Testing Recipes for Disaster (Emberwood #2)

Epilogue- Lauren

T hree months later: Christmas

“You already surprised me with the cabinet thing for all my baking stuff. What other thing are you giving me?” he asked as I practically vibrated in front of him; I was so excited.

“The ‘cabinet thing,’ as you so eloquently put it, was honestly more for me than you. Your stuff had taken over my pantry, and it needed a home. And it’s a pie safe originally crafted in 1908 and beautifully refinished. I probably would have bought it even if you and your stuff didn’t exist. This is just for you, though.”

I tried to cover his eyes from behind, but I couldn’t reach, so I settled for making him cover them himself and leading him to my garage.

Our garage .

I’d been making both of us park in the lot instead of the garage for days so that I could inspect my purchase and make a mood board of different theme options for him to choose from. He had been banned from peeking.

“I’m going, I’m going.”

“Okay, open them!”

He did, and he took a minute to walk towards it, his brows furrowed together in confusion.

“What is... you bought me a trailer?”

“Not only a trailer. This trailer was used as, like, a mobile bar by the owner when he used to bartend at weddings and events and stuff. So, look, look, there’s a generator and a small fridge in here,” I said, stepping inside the little space. “So, you could keep your, like, macarons and cheesecake in there and then use these shelves for everything else that doesn’t need to be refrigerated. And I have so many ideas for how to give it a glow-up. I mean, it’s in good shape, but you could paint it, and we need to add the logo Sam made. It was just—”

He joined me in the trailer, his head almost touching the roof, and his mouth crashed into mine. He gripped the back of my head and held me against him, nipping and sucking at my bottom lip as he seemed to forget about the trailer for a moment.

“Lauren.”

“Jeremy.”

“You know this is too much, right? Like you have to let me pay you for this because... well, I mean, look at it.”

“One, it’s a Christmas present. And two, like you let me pay you for all the work you did on my car?”

“It’s not the same th—”

“And how you let me pay when you retiled the bathroom after that pipe leaked last month?”

“Laur—”

“Let me do this, please. You cover half the mortgage now, so let me do what I want with my money. There’s even more of it with the cosplay crowd. They’ve been kind to me with all their requests for insane hairstyles lately with that con in Toledo. Plus, the guy was moving out of the country and needed it sold. I got an absolute steal on this.”

“Of course you did, baby.”

We ducked out of the small space back into the garage.

“Do you think if we got it up and running, it could make up the difference, and you could leave the garage altogether?”

“Maybe, after a bit. I’ve got spreadsheets, you know, with all the costs and whatever for something like this. I didn’t think someone would present me with a damn near perfect trailer.”

“Hey. You should. Expect me to do things that help you. Like you want me to expect you to do things that help me. Now can we be excited about this and go look at my inspo boards for what to do with it?”

“If I can thank you properly after, then yes. Show me all the inspo boards.”

“Hmmmmm,” I let out, reconsidering. “Maybe you thank me first , then the boards.”

I shrieked as he picked me up and threw me over his shoulder, hauling me back into the house and tossing me down on the couch. He kissed me more slowly than I expected after that ride, but I went with it and twirled my fingers in his hair.

“Thank you for getting me, Laur. I love it, and I love you.”

“I love you, too, Jer.”

“Okay, good.”

With that, he resumed with a sense of urgency and gave me a proper thank you for the next hour.

This life we were making? Was unbelievably sweet.