Always the Baker

Prologue

H im

Brax stared at Amalia as she fixed her makeup at the small, two person table. It was the weekend before Valentine’s Day, and since Brax would be traveling on the actual holiday, he wanted to make sure he spoiled her before he left. He had a full weekend of romance planned, but she was sitting there nonchalantly fixing her lipstick after telling him she didn’t want any of it.

“Excuse me?” He sat up and lowered his voice. “What did you just say?”

Amalia waited until she was done to put her compact mirror back in her Birkin bag to respond. “I said whatever you have planned you can cancel. I only want one thing.”

With a chuckle, Brax ran his tongue over his cheek. The last year of their relationship had been a wild ride. When they first met, Brax found her sexy but wasn’t interested because she wasn’t his type. They didn’t have anything in common. Because Amalia was a social media influencer with several million followers on her platforms, his PR team advised him that being seen with her at a few events would be a good look for his career.

What started as a few planned run-ins for the pair turned into Amalia reminding Brax of the importance of living and having fun. Somewhere between random trips, sex, and shopping sprees, his heart opened to the beauty, and he fell for her— hard . But when they weren’t together, he was reminded of the fact that their bond was based on a very shallow foundation.

“You don’t even know what I have planned yet.”

“I know, but I don’t want you to waste our time or your money. I can just tell you what I want.”

“Fine. What do you want?”

“I want you to pay for me to get a BBL. If you’re feeling extra generous, I want veneers too. I’ve been looking into this dentist in Turkey, but I’m not sure if I want to travel all that way just for them to be a little cheaper.”

For a while, Brax simply stared at Amalia before bursting into a fit of laughter.

“Wait, so you don’t want the romantic itinerary I planned for us to spend quality time together. Instead, you want a bought body and hard teeth?”

As she stared at him, Brax realized she was serious, and that made him laugh until tears filled his eyes. There was nothing funny about the situation, but he couldn’t help but laugh. All the gifts he’d gotten her… the break in his tour schedule… and she didn’t care about anything but further manufacturing herself into a version of a woman that he’d never found attractive. Natural beauties had always been Brax’s thing. Though he could appreciate a bought body, he preferred natural curves, stretch marks, or slim frames any day.

“I feel like you’re not taking me seriously,” Amalia whined.

“I feel like you’re not taking this relationship seriously. Every time we’re together, if we’re not partying or having sex, you’re hitting me up for money. Is that all I’m good for to you? Do you not desire to spend time with me and actually get to know me?”

With a shake of his head, Brax pulled his wallet out and grabbed a few hundred dollar bills to toss onto the table. Though they hadn’t been there long enough to get their food, he wanted to compensate the waitress for her time.

“Let’s go,” he told Amalia as he stood.

“What’s wrong?” she asked, as if she hadn’t taken over a minute to think about his question.

“I’m taking you home.”

“Why?”

Gently, he lifted her from the chair by her arm. “Because I can’t do this with you anymore.”

Scoffing, Amalia removed her hand from his grip. “Don’t tell me you’re upset because I told you what I wanted?”

“I’m upset because you don’t want me ,” he said quietly through gritted teeth. “I done spent damn near a million dollars on you this past year and it’s never ending. It would be different if you actually liked me for me or knew me, but you don’t. I’m done. Now you can either come out with me, or you can find another way home.”

Sucking her teeth, Amalia dismissively waved him off with her hand. “Do you see where we are? I can easily find someone to replace you at the bar. Have a good night, Brax.”

Brax shouldn’t have been surprised by her uncaring nature, but he was. To think, he’d taken time out of his busy schedule to make sure she felt adored, and she couldn’t care less about him. Not bothering to give it another moment of his time, he headed out of the restaurant and tried to keep his anger from rising. This was exactly why he wished he would have followed his first mind and stayed away from Amalia. She was yet another reminder of why he didn’t see a real relationship in his future.