Sugared by Merry Farmer

The Art of Love is having the wrong numbers, but being in the right place at the right time…

Leland Page counts himself lucky to have been given the job of running Hawthorne House’s increasingly busy kitchen and teaching cooking and baking courses at the arts center. He feels like he has to prove himself to Robert Hawthorne to keep his place, so when he finds his former best friend’s brother in severe distress and brings him home, he isn’t sure whether Ean Jones will make him or break him.
Kicked out of his parents’ house for being gay, Ean knows he’s in trouble. All he has to his name is a lottery ticket and hope. So when Leland comes to his rescue, he’s ready and willing to do anything for his new hero. But he didn’t imagine that would mean helping Leland create the most magnificent Valentine’s Day feast Hawthorne House has ever seen!

Sugared is a low-angst, brother’s best friend, unlikely rescue story that involves lots of cake and a hope for a better life.

This short novella originally appeared in the Candy Hearts: Volume 2 – Wrong Number Valentine’s Day anthology.