Been sitting on this for a while. My apologies for the long wait. More to come. Thank you for your patience.

Because Miss Mills quickly rushes off, Ichabod doesn't receive a chance to notify her about their next appointment. He opts to send her a quick text message, telling her they should make plans to visit Sweets by Stella for a cake tasting. She tells him she'll be at the seamstress getting the final alterations on her wedding gown immediately after her shift. Therefore, he's agrees to meet her at the seamstress, and they can go to the bakery from there. He promises himself that he'll act professional when he's in Miss Mills' presence.

Ichabod greets the receptionist at the front desk in the alterations shop.

"I'm supposed to meet Miss Abigail Mills. Has she yet arrived?"

"Yes. She's in dressing room five. You can wait in one of the chairs."

He thanks him and proceeds to take a seat. As he waits for her, he makes his presence known.

"Miss Mills, I have arrived. I am in the waiting area."

"Okay, Crane. I'll be out in a sec."

Under the thick curtain, Ichabod observes her bare feet and a pair of black flats. He hears a zipper and watches her feet step into the gown. The seamstress makes a statement about how the dress perfectly fits her frame, since she is petite. When Miss Mills opens the curtain, Ichabod ceases to breathe. She is already a stunning woman, but in her wedding gown, she brings even the mightiest of men to their knees. He almost drops to his at her beauty. The dress has lengthy lace sleeves. It's an off-shoulder gown with a train that sprawls across the wooden floor. She turns to permit him a view of the gown's back, and heaven help him. Her back is bare. He wishes to kiss the inches of her skin, a desire that he should not have. The rest of the dress hugs her curves and reveals her plump rear. She is glorious.

"Your fiancée is gorgeous, isn't she?" The seamstress says.

He is so blinded by her that he doesn't even bother to correct her.

"She is quite indescribable."

"You don't like it?" Miss Mills says.

"Please, do not misunderstand me. You have left me utterly speechless. There isn't enough vocabulary to describe your splendor in this gown."

"I agree with him," the seamstress says.

Miss Mills blushes. "Thank you. Are these all the alterations that need to be completed?"

"Yep. You're all set to take your dress home."

Miss Mills nods. "I'm going to change really quick and then we'll go."

"Very well."

As he takes his seat again, he doesn't know how he will ever rid himself of imagining Miss Mills in her dress, let alone with it discarded.

Once they arrive at the bakery, the owner, Stella, gives them a warm welcome.

"Thank you both for checking out my shop. It's good to see you again, Ichabod. And Abbie, I hope you like what I have to offer."

"It is wonderful to see you again as well, Ms. Stella, and I'm certain my client will enjoy your confections. Right, Miss Mills?"

"Yeah. Crane tells me you're really good. I can't wait to try everything."

"Awesome. You're already set up." She leads them to a table that's quipped with plates, forks, napkins, and bottles of water. Two white boxes are also on the table.

Ichabod pulls out a chair for Miss Mills, and she thanks him.

"One box has raspberry crème cupcakes and the other one has chocolate. You two are more than welcome to take home the leftovers."

"Thank you," Miss Mills says.

"You're welcome. I'll leave you to it. If you need anything, just give me a shout. I'll be in the back icing a cake."

"I will. Thank you again."

She nods and quickly leaves. Ichabod is left alone in Miss Mills' company once again. She opens a box.

"Does it matter which one you have first? This one is raspberry."

"I will take which ever one you will have first."

"Raspberry it is then." She puts a cupcake on both of their plates.

Ichabod digs in with his fork as he watches Miss Mills take a few photos of the cupcakes in the boxes.

"How is Mr. Riggs faring in Chicago?"

She sets her phone down and tends to her treat. "He's good. Busy, but he's enjoying himself. He's been taking lots of photos of the protest and interviewing the residents."

"Do you have an idea of when he will return to town? It's been two weeks the last I checked."

"I'm not sure when he'll be back. It may be in another two weeks. He has to get in contact with city officials, the housing authority, and some other state employees for his story. These things take time, he said."

He can't tell by her tone how she's feeling. She speaks as though she isn't bothered by his absence.

"How do you feel about this?"

"It's work. I get it."

"Are you disappointed?"

"I don't want to talk about this anymore. Can we just enjoy the cake?"

"Very well."

He won't push her to confide in him, but he can tell she's more so bothered by it then she's willing to admit.

"How do you like the dessert?" he says.

"It's good. What do you think?"

"It's scrumptious. However, I'm partial to sweets, so any dessert tastes delectable to me."

She chuckles. "I can actually believe that. It suites you."

"Do you think Mr. Riggs will enjoy these?"

"Oh, yeah. He'll love this raspberry crème for sure."

"Does he have an inkling of your gown?"

"No. I hadn't even told him I went dress shopping. Surprisingly, he hasn't even asked. I think he kind of wants to steer clear of this part and let me do my thing."

Ichabod wonders if they want to get married. Though he's known most grooms to be uninterested in every detail about the wedding dress, they'll at least inquire about it once or twice or show some type of enthusiasm about it.

"Who did you take with you to go dress shopping?"

"My sister, Calvin's mom, and Rena, Corbin's wife. They were excited, and all of them ended up crying. I expected it from Mrs. Riggs and Rena, but not Jenny." She smiles. "It was fun. I felt beautiful."

Ichabod is happy to know she had a great time at her dress fitting. "Will you have bridesmaids?"

