Unwanted Heat

Kenzie

I wake up to the sound of the shower running; a quick glance next to me confirms that Nicholas is no longer in bed with me. Last night after Nicholas finished working, we watched a little television together before heading to bed. I thought there would be a question as to where I would sleep; I was inwardly preparing to head upstairs, but once again, he took my hand and led me to his bedroom. Since he’s in the shower now, I quickly head upstairs to my bedroom to use the bathroom and change into something more appropriate.

“You scared me!” I exclaim, Nicholas is standing in my bedroom when I open the bathroom door.

“I came out of the shower and you weren’t in bed,” he runs his hands through his hair, something he seems to do when he’s nervous. Though, I’m not sure why he would it would bother him that I wasn’t in bed…

“You were in the bathroom, and I figured I should change into something less revealing before Julie or Carter saw me.”

“Maybe we should move some of your clothes to my closet so you don’t have to worry about that,” he’s looking everywhere, but at me, when he makes the suggestion.

“Maybe we should,” I whisper.

When his eyes finally find mine, I see both relief and nervousness in them, but I have no doubt that mine are also reflecting the same thing. This is the first time that we’re sort of discussing our sleeping arrangements since Fiji. I’m definitely relieved he suggested that we make our sleeping arrangements permanent, but at the same time, I’m also nervous, although I’m not entirely sure why.

“I came looking for you, to let you know that breakfast is ready if you wanted to eat,” Nicholas says.

He takes my hand and pulls me close to him before kissing me gently on the lips. We then head downstairs to the kitchen where Julie has prepared breakfast for us.Nôvel/Dr(a)ma.Org - Content owner.

“You’re meeting with Ginny today, right?” he asks.

“Yes, this afternoon once the bakery is closed.”

“Be sure to take Hunter with you.”

“I already texted him the details,” I smirk at Nicholas, which just causes him to chuckle.

I don’t know why he feels the need to remind me to have Hunter with me when I leave Accord Towers. He’s been assigned to me ever since I moved into the building and I’ve never once dared to leave without him. Although, I don’t think I necessarily need the security, it’s comforting to know that he would be there to assist with the press if they get out of hand.

“I’ll probably be home late tonight, actually probably most of the week. Unfortunately, some of my meetings had to be rescheduled this week and evenings were the only time they could be fit into my schedule. Julie should have dinner ready around six, but if you want to eat earlier, just let her know. And Hunter is available to you at any time if you need something. If you can’t get ahold of him-”

“I’ll be fine,” I assure him. “You don’t need to worry about me.” “Mr. Parker,” Carter appears at the doorway to the kitchen.

“Call or text me if you need anything,” he leans down capturing my lips in his, kissing me just enough to leave me breathless and wanting more before he pulls away. “I’ll see you tonight.”

I place our dishes in the sink before heading up to the bedroom, grab my laptop and head into the library. I bring a table next to the chair, setting it up as a mini work station with my laptop and cell phone. The next few hours are spent researching everything I can about running a bakery. Meeting with Ginny this afternoon will be very helpful, but I don’t want to rely entirely on how she ran the bakery. I start making a list of the things I’d like to change, and what I want to keep the same. One thing that will definitely not be changing is any of the recipes. People come to the bakery for the food and the recipes speak for themselves.

Lunch today? Cara

Would love to. I have a meeting at 3 Kenzie

How about Main Street Bistro at 1? Cara

Sounds good, see you then! Kenzie

I send a quick text to Hunter, letting him know there has been a change in plans for today; his confirmation reply is almost instantaneous. I go back to researching running a bakery and just running a business in general, trying to learn as much as I possibly can from the internet so that I somehow don’t manage to run the bakery into the ground when Ginny leaves in less than a year.

“Mrs. Parker, Hunter has arrived,” Julie alerts me.

“Oh! I hadn’t realized what time it was. Thank you!” I quickly shut down the laptop and run to the bedroom to put on a pair of shoes before meeting Hunter in the foyer.

“Mrs. Parker,” Hunter nods in greeting.

“I’m Mrs. Parker now? What happened to Kenzie?” I ask.

“I thought now that you…” he nervously responds.

“I’m still Kenzie, Hunter. Getting married hasn’t changed that,” I assure him.

“Yes, ma’am. Are you ready to leave to meet Ms. Parker, Kenzie?”

“I’m ready, Hunter,” I smile thankful that the momentarily awkwardness is over.

“I expect the press will likely follow us to the bistro, however, once you are inside they should leave you alone,” he warns.

“Right,” I had forgotten about the press when Cara asked me to lunch, but I refuse to hide out all day, simply because the press might take pictures of me. I’m dressed casual today, just in jeans and a long sleeve blouse, but I think I look okay if I end up being photographed. In the car, I quickly touch up my make-up, knowing that this will be the first time that I’m being photographed as Mrs. Parker and not just Nicholas’s girlfriend or date.

“They followed us here,” Hunter alerts me. “Ben is already inside and has confirmed that Ms. Parker arrived a few minutes ago. I’ll get you to the door and he will take you inside, keeping you safe there. I will be with the vehicle and will meet you at the front door when you’re ready to leave.”

“I’m sorry, Hunter, I had no idea all this would be involved just to go to lunch.”

