UNEDITED
Between his semi-committed addiction to smoking and his role as CEO of Elemental Coffee, Cassian Russell has spent the majority of his life running one of the most popular coffee shops on the Island with his best friend, Jake Swift. After a...
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Penelope
"Ellie, sweetie, the pen will snap in half if you press harder."
I look at the pen. It's pressed against the paper. I volunteered to jot down the scores of each baked good we taste, and though the task provides some much-needed distraction, my mind continues to wander off as the clock ticks closer to the barbecue. Cassian's naked body makes an appearance, too. Yes—I'm still obsessing over his body. Naked body.
For the hundredth time, I'm wishing someone could whack me over the head with a baseball bat. It would make sure I forget these last few hours.
"Oops," I say. "Sorry, Mom."
Mom chuckles, tucking a strand of her brown hair behind her ear. She rests a hand on my forearm. "Why are you apologizing to me? You should apologize to the poor table." Mom pauses and studies my face. "What's bothering you? You seem... off today."
I set the pen down, rubbing my full stomach. We've already tried macarons, cookies, cream puffs, bread—the works. I'm not sure how much more I can handle before my stomach explodes or I throw up. Unlike Gemma, I have a limit on the amount of sweets I can eat. While I would love to snack on fudge during my period or enjoy pumpkin pie during Thanksgiving, too much sugar gives me anxiety. I tap my foot against the linoleum. Glancing around building, I see no sign of my business partner. Cassian's been gone for a few minutes now, and I'm thinking he went to the bathroom to play Candy Crush on his phone.
"I'm fine," I reply, blocking Cassian's naked body from my mind. "Cassian and I are butting heads."
"Why's that?" Mom frowns.
My eyes flitter across the bakery. Cassian's still not here. Setting my pen down, I sigh and lean back in my chair, stretching my stiff muscles. "He went on a date with Ophelia, the woman we're working with at Utterly Uncorked. I don't know what to think, Mom. I want Cassian to be happy, but I hate seeing him with other women. Does that make me selfish?"
Mom rests her hand on my shoulder. "Of course not, Penelope. You're not trying to drive a wedge between them. There are no rules against being in love with a man. And when you're in love with someone, you do crazy things."
I think about breaking into the bathroom and realize she has a point.
I smile at my mom. Our shared company has been pleasant this time around. While we were stiff towards each other at the beginning, things have relaxed and we haven't trickled into awkward silence yet. It could have to do with the fact I have mentioned nothing about trying to find my biological parents, but I think my mom's realizing no matter what happens, she and dad will always be my parents. They raised me and put a roof over my head. Finding my biological parents wouldn't change that. It wouldn't lessen my love for them.
"I'm envious of Ophelia," I admit. I'm five seconds away from spilling my guts. It's been hard to keep my emotions bottled while Gemma's been away. I would talk to Morgane about my Cassian issues, but her solutions would be far too assertive for me. She'd tell me to corner him in a bedroom and rip his pants off. Or handcuff him to the bed and tease the living hell out of him until he's begging me. "What does she have that I don't?"
