Candy Store

heavy.
    She scooted out from underneath Wolf’s head, then walked into her kitchen and pulled out the ingredients for cocoa fudge. She knew she wouldn’t be able to sleep tonight, not for one single minute, not with the distressed look on Derek’s face playing in her head on repeat every five seconds. The only thing that would keep her from going crazy would be baking.
    She wiped at the tears on her cheeks and put on her apron.
    “Here I am again,” she said aloud in her empty kitchen. “Just me, my dog, and sugar.”

Chapter Ten

    The next day Derek walked into Callie’s Candies holding a bright bouquet of yellow and white narcissus. She was down on the ground with her back to the front door, helping two little girls pick out a gift for their mother’s birthday while their father watched with pride.
    “Mommies love these boxes of truffles,” she said to the girls as she showed them a heart shaped box with a thick velvet ribbon on top.
    The two girls solemnly nodded their agreement and handed her a five dollar bill. Just as solemnly, treating them as if they were adults buying thousands of dollars of merchandise instead of little kids, Callie took their money and walked around to her register.
    Derek noted that her eyes and face looked swollen and puffy and inwardly cursed himself. He had done that to her with his callous, selfish behavior.
    He felt a deep sense of shame at the way he had treated Callie.
    She had called him her boyfriend, a word that made him feel better than any industry award ever had, and he had stomped out of her home in a huff.
    Idiot.
    He was surprised by her reaction to his planned career change. Any other woman would have applauded his move into a serious business.
    But Callie wasn't like anyone else.
    She looked up and saw him standing awkwardly by the door, holding the flowers as an obvious peace offering, and nearly dropped the box of truffles on the floor. She caught the box in mid-air and placed it on her gift-wrapping table, her hands shaky.
    She gave him a tremulous smile and was about to say something when Derek smiled back and leaned against the wall, making it clear that he could wait until she was done helping the girls.
    She finished wrapping the truffles with trembling fingers. She handed the girls a lollipop each and then followed them with her eyes as they took their father’s hand and skipped out the door.
    Derek approached her at the same time that she ran around the counter. Their words intermingled, “I’m so sorry,” he said, and she said, “No, I’m the one who’s sorry.”
    He handed her the bouquet and she clutched the flowers to her chest as if they were more valuable to her than gold or diamonds.
    “Can you forgive me?” He stroked her cheek with his fingers. “What did I ever do right to deserve you?”
    She shook her head. “I’m the lucky one. And I want you to know that I’ll always support you. Whatever you do, I’ll still love you.” She gasped and backed into the counter, dropping the flowers onto the floor, her hands moving her mouth in shock at what she'd just realized she'd said.
    She loved him.
    Thanking god, Derek closed the space between them, stepping into the circle of flowers on the floor.
    “I love you too.”
    Burying his hands in Callie's soft hair, he dipped his mouth to hers and tasted her sweetness. Her hands wrapped around him and she pulled him tightly to her. Even the bell ringing on the door to the shop, indicating that a customer had entered, was not enough for either of them to want to pull away from each other.
    “Ahem,” a firm voice said from behind Derek’s back.
    He pulled away from Callie’s sweet lips and groaned, knowing that voice could only belong to one person.
    Looking over his shoulder he said, “Hello, Alice.”
    Shaking her head as if they were two kids goofing around during class, Alice said, “I thought I might find you here.”
    Callie slid out from Derek’s arms and held out her hand, looking charmingly disheveled.
    “I’ve been so looking forward to meeting you, Alice.” Callie blushed. “Under different circumstances, of course.”
    Alice yielded slightly under the weight of Callie’s charm and shook her hand.
    Turning back to Derek, the older woman said, “I’d like to know if you think your behavior is going to sell more candy in this store, or less? You’ve got an important meeting in five minutes at the office.”
    Derek grinned shamelessly and held his hands up in defeat.