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A tear escapes down my cheek, and he wipes it away just as fast. “Really?”

“Hell yeah.”

I kiss him, holding his face and bursting with laughter. “I love you, too,” I say.

“Is that right?” he asks.

“Yes.”

“You really want me?”

“Yes.”

“This guy?”

“Yes.”

“You want this guy to help raise your kids?”

“Yes!” I laugh.

“Then, Anna Silva…” He pinches the ring and slides it out of the box. “Will you marry me?”

I watch as he slips the ring on my finger. My heart pounds so hard, and I can’t stop the wave of tears from falling down my cheeks.

“Wow, it’s beautiful,” I say.

“Yeah, she is.”

I look at Jake, and he’s smiling at me.

EPILOGUE

JAKE

Years of running a popular food truck in Boston did not prepare me for running a bakery.

I thought it would. Hell, I thought the bakery would be easier. It’s just cupcakes, muffins, and a few brands of coffee. That couldn’t possibly be more difficult than the variety of choices and nit-picky requests associated with tacos, burritos, and all their fixings.

Ironically, Hot Sauce was a cakewalk compared to Muffin Top Two.

Vincent is easing me in. We’ll run a half-schedule until I’m used to the ins and outs of bakery life and I’m now very, very grateful for his power of foresight. I’ve trained with that guy for weeks, watching as he gets up at three in the morning every single day like a fucking machine, all the while raising a cute son and caring for his very pregnant wife.

Not a bad role model, truth be told.

“Boss, you have a phone call!”

I look over at my employee, Trudy. That’s the other part of this that feels strange and unusual. I’m somebody’s boss. I’ve never been on this side before, but it feels a lot more natural than I ever expected it to.

“Who is it?” I ask her.

She extends her hand, holding the landline phone in my direction. “It’s the big guy,” she says.

I take the phone from her. “Hey, this is Jake,” I say into it.

“You screw up yet?”

I chuckle. “No, Vincent. I have not.”