The Accidental Queen: A Midlife Fairy Tale by Kristen Painter

Author:Kristen Painter [Painter, Kristen]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Sugar Skull Books
Published: 2022-09-29T00:00:00+00:00

Ro arrived at her aunt’s bakery by way of an unmarked royal carriage. She’d specifically requested that in an attempt to stay incognito and not cause any further speculation about what might be happening at the castle.

Gabriel’s words of warning had stuck with her just as much as his kiss had.

Because of his warning, she’d even had the carriage drop her off a street away. She passed a florist and thought about bringing her aunt some flowers, then realized she had no local currency. Kind of a bummer. She’d need to get some for when she came back to visit. It wouldn’t do to let Aunt Violet pay for everything.

After the florist, she passed a butcher and a sewing shop. She stopped to look in the window. The fabrics on display were beautiful. She glanced across the street. There was a tea shop where it looked like you could buy loose tea but also sit and have a cup. Next to it was a dentist’s office, and beside that was a general mercantile with everything from pots and pans to stepladders on display.

The whole place was so sweet and charming. She could absolutely see spending long weekends here with Violet.

Of course, Violet would still have to run the bakery, but maybe in time that was something Ro could help with. Not by working there but by giving her aunt some money to hire another employee.

With the promotion to curator, Ro would be getting a decent raise. She could definitely spare a little of that every month if it meant making her aunt’s life easier. She needed to talk to someone about how to get local currency. Maybe there was some kind of exchange.

She headed for Flake & Crumble, surprised to see a line out the door. She grinned. She was happy to see that line. Busy was good. She peeked in. Violet was behind the counter, as was a different young woman than the one Ro had met yesterday afternoon.

Both of them were hustling to take care of the customers. There was no way Ro could expect her aunt to take a break in the midst of rush hour.

Ro had a plan, though. She went around the block and found the back of the bakery. As expected, there was another entrance. The main door was open, leaving a wooden screen door to block out bugs but let air through. Ro slipped inside.

An older man was working at a long marble counter, preparing pies. “Can I help you, miss?”

“Hi. I’m Sparrow Meadowcroft. Violet is my aunt. I’m just here visiting, but she looked pretty swamped. I was thinking maybe I could throw on an apron and help.”

He smiled. “Sure, if you want to get stuck in, have at it. Aprons are there by the door.”

Ro found them on a hook. She took off her cardigan and hung it, then slipped the apron over her head and tied it behind her back. She went to the nearest sink and washed her hands.

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