The Baker

Chapter 61

Three Months Later...

Okay. Everything was perfect. The table was set, the candles were lit, the music was playing and dinner was heating in the oven. He should be home any minute, so she ran upstairs and got into her slim, black dress that she had to a loose a few pounds to get into, but it was worth it. 

She went back downstairs and fed Hunter, before quadruple checking that everything was in order. As she was aligning a plate on the table, she heard the clanking of keys and the door start to unlock. Hunter ran as quickly as possible to the front door and started barking like a maniac. 

"Oi!" Ben laughed. "Hey, it's only me, buddy." He shut the door, set his bags down, and then knelt down to Hunter, who started to cower away from Ben. "Oh, I know it's been a while, but you know me. Come here, boy." He held his hand out and Hunter timidly sniffed it, then licked it, then seemed to suddenly remember who Ben was. 

"Yes, there we go," he chuckled, "it's only me. Where's mummy, aye? Where is she hiding?" He stood up and followed the smell of a delicious dish. He stopped in between the kitchen and the living room to find a table all set up by the window, the blinds open to the world. 

It was almost exactly how he had set it up when he invited her over for the first time. Oh, how long ago that seemed. 

Suddenly, his vision went to complete darkness as he felt a hand engulf his eyes and that lavender scent he so desperately missed linger by his nose. He was about to say something, but as soon as he opened his mouth, a piece of food was popped into his mouth. 

He immediately started chewing and hummed in approval. "Tastes like my fiancé's cooking," he said with a smile. The hand came away from his eyes and he turned around to meet the beautiful sight of his wife-to-be. His eyes raked over her body in that dress. "Wow," he breathed. "You are...you are a vision. So goddamn beautiful." 

He leaned down and captured her lips in a kiss that he's been craving for three long months. When he pulled back, it was just to say, "Oh, I love you," then he was back to kissing her again. He cupped her face with one hand, then rested the other on her hip. 

He slid his tongue in past her lips and moaned in surprise when she started sucking on it. He pulled away with a predatory look in his eyes. "You naughty thing," he growled. "Let's get this lovely dress off of you and see how it looks on the floor." 

He went to kiss her again, but this time she stopped him. "After dinner," she whispered. "I worked way too hard on this to throw it away for sex." He gave her a puppy dog look, but she simply shook her head and told him, "Only works with the dog." 

She giggled when he huffed, but then gave him a gentler, loving kiss. "I missed you," she whispered against his lips. "Oh, baby," he whispered back, "I missed you, too. I never want to be that far away from you, for that long, ever again. It was too painful, I swear." 

They embraced each other in a warm hug and breathed each other in. It's been too long. Cassie ran her hand though his hair as they pulled away and could see how tired he was. He's been traveling almost every week since he left. 

"Maybe you should just get some sleep," she softly suggested. "You look exhausted." He shook his head and told her, "No. You cooked a beautiful dinner, you dressed in this gorgeous dress, and I haven't been shagged in three months. We are going to be up until the wee hours, my darling." 

Well, she was glad he was so ambitious about it, but she knew he wouldn't make it to round two before he fell asleep. "Let's get this night started, then. If you will sit down, Mr. Cumberbatch." He took her hand as she led him to the table and sat down.