“It’s not a problem, Mrs.Kenzie. Don’t let them stop you from living your life. They’ll eventually get bored when they realize there isn’t much of a story here.”

“Thank you, Hunter.”

The moment I step out of the SUV, cameras are going off as three different people seem to be waiting for me outside the bistro. Hunter has a hand on my back and one in front of us leading me through the small crowd, which is quickly gathering on the side walk. I’m sure innocent bystanders are wondering what is going on; likely thinking I’m someone famous or something.

“Mrs. Parker! Mrs. Parker!”

My name is called repeatedly, but I just keep walking with Hunter, ignoring everyone.

“What do you say to the rumors that Mr. Parker only married you because you’re pregnant?”

“I can assure you that Mr. Parker and I did not marry because I was pregnant,” I say firmly.

“What is it like to be married to New York’s richest playboy?”

“I wouldn’t know,” I snap. “I’m not married to a playboy. I’m married to a wonderful, faithful, kind man who makes me happier than I’ve ever been. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m meeting someone for lunch.”

Hunter doesn’t say anything, but smiles before handing me off to Ben who is waiting at the front door for me. I’m immediately relieved when the door closes behind me, even though the cameras continue to flash behind me as we walk through the restaurant. I realize that Hunter likely called ahead to arrange for me to meet Cara here as I’m lead to a small table in the back of the bistro, barely visible from the sidewalk.

“Kenzie!” Cara immediately jumps up and hugs me when I reach the table.

“Cara, thank you for inviting me to lunch!”

“I’m glad you were able to come! Tell me about your honeymoon! Was it everything you imagined? What was Fiji like?”

For the next hour or so I tell Cara about Turtle Island and the different activities that the resort offered. I can’t hide the blush when I think about our honeymoon and everything that changed between us that week. We became closer, not just on a physical level… I think we learned more about each other on that trip than we would have had we only been in New York.

“I’m so glad Nicholas decided to take you on a proper honeymoon, I half expected him just to take a day off of work and head right back into the office after the wedding.”

“No, thankfully, he didn’t.”

“We always tried to get him to take a vacation but he never would.

I’m really happy that you were able to get him to take one-”

“It was all him. Really, I didn’t plan anything-”

“True, but you’re the reason he took the vacation in the first place. If it weren’t for you he never would have taken one.”

“I suppose you’re right.”

“So what are you up to today? You said you had a meeting or something?”

“I’m meeting with Ginny at Sweet Dreams-”

“Please tell me she didn’t sell it to one of those big coffee chains…”

“You don’t know?” I guess I just assumed Nicholas’s family would have known about the wedding gift he gave me.

“Know what?”

“Nicholas bought the bakery.”

“He did what? You’re kidding? What is Nicholas going to do with a bakery? He can’t cook to save his life!”

“He gave it to me… he bought it for me as a wedding gift.”

“Oh, my God! That’s so sweet! I can’t believe he didn’t tell anyone!”

“I assumed you all knew. He gave me the deed on the way to Fiji.”

“Wow… that’s so cool Kenzie! I’m so glad one of those big companies didn’t buy it out. I could never go there if they changed it into a donut or coffee place.”

“I know! I thought the same thing when I first heard Ginny was selling the place.”

“How are you going to run it? Oh! I didn’t mean it like that-”

“It’s fine, Cara,” I giggle. “I know exactly what you mean. Right now, I can’t even go out to lunch without the press bothering me. Ginny is staying on board for a year and will then consult remotely for a couple more years. I’m going to meet with her today, but eventually I figure I’ll hire a manager to oversee the day to day operations, and I will work behind the scenes. As much as I loved interacting with customers, I don’t think I’ll be able to do that at least not until the press dies down. But, I can oversee things from an office there or at the condo.”

“That’s awesome Kenzie! If you need any help, let me know. I worked at a bakery in San Diego for almost a year-”

“You did? In San Diego?”

“I graduated from a culinary school in San Diego and worked at a bakery during my last year of schooling.”

“Why didn’t you continue working when you came home?”

“I tried,” she sighs and looks out the window. “The only real places that were hiring were chain restaurants, not something I wanted to do. I prefer the feeling of a mom and pop owned business, somewhere small, where you have a chance to interact with customers. The bakery I worked at in San Diego was perfect-I just wished I could move it here. Eventually, I gave up looking, and figured I needed to find something else to at least until something better came along.”

“What did you do at the bakery in San Diego?” The wheels are turning in my head processing what Cara has told me.

“Prepping, baking, customer service, you name it,” she shrugged.

“I’ll be reviewing staffing today, but if you’re interested and there’s an opening-”

“Really, Kenzie? You would hire me?”

“I don’t know how many hours it would be, but we could always use someone when we’re understaffed.”

“I’d love that! OH, THANK YOU, KENZIE!” She runs around the table and hugs me so tightly that I can barely breathe.

“Don’t thank me yet. You may not be so happy when you have to get up at four in the morning to head to work.”

“I opened the bakery in San Diego four days a week-I was used to getting up early. It’ll take me a little while to get back in the habit of waking up early again, but I swear it won’t be a problem. I’m so excited, Kenzie! You have no idea!”