"Yep. My sister, my boss' wife and daughter, Cynthia and Macey, Rena, and a few college friends. Calvin's brother, friends, and a few cousins will be his groomsmen."

"That sounds wonderful. I know bridal and groom's parties can be quite hectic, especially if the bridesmaids and groomsmen quarrel amongst each other."

"That's a bitch, yeah. The people in our party don't keep up drama, thankfully. You ready for chocolate?"

Ichabod nods, and she gives them one. He thanks her.

"What about you? What was your wedding like? I bet all of this planning probably makes you nostalgic."

"It doesn't, come to think of it. As ironic as it, I'm not married. I'm divorced."

She raises her eyebrows. "Ironic indeed. Do you miss her?"

"No, I do not. However, I do wish her well in her life. Her name is Katrina. We married after college and were so madly in love with each other. As time went on, we found ourselves arguing more. I believe it was because we were growing apart. We wanted our own separate lives more so than we wanted our lives together. She wanted to travel and take care of animals across London. I wanted to present lectures and pursue my master's in history at Harvard University in the U.S. We mutually agreed it was best to separate once and for all. I could never hold her back."

"I'm sorry to hear that. At least your divorce wasn't ugly."

He scoffs and opens his bottle of water. "Yes, thank God. We decided to just split what we shared down the middle. Our parents were more so disappointed than we were."

"I'm glad it all worked out for the good. Is Katrina still in London?"

"Yes. She's even opened her own vet."

"Good for her." She smiles.

"Did you and Mr. Riggs attend college together as well?"

"We did. I majored in criminal justice and he picked journalism, of course. After college, we broke up for two years. I just needed my space, you know? To figure myself out apart from him. And in between that time, I ended up falling for this other guy. His name was Danny. We broke up, too."

He finishes the rest of his cupcake and wipes his hands with a napkin. "May I ask why you two terminated the relationship?"

"He cheated on me." She glances away from him.

"I'm terribly sorry to hear that. He's an utter fool."

"Thought so, too."

The bell on the door dings, and Stella hurries from the back of the kitchen.

"Here to pick up your order, Mr. and Mrs. Reynolds?"

"As soon as possible. My wife's been driving me crazy about this gender reveal cake."

"I just finished it. Let me box it up. One second."

Miss Mills' eyes widen like he's never seen before. Suddenly, he's alarmed.

"What is the matter?"

"That sounds like my ex."

Ichabod briefly glances at the couple. "What does he look like?"

"Tall. Dark-skinned. Beard. Wear's a Rolex on his left wrist."

"Unfortunately, that appears to be him."

"Shit." Miss Mills ducks in her seat.

"Oh, dear."

"What?"

"They are walking towards us."

"Fuck." Miss Mills sits up.

"Abbie?"

She turns in her seat. "Danny."

"I thought that was you when we came in. How've you been?"

"I've been fine. I see you're expecting."

Ichabod glances at the woman, who's glowing and smiling at Mr. Daniel.

"We are. A girl. The baby shower's tomorrow. Lauren's got family here, so…"

"Congrats."

"Thanks. I see you've been busy yourself. Nice to meet you…"

"Ichabod Crane."

"Crane. Take care of her, will you?"

He nods. "In the many ways you failed to do so. Oh, with absolute pleasure. Also, it appears your order is ready, so if you'll both please excuse yourselves that would be wonderful. You wouldn't want to keep Ms. Stella waiting."

"Right. Come on, Lauren."

She awkwardly waves and waddles away. It is when they exit the bakery that Miss Mills speaks.

"Thanks for that."

"You're very welcome."

He notices that she's close to tears and doesn't push the conversation forward.

"Are you ready to leave?"

She nods.

He quickly closes the boxes, thanks Stella, and promises that they'll be back to place an order soon. Abbie puts the cupcakes in her front seat.

"You want to go grab a drink?"

"Pardon?"

"A drink. At Mabby's. I could use one."

He doesn't think it is appropriate. After all, he's supposed to be working on boundaries. However, observing Miss Mills with glassy eyes, he knows he can't abandon her in such a vulnerable state.

"Of course. After you."

They sit at the bar with two shots of vodka and lime. Abbie swallows hers as quickly as she receives it. He only sips his.

"Dance with me, Crane." She takes his hand and leads him to the dance floor.

They sway to something slow and modern.

"I called Calvin on the way here. He didn't answer."

"I'm sorry he couldn't be here for you in your time of need."

She lays her head on his chest, and soon he realizes that she's crying into his jacket.

"I'm fucking tired of this."

He lifts her chin, and she's stares at him broken.

"Of what, Miss Mills?"

"Of being abandoned and disregarded. Mistreated. My parents aren't around. Calvin might as well marry work instead of me. And that shit with Danny years ago still bugs the hell out of me. I mean is it me? Am I not worth it? Am I not enough for the people I've given my heart to?"

He wipes her tears. "I'm truly sorry you've had to experience such despair. If it were up to me, I'd ensure there'd be nothing but joy in your eyes and peace in your heart. You are deserving of that and so much more. You are everything a person could want in a daughter, sister, friend, wife, and co-worker. You are such a light to this world, Abbie. Please do not doubt that."

Crane can't help himself, can't stand to see her shattered, un-whole. So he kisses her like she's his, like he's the one who can give her what she needs though he can't. Their tongues bend together. Her fingers curl into his hair. Suddenly, she stops and removes herself from his arms.

"I have to go." She rushes off once again.

She will forever leave him in want.