Chapter 32: Sweet as Sugar
Moana

The children all began to cheer once Edrick agreed to stay longer so that we could make cookies. I lifted my gaze from Clara to see the Alpha billionaire standing in front of me, but he wasn’t looking at me; he was looking at the children.

We all made our way down to the kitchen. I lingered at the back of the group, still in utter shock as I tried to wrap my head around Edrick’s sudden change in demeanor. Had the tour of the orphanage and seeing how disadvantaged children lived given him a bit of compassion?

Once we were in the kitchen, I put on an apron and started to get out the ingredients to make the cookies while the children watched hungrily, licking their lips in anticipation for the sweet taste of sugar in their mouths.

“Do you like to bake, Mr. Morgan?” Clara asked, standing on her tiptoes as she gripped the edge of the counter to see.

“No,” Edrick replied, avoiding eye contact with the little girl. “I don’t.”

“Not even cookies?”

“No, not even cookies,” Edrick said. Then, in a slightly lower voice: “I’ve never baked anything.”

The children erupted into gasps, causing me to stifle a laugh. “Here,” I said, grabbing an extra apron and tossing it to Edrick. “I’ll teach you.” Edrick caught the apron and gave me a puzzled look while the children exploded with a chorus of giggles.

“I think I’d just mess it up,” he replied. “You can do it.”

my chest. “There will be no cookies if Mr. Morgan doesn’t help,” I said, to which all of the children began to protest loudly, some even going so far as to push Edrick toward me

put the apron on, coming over to me.

“They’re gonna kiss!” Now, the group’s cries of protest became even louder as some of the boys even

stepped away from Edrick, shaking my head as I felt my face get hot. Next, I showed Edrick

of flour into this bowl,”

a group, helping them

she seemed to have taken a liking to him, which reminded me

rolled a ball

you have a

“I do,” Edrick replied.

sticking her tongue out to the side a bit as she focused on rolling a wa d of cookie dough into a misshapen ball between her tiny hands, then slapped it down on the tray with an unprecedented amount of force for such a small girl. Then, she turned toward Edrick and looked up at him inquisitively. “How come you never bake with your

opened his mouth to speak, but

Sophia interjected from across the

and dug into the bowl of cookie dough to

“My dad doesn’t always think that boys should do the same things that girls do,” he said. “So, I grew up thinking that if I tried

and the girls to play however they wanted and to try new things. I grew up not only baking and doing traditionally feminine things, but I also had all of the opportunities in the world to try traditionally masculine hobbies. I couldn’t imagine not being allowed to try those things just because of my gender, but it explained so much

stuffing raw cookie dough in his mouth, suddenly spoke up. “That’s dumb,” he said, his voice garbled through the cookie dough. “Baking

Elliot!” I shouted, running after the little boy. “Don’t eat raw cookie

me, and the children erupted into laughter

were out of the oven and the children were happily stuffing their chocolate-covered faces. Sophia led Edrick and I to

generous with their money when it comes to human orphanages like this one. I really thought–” I watched as Sophia

out and squeezed Sophia’s arm. Edrick fell silent and appeared to be thinking, his

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