Some Kind of Wonderful: A Holiday Novella (The Cupcake Lovers) Read Online Free PDF Page B

A chip she’d found with her best friend, of all people. A man who lived life on the dark and dangerous side. Not Maya’s cup of tea, but a wonderful blend of person all the same. Any woman would be lucky to have Zachery Cole.
    Tying off her laces, she rose and clomped over to the other twin bed. The one occupied by her partner, her friend, and, at this particular moment, a Scrooge. “How could you dump Zach like that?”
    Giselle growled into the pillow, then showed at least half of her mascara-smudged face. “I didn’t dump him. I gave him an out. Zach was miserable. He didn’t want to be at the Shack with me. He wanted to be here with you.”
    “Get … out.”
    “Would you? Please?”
    “He said he wanted to be with me?”
    “He didn’t have to. He talked about you incessantly. How you met. What great pals you were. He must’ve told me a dozen different stories about one of the two of you bailing the other out of some or another jam. Blah, blah, blah. Then he asked me about our relationship—yours and mine. Our business and whatnot. When talk turned to me specifically…” She grunted. “Let’s just say, our time together roared downhill faster than a high-speed roller coaster.”
    Maya frowned, going on sudden and unexpected defense for Giselle. “What? He didn’t think you were interesting? You’re one of the most fascinating people I know!”
    “ Shh. Not so loud.” Giselle covered her eyes with her arm. “Thank you for that, by the way. But we never really got to talking about the real me.”
    “What do you mean?”
    “He kept referring to the letters, Maya. The e-mails. Mostly your thoughts. Or my thoughts but written in your words. I didn’t realize I’d feel so bad about duping him. I felt awkward and pretty much fumbled the conversation. That’s when I pushed to play a game of pool. I thought if we met some other people I’d feel more comfortable and then Zach would get a chance to know the real me. Only that didn’t work out either. The more I loosened up the more he shut down. Not for anything, but that man is broody with a capital B .”
    The same word Helen had used to describe Zach. Huh. Zach hadn’t struck Maya as broody. Then again, he’d been working hard to lighten Maya’s own mood. Just now she was fixated on something else Giselle had said. “‘Dupe’ is a strong word, don’t you think?”
    “Pretty sure it’s the correct word for what we did.”
    “You didn’t tell him, right?”
    “And make him feel like a fool? The man’s suffering from a war wound. I don’t intend to add insult to injury.”
    Maya’s stomach clenched as she picked at the hem of her cheery sweater. “Did he tell you how he got hurt?”
    “No. You?”
    “No.”
    Maya’s mind twisted with several thoughts. Her own unexpected attraction to Zach aside, had she unwittingly ruined a potentially wonderful thing between her old best friend and her new best friend. As most of the Cupcake Lovers had pointed out, Zach and Giselle were indeed a physically striking couple. If Zach had truly wanted to be with Maya last night, in a sexual way, as G had intimated, wouldn’t he have made some sort of move? Kissing her head didn’t count, did it?
    All sorts of confused, Maya rocked back on her Trekkers. All she wanted for anyone ever, and especially for friends and family, was a charmed life and a happily ever after.
    “Are you sure you won’t join us for breakfast?” Maya asked.
    “Are you still here?”
    “The Coles always start holiday mornings with a scrumptious breakfast. Apple Cinnamon Pancakes with real butter and tons of pure Vermont maple syrup. Piles of crispy bacon—”
    “Do you want me to hurl?”
    “And then they do this old-fashioned sleigh ride which I think you’d really like—”
    “Don’t take this wrong, Maya, but get lost.”
    Maya knew Giselle well enough not to take the dismissal personally. Still, Maya felt awkward about the whole triangle thing and would feel better