Series: Little Cakes Series by Pepper North
Total pages in book: 48
Estimated words: 45110 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 226(@200wpm)___ 180(@250wpm)___ 150(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 45110 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 226(@200wpm)___ 180(@250wpm)___ 150(@300wpm)
Quickly, Tori typed out a message. She watched the screen until it lit with a response. Reading aloud, she shared the message:
I’m glad you’re having a good time. Bring him home to meet me.
“You don’t have to go meet him,” Tori said quickly.
“Of course I do. Let’s go.”
“Really? He’ll ask all sorts of questions,” Tori warned.
“I’ll be glad to answer almost anything. Come on, Curls.”
Evan led her to the car and settled her safely inside. Observing the way she clung to the handle of the shopping bag, he didn’t even offer to put it in the back. By the time he slid into the car, Tori held Coral in her arms. He watched her straighten the stuffie’s clothing before hugging the soft plush to her chest.
“Just the right level of smooshiness?” he asked, feeling himself smile at the adorable picture she presented. Evan’s fingers itched to hold his camera. The photos he could capture would be priceless.
“Coral is perfect.”
“She is, indeed,” Evan agreed. After getting her address, he put it in the GPS and started toward her brother’s house.
Glancing over, he couldn’t help asking, “Tori, would you like some pictures of Coral and you together? I could take some for you.”
“You mean like the professional pictures you create?” she asked slowly.
“Yes. But these would just be for you and me. No one else. Unless you want them to be.”
“No,” she answered immediately. A few seconds later, she continued, “I’d like a picture of us. Not just Coral and me—those would be great, but I’d like a picture of the three of us.”
“I can arrange that easily. On your next day off, I’ll take you to my studio. You can explore and I’ll take some pictures,” he suggested.
“That would be fun. I’ve never been in a studio. Well, unless you count the ones at the mall for Christmas pictures of our family.”
“Mine’s a bit more extensive than that,” he admitted.
“It’s the gray house on the right,” she said, pointing through the windshield.
“Thank you, Tori.”
Evan pulled into the driveway of the home in an upper middle-class neighborhood. Kids played on various lawns, and adults were outside supervising and chatting in the early evening. It was a pleasant place to live, and Evan was glad to see that Tori lived in a safe area.
A tall man walked out to meet them as Evan helped Tori from the car. He looked vaguely like Tori. His hair was cut short on the sides with only a hint of the wild curls that graced his sister’s hairstyle in the longer locks at the top. His face was creased with lines and tanned. Evan would have estimated he was older than thirty-two.
“Hi, I’m Terry,” the man introduced himself, his brows coming together.
Suddenly, Evan realized he’d seen him somewhere before. “Hi, Terry. I’m Evan,” he stated as it dawned on him. He’d seen him at a club one town over. Judging by the look on Terry’s face, he remembered the connection too. Neither of them mentioned it.
Evan shook the man’s hand and quickly came up with something else to say. “Tori and Terry, your parents were dedicated to T names,” Evan observed with a laugh.
“Our dogs were even named with T’s. Thunder and Tweety,” Terry answered with a friendly smile before looking over at his sister. “Did you bring home a friend?”
“Yes. This is Coral,” Tori shared. She hadn’t put the stuffie back in the bag once they’d left the mall. Evan had loved the way she petted the pink dragon’s soft plush and moved the sparkly silver-clad feet to send shimmers around the interior of the car on the way home.
“Hi, Coral. You lucked out when Tori found you. She guards her stuffies like a Rottweiler,” Terry commented with a smile.
Turning to Evan, he asked, “Want to have a drink on the deck out back?”
“I’d love that,” Evan agreed, after checking on Tori’s reaction. He had about a hundred questions now. He was pretty certain Terry was a Daddy. He thought he’d seen him with a Little at the club. Did Terry know his sister was a Little?
Evan followed the siblings through the immaculate house into the kitchen. There, Terry paused to ask him what he wanted to drink. “I have beer, wine, and iced tea.”
“Tea sounds great. Thank you,” Evan answered.
Tori held Coral out to Evan, silently asking him to hold the stuffie for her. Instantly, he accepted the responsibility and snuggled the dragon in his arms. While he settled Coral in the crook of his elbow, Tori rushed around the island to fix two glasses of tea as Terry grabbed a tall bottle of beer from the fridge.
Soon they were settled on the deck in a semicircle of chairs with Coral back in Tori’s arms. Tori squirmed in her chair as they made small talk, swinging her legs until she quickly excused herself to run inside.