Lily opens the door and steps out of the cab that's driven her from Heathrow to Mona's home. She revels in the surroundings of the area. The large house boasts a modern facade and is nestled on a quiet lane with large oak trees that line the road. A low row of hedges dresses up the sidewalk and separates the house from the street. Lily wonders where Mona's car is, considering there's no spot for a vehicle from what she can see, and the only vehicle parked on the street is the cab.

"Lily, you've made it!"

Mona opens the front door and steps onto the covered porch, wrapping her wool coat around her body. Howard is hot on her heels, making his way to the boot of the taxi as Mona engulfs Lily in a strong, motherly hug. It's been a long week, and Lily is overcome with the emotions of packing up and leaving her shit show of a life behind her, even if it's only temporary.

"I am! I can hardly believe it. Thank you again," Lily says for what feels like the thousandth time, her voice tight as she chokes back a sob.

"Nonsense. I'm just as excited to have you here and start working together. Let's grab your things and get you situated."

They join Howard, who is making small talk with her grumpy cab driver. Lily retrieves her two suitcases and duffel bag. She knows she's packed a ridiculous amount for only four to six weeks, but she's reasoned with herself enough about needing everything that she packed neatly into each of the bags. This is her new life, and it's not like she's in Dublin with Marlene, where she can make the drive to Belfast and back if she's forgotten something of importance.

Lily reaches into her purse to pay for the cab driver, but Howard waves her money away. "Not to worry, Lily, I've covered the fee. Let's get in and out of the cold, shall we?"

He picks up Lily's duffel bag and extends the handle to one of her suitcases as she reaches for the other. She opens her mouth to protest, but Mona cuts her off.

"As soon as you confirmed that you'd be coming to London, I set straight to work preparing your room for you. You'll have an ensuite as well, so you won't have to worry about sharing a bathroom with anyone else."

"Oh, that's fine! Unless you've got another guest that you've forgotten to tell me about," she jokes.

"Not at the moment, no." There's a gleam of mischief in Mona's eyes as she responds.

Lily's curious about the way Mona phrased her response. Something tells her that her new boss definitely has something up her sleeve, but Lily figures it'll all come to fruition in due time. It's not like Potter is renting one of the spare bedrooms in Mona's home. She shudders at the thought of the super sexy, super arrogant man.

If only…

No. Mona's made it clear that his company—no, organization—Gourmet Gloucester is in, well, Gloucester. There's no reason for James Potter to be anywhere near London, let alone the charming little suburb of Sunbury-on-Thames. It's better not to let her mind wander to him anymore, so Lily refocuses on the subject of rent.

"You both are doing so much for me already. Are you sure I can't pay rent?"

"Absolutely not! It's about time this house has a guest or two in it."

Lily cocks her head at Mona's statement. "Or two? Okay, Mona, what are you hiding up your sleeve?"

"Oh, alright. I was trying to keep it a secret, but I'm rubbish at secrets! I exchanged numbers with your friend Marlene as well. She'll be staying with us for the London Wedding Expo in a few weeks!"

Glee ignites throughout Lily's body, sending a course of adrenaline shooting through her with the exciting news. "Really?! That's wonderful! Oh, I hope it won't be a problem having the two of us here. It will be so nice to see her once I've settled in a bit. That's so kind of you both."

Mona gives a hearty laugh. "Like I said, it's nothing!"

They walk into a small entryway, and Lily is taken aback by the perfect mixture of formality and simplicity. The walls are painted a soft grey that offsets the gleaming white marble of the entryway's floor. To her right, a bench rests in an alcove with a shelf for shoes underneath. Lily sits on the black leather to unzip her boots and tuck them neatly on the shelf before shedding her coat. Mona opens the door directly across from where she is standing, revealing a coat closet. Pulling out a hanger, she reaches for Lily's down-stuffed jacket and hangs it up among the rest of their outerwear.

"Alright, let's leave the bags. Follow me this way for your tour of the house!" Mona sounds like a young child on Christmas morning, showing off her beautiful home to Lily.

"This is the sitting room," she gestures to the room on the right, which looks more like a study with its singular couch and two armchairs surrounded by a plethora of books on built-in shelves and a grandiose fireplace. Despite knowing it's more formal, Lily feels at home in the room. Images of getting lost in a book as she sips her morning coffee play in her mind as she looks around.

After she's marveled to her heart's content, Mona whisks her away to continue showing Lily around but doesn't give her time to observe each room in as much detail as before. Directly across from the sitting room is the downstairs loo, which is next to the staircase that leads to the first floor. Before they head upstairs, Mona brings Lily into the dining room and through to the kitchen, which is much smaller than Lily anticipated—perhaps she bakes so much at the shop that she forgoes a lot of baking at home. Lily wouldn't blame her for that in the slightest if it were true.

Through the kitchen is the family room, with large French doors that lead out to the garden. Unfortunately, it's already dark, so Lily will have to wait until tomorrow to see the garden—not that they'll be able to enjoy much time out there in the middle of February anyway. Mona leads Lily back to the stairwell next, where they climb up to the first floor. They are welcomed by a long hallway with several doors leading to various bedrooms.

"This will be your room, dear," Mona says as she crosses the hall and opens the first bedroom door on the right.

