Series: Little Cakes Series by Pepper North
Total pages in book: 48
Estimated words: 45218 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 226(@200wpm)___ 181(@250wpm)___ 151(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 45218 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 226(@200wpm)___ 181(@250wpm)___ 151(@300wpm)
As soon as they entered the back room, Daddy pointed toward a stool at the counter. “Sit.” He headed into the cooler and returned with a brown paper bag from which he removed three sandwiches, a baggie of apple wedges, and two bottles of water.
Ellie stared at him as he unwrapped her sandwich and set it in front of her. “Ham and swiss. Whole wheat bread, but I did cut off the crusts.”
Her chest tightened. She didn’t even glance down at the sandwich as she stared at him. How did he know her so well after such a short time? And how had she gotten so lucky to have found a Daddy who took such good care of her?
“What?” he asked, a lopsided grin spreading across his face.
“I love you.”
His eyes widened and then his smile grew. “I know. You told me last night.”
“Yeah, but I was almost asleep at the time. You might have thought I was being flippant. I mean it.” She glanced around to make sure they were alone. “I love you, Daddy.”
He leaned closer to her, cupped the back of her head, and kissed her soundly. “I love you too, Rainbow. I’m the luckiest man in the world.”
She couldn’t stop smiling as he leaned back and pointed at her sandwich again. “Eat, Little one. You need sustenance. More than just sugar.”
She picked up the first triangle and devoured it. She really was hungry. It had been hours since he’d fed her breakfast. It was hard not to scarf her food down. She kept glancing at the door that led to the front, but she forced herself to eat at a reasonable pace.
Ellie had just swallowed the last bite of sandwich and was crunching on an apple slice when a commotion out front made her back stiffen.
Daddy jumped to his feet at the sound of loud, angry, male voices, turning and rushing back toward the front before Ellie could even slide down from her stool.
“What seems to be the problem?” Garrett said in a deep commanding voice.
Ellie hurried to his side, grabbing his arm as a growing crowd of people spread out in a wide circle, filling the shop. She gasped when she saw the same four guys who had come into her store to harass her several days ago wandering around inside.
They didn’t fit in. It wasn’t any one thing, but a collection of parts that made them stand out. All four were dressed in black with black leather boots, black jeans, and black T-shirts. They were in their early twenties she guessed, but it was hard to tell since they had ball caps covering their hair and partially blocking their expressions.
If any one of them had come in and gotten in line for a cupcake, they wouldn’t have raised an eyebrow. But they had spread out around the room, and their presence was intimidating people. They were strutting around, touching everything from tables to knickknacks to walls to counters.
A child was crying, and it was her dad who had gotten to his feet and engaged with them. Ellie had no idea what he might have said before she arrived, but she gripped Garrett’s arm as the man spoke again. “This is a family shop. Take your bad language and manners and get out of here.”
Daddy stuck out an arm to stop Ellie’s advance and shot her a sharp look. “Let me handle this,” he demanded.
She nodded and took a step back. Her instinct was to jump into the fray and stand up to these hoodlums, but Garrett was right. He was much larger and gruffer than her. She needed to let him deal with the conflict.
Three of the men stood on three sides of the shop, feet planted, hands on their hips, smirks on their faces. One man was facing off with the child’s father. He reached out with a foot and kicked over the man’s chair. “Fuck you. I have just as much right to be here as you do, asshole.”
The man stood taller, taking a step closer, putting himself between his daughter and the thug.
Daddy was bigger than both men, and he advanced quickly. “That’s enough.” He met the ruffian’s gaze and pointed at the door. “You’ve got three seconds to get out of here, and I don’t want to see you anywhere near this strip mall again.”
“Or what, old guy?” the man taunted, puffing out his chest and turning his attention toward Garrett.
A silent figure moved to stand at Garrett’s side. Bear. He’d promised to come by at some point during the day to see how things were going, and he’d entered Little Cakes with excellent timing. He said nothing but provided another barrier to protect the crowd.
Ellie gasped and gripped the back of the chair in front of her. She had no idea what to do. Tori darted forward and helped the man’s crying young daughter from the chair and backed her up away from the conflict as Garrett and Bear backed up the customer.