Total pages in book: 54
Estimated words: 52100 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 261(@200wpm)___ 208(@250wpm)___ 174(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 52100 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 261(@200wpm)___ 208(@250wpm)___ 174(@300wpm)
I’d been wrong.
I followed my children to the little shop, where even the doorknob was gold. As soon as I walked in, the smell of baking chocolate chip cookies made my stomach rumble.
“That’s fairy dust,” an older white-haired man said. “The fairies fly in here at night and sprinkle their magic gold dust on everything.”
“Whoa,” Marley said, her eyes wide with wonder.
Both of my kids were about to put something in their mouths, and I raced over and snatched whatever it was out of Spencer’s hand.
“You can’t just eat random stuff strangers give you!” I scolded. “You have an allergy.”
“Oh, that’s my fault,” the older man said. “I’m so sorry. I gave them the truffles and I didn’t ask about allergies.”
“Mmm,” Marley said. “I can taste the fairy dust. It’s delicious.”
Spencer pushed up his glasses and glared at me. “I can have chocolate, Dad. There’s no shellfish in chocolate.”
“No, there’s no fish anywhere in here,” the man said. “Unless chocolate-covered Swedish Fish count, I suppose.” He held his hand out to me. “I’m Simon Carmichael. My daughter Olivia owns this store. I’m just here covering it while she gets a haircut. And I apologize again for giving your children something without asking you. When I see those wide eyes, I get a bit ahead of myself.”
He seemed like a nice guy. I shook his hand.
“No harm done. I’m Holt Sellers.”
His eyes lit up. “Holt Sellers? Our hometown hockey star?”
“Dad.” Spencer tugged on my shirt. “Can I have my truffle back?”
I passed him the candy and returned my attention to Simon. “I’m retired now.”
Simon nodded with approval. “You went out while you were still on top. Smart man.”
I went out because my life imploded out of nowhere, but I wasn’t about to correct him. Fourteen years of pro hockey was a good run, and I planned to be very involved in youth hockey in the Beard.
“Spencer, look!” Marley cried as she looked at a display case of cupcakes. “The fairies dusted all of them.”
“Can we get cupcakes, Dad?” Spencer asked.
“You haven’t had lunch yet.”
Marley looked back at me with a toothless smile. “Can I have a chocolate one? Please?”
Mealtimes were a struggle with my kids. I couldn’t cook, but I still wanted them to eat healthy food. They’d voted down all my efforts at steamed chicken, shrimp and vegetables in different combinations. All they wanted was macaroni and cheese, grilled cheese and sweets.
“We’ll get some for later,” I said. “But you have to eat some vegetables at lunch.”
“Vegetables are gross,” Spencer complained.
Simon grinned. “How many cupcakes would you like?”
“Ninety-nine,” Marley said, not missing a beat.
“Um, no,” I said, giving her a look. “We’re not getting ninety-nine cupcakes.”
“Why not? It’s less than a hundred,” she said.
I shook my head and met Simon’s gaze. “We’ll take four.”
“Four?” Spencer looked downright offended by my order. “Who gets the extra one? I should get it because I’m the oldest.”
“One for each of you and one each for Grandma and Grandpa,” I said. “Pick out what kind you want.”
“Chocolate,” Marley said immediately.
“I was going to pick that one!” Spencer cried.
Simon’s eyes sparkled with amusement as he said, “We have lots of chocolate cupcakes, you can both get that kind.”
“I don’t want the same as her,” Spencer said, glowering. “She’s a copycat.”
“Hey guys?” I said, my blood pressure rising. “Am I wearing a black-and-white-striped shirt right now?”
Spencer took in my gray T-shirt and gave me a puzzled look. “No.”
I looked at my daughter. “Do I have a whistle around my neck?”
She gazed up at me, inspecting the area. “No, Daddy.”
“Right.” I pointed at the two of them. “Because I’m not a referee. You can each pick out the kind of cupcake you want now, with no more arguing, or we’re leaving without any cupcakes.”
“I’ll take Oreo,” Spencer said immediately.
“Oh, I want Oreo too!” Marley said.
I glanced at Spencer, who was scowling and pressing his lips together. He was trying so hard to remain silent that I almost laughed.
“Good choice,” Simon said. “And what about the grandparents?”
“Vanilla for both of them,” I said.
“What about you, Daddy?” Marley asked. “Don’t you want one?”
I shook my head. “I try not to eat much sugar, peanut.”
“But you’re retired now, Dad,” Spencer said. “Might as well let yourself go.”
I sighed heavily. I’d never imagined myself retiring at age thirty-two when I wasn’t even injured. Unless my ego counted. My ex-wife Andrea had done quite a number on that.
Simon passed me a box of cupcakes and said, “Let me just ring that up.”
The sign on the bakery case said the cupcakes were four dollars each, so I passed him thirty dollars in cash and said, “Keep the change. Thanks.”
“Thank you,” he said, smiling. “And welcome home.”
“Stop with that nonsense,” my mom said later that afternoon. “You’ll stay with us, of course.”
I’d known this was coming. My younger sister Kelsey, who was twenty-six, was still studying to become a pediatrician. She was a long way from being ready to have kids, and she was my only sibling. So my parents were crazy excited about me moving home, and they wanted me and the kids to stay at their house until our house was finished.