Lily is stunned as she enters. The carpets are a light beige, soft and fluffy under her sock-clad feet. A picture window sits on the far side of the room, outfitted with a seat and plush pillows underneath. A queen-size bed rests against the adjacent wall with light oak end tables flanking either side, and Lily is drawn toward the delicate down comforter. It is mostly white but with tiny peach flowers that match the exact shade on the wall. The color is not too pink and not too orange, but a perfect blend of the two. It feels like she'll be engulfed by the sunset on a beach, letting the ocean carry all her worries away.

"This is so beautiful. I love it!"

"Do you? Oh, I was so worried it was too much. We've just had the room painted for your arrival, so I'm sorry if there's a lingering odor. I happened to see this bedspread when I was out and knew it would be perfect in this room—"

"So naturally, she had to redo the rest of the decor around it," Howard interrupts as he enters with Lily's bags.

Lily chuckles as she thanks Howard for bringing her things up. "It's perfect. Thank you, Mona."

"No, thank you, Lily. I know it's getting late, so I'll leave you to unpack and settle in for the evening. I won't make you get up too early on your first day tomorrow, but I'd like to be at the bakery by seven, so you can meet the morning crew. I figure we'll spend the first few days learning each other's styles and signature recipes, and then we can come up with a new menu for the weekend."

"That sounds great. Valentine's Day is bound to be busy, and I've got a few ideas that I was cooking up to sell for a 'pop-up' before you called."

"Brilliant. Well, I'll leave you to it. See you in the morning."

"See you."

Mona closes the door behind her, and Lily doesn't wait a moment longer to flop down on the bed. It's the comfiest mattress she's ever laid on, and she knows she'll sleep well while she's here. Lily allows herself a few moments of relaxation before she sets to work unpacking her things in the closet and dresser that are in the room.

It's surreal for her to think it's been precisely one week since Mona called with her proposition. The last seven days have been a whirlwind of getting things ready to leave. At least she can rest easy knowing her rent is paid through April, and the utility companies were compliant with her request to put services on hold while she's gone. Petunia even promised to check in on her flat once a week, despite being skeptical of Lily accepting Mona's offer.

"I'm not saying I don't like Mona and Howard, but doesn't the timing seem suspicious to you? You lose your shop, she needs a new head chef, and she wants to learn from you?" Lily recalls the strenuous phone call to her sister a few days prior.

"I prefer to think of it as a happy coincidence, Tuney. Besides, what else am I supposed to do until the wedding season kicks back up in April? I have just as much of an opportunity to learn from Mona, and I've already accepted it. Can you please just be happy for me for once?"

Petunia begrudgingly agreed, but Lily knew she wasn't happy in the slightest. Marlene, on the other hand, was ecstatic about the prospect.

"Lils, you're going to London! This is so exciting! I know it's not Paris, but you're getting out of Ireland! You're going to play in the big leagues! You'd be stupid not to go for it. Think she'll give you the weekend of the expo off so you can come hang out and get free swag? Make sure you have business cards printed up. You know, to do some subtle advertising. You never know!"

Of course, now Marlene's added excitement all makes sense, given that Mona's already extended the invitation for Marls to join them and forgo staying at an expensive hotel in Kensington. It'll be nice to have Marlene here in a couple of weeks, just in case Mona's staff at the bakery aren't as welcoming as Lily hopes.

Half an hour later, Lily has emptied all of her bags and gotten ready for bed in the spacious adjoining bathroom to her room. Unlike the peach hues of her bedroom, the walls on the loo are painted a gentle, sea-foam green, with undertones of a beach theme adorning the walls. Lily feels as though she's in paradise as she grabs her book and gravitates toward the window seat.

She sits down, curling her legs into her chest as she looks out to the street below. A lamp post shines down a soft beam of light that catches a few snowflakes here and there against the night sky. It's so quiet compared to the bustling city life she's used to, with car horns honking at every hour of the night. Here, there is only the faint hum of occasional traffic from a few blocks away as the quiet suburb settles into sleep.

Lily turns to her book, intending to read a chapter or two before retiring to bed, and gets a fair way through when something catches her eye outside. Two figures come into view under the nearest street light, presumably going for a late-night stroll. One of the trees blocks Lily's view, so she can't get a good look at who she assumes is some of Mona's neighbors, but it looks like two males.

For some reason, they've stopped and look to be having some sort of conversation. Lily's curious what they could possibly be talking about that requires them to pause out in the cold. She continues to watch the two, figuring she's safe by the cover of the tree until one of the men looks up. She can't make out any of his features, except for the glasses that he wears on his face.

A shiver runs down Lily's spine in recognition. But surely, there's no way it could be him. There are plenty of blokes out there with square-rimmed glasses and a tall, strong physique. Not that she can tell from them being bundled up. She should really look away, but her eyes are glued to the man, curious about who he is and whether he could be a new friend to her if their paths crossed during her time in London.

When the man cocks his head to the side, Lily is suddenly aware that she's on full display, given that the light is still on in her new bedroom. She uses the opening to draw the curtain and retire to her bed before he can glance back up at her again—if he wants to even see her in the window a second time. It's certainly a weirder experience than she's used to, but chances are she'll never see the man face to face, so she puts the thought out of her mind while she sets her alarm for six a.m. and shuts the light off.

The next five days pass by in a whirlwind. Lily wakes with the sun every morning and heads to the bakery, which is only a few blocks away from Mona's house. The shop is everything she imagines it would be, with pastel yellow walls and white wainscoting in the seating area and glass display