Page 22 of Kylie’s Kakes

That made me smile, and I was glad Kylie could now participate in those conversations too.

And as I walked through my newly renovated home, I realized that I wanted to share it with Kylie. The woman I was definitely in love with. I wasn’t sure when I would tell her that. She might need more time, but I felt it, and it was on the tip of my tongue when the moment felt right.

The day got away from me, so I didn’t get to see her at the kitchen, but I texted that I’d pick up dinner and head over to her place. I also had to tell her everything about myself. I didn’t want her to learn from someone else that I owned the Starred Skillet. That might make her think I was keeping it from her on purpose. Maybe that was true at first, but not anymore.

I didn’t want to keep any secrets from her.

When I was finally able to get away from my desk, I picked up dinner and headed to her place with my stomach in a knot because of everything we needed to discuss…and everything that could upset her.

The second she saw me, Kylie pulled me in for a kiss. It was full of all the feelings I shared at having been away from her for the entire day. “Hi, Daddy!” She reached for the food and began to unpack it. “How was your day?”

“Good. I missed you.” She looked at me with a warm smile, but that quickly faded. "You okay? It looks like you’re upset about something?"

"I’m fine, but I need to talk to you about something." Of course, that made her worried, but she sat down at the table and I kneeled beside her. "It's nothing bad. I just didn’t mention something that I probably should've told you sooner."

She swallowed hard and braced herself for bad news. "Okay."

"I’m sorry for not being more forthcoming with you, but… I own The Starred Skillet." I reached for her hand and held it. "I bought the building a few years ago when I was working in Manhattan and needed somewhere quiet to test recipes when I was in town. Magda runs the day-to-day operations, so I'm basically a tenant like everybody else. But I don’t want secrets between us, so I wanted to make sure you know that."

She narrowed her eyes like she was still confused. "You own the kitchen. The whole place?"

"Yes." I squeezed her hand, hoping this wasn’t a deal breaker for her.

"Did you know who I was when I booked the station? Was this some kind of setup?"

"No, of course not!" That hadn’t really crossed my mind, but it made sense for hers to go there. "I didn’t know you were a baker and was as surprised as you were when we ran into each other there."

"Are there any other things I should know?"

"Not really." I grinned and tried to pull off humble. "I mean, if you google me, you’ll find articles and stuff."

“Stuff?” She spoke quietly like she was afraid to ask me to elaborate.

"Nothing bad." I wanted her to know all of me, and my fame was a part of that. “But I’m kind of a big deal.” I smirked and then winked to let her know I was teasing.

She looked down at our joined hands for a moment and then back up at me. "Like…famous?"

"Kinda." I leaned closer to her so I could kiss her mouth. "People in the culinary world know me, but they don’t matter. You’re the only person who matters, and I just want you to know me as Daddy."

She inhaled slowly and then blew it out. "Okay, Daddy. Thank you for telling me."

11

KYLIE

"Kinda famous" turned out to be a massive understatement.

The second he left that night, I looked him up and was shocked to find out he was a legit celebrity. Jordan owned several restaurants, including a Manhattan fine dining place with two Michelin stars, and there were tons of interviews with him on talk shows I’d watched over the years. There were also a handful of podcast episodes that I downloaded to listen to when I was in the kitchen.

I thought about what to say and decided to let him off easy. You could have led with Michelin-starred chef, ya know.

His response was almost instant. Would that have changed anything?

Not even a lil bit. I meant it, but it might have freaked me out a bit. I was already intimidated by how gorgeous he was. Knowing he was rich and famous might have been a bit of a shock. I mean…probably not. Maybe it was better not to know until now.

Noted, but there are no more secrets, cupcake. Nighty night.

That worked for me.