with patrons, and there wasn’t an empty seat anywhere to be found. Hiring the extra help had been the best idea Melvina had ever had. With the passing of time, Melvina had trained Maurice’s mom, Maria, to bake, and his dad, Jose, to help run the front end of the store.
Jose was working the register while Maria ran food for Roberta and Darcey. Maurice’s mom was taking the second language class at the high school at nights and helping out on the morning shifts. It wouldn’t make them rich like Maurice had hoped for his family, but Melvina could see the many changes that benefited them. The Salas’ now had a chance to make a better future for themselves.
Melvina passed by the newly remodeled office and spotted Pop with a cup of coffee and his feet on the desk. They may have remodeled the old café and expanded by adding the bakeshop inside, but some things would never change.
“Melvina, you’re needed at the bakery counter,” Roberta called through the cook’s slot.
Melvina hurried out front to find Riley leaning over the baked goods glass. One section was full of cinnamon rolls, bear claws, and every kind of cake and pie imaginable. The other side was filled entirely with cupcakes.
Even though Pop’s Café had been renamed The Cupcake Diner and Dive, it still had the flavor of Pop’s homestyle food, but with a wide array of Melvina’s baked goods. The idea to use the extra land and double the restaurant space to add an in-house bakery had been Riley’s idea. When he’d proposed, he put the image into Melvina’s mind, and she’d been thrilled with the vision. She realized she could have her dream without leaving Pop’s
Pop, Eli and Riley were all family now, and a good family stayed together.
The remodeled café had quickly turned into a gold mine, which meant putting off their honeymoon. A minor disappointment, as they were well on their way to building their dreams together and there was nothing to stand in their way.
Now that a year had passed since their wedding and the grand opening of their joint restaurant, they were finally leaving for that much-needed honeymoon. Which brought her mind back to the beautiful specimen of a man staring back at her from across the bake counter.
“Mrs. Nash, are you going to let your entrusted family and employees take over, or am I going to have to hop over this counter and carry you out of here?”
Melvina’s eyes sparkled as she leaned over to kiss him. “They’re our employees, remember? You helped build this place.”
“It was my wedding gift to you,” he reminded her. “I’m just here to support you along the way, as promised. Besides, I’ve got my own employee issues at Braised, but I think my manager has it under control until we get back.” He took her hand and looked down at the ring he’d given her the night of the chili cookoff. “Now, how about that honeymoon?”
“You mean you taking me away to an island to lie in the sand with you, drink fruity cocktails on the beach and have unmentionable sex in a super air-conditioned plush hotel room with no one around to bother us?”
“That’s exactly what I’m talking about!” His white teeth flashed as he bit his bottom lip with anticipation.
She grew serious for a moment as her eyes roved over his masculine frame, handsome face and dark tinted sunglasses. She couldn’t believe they’d met just over two years ago, and now they lived on a beautiful ranch with Humphrey, Lulu and Leo. She had fulfilled all of her dreams. She had her cupcake bakery and the best man she could have ever wished for.
“Penny for your thoughts?”
Melvina remembered Riley saying that the night he proposed. She smiled lovingly at him and put a hand to his cheek. “I was just thinking that you’re the best thing that ever happened to me, Riley James Nash. Now kiss me and take me to paradise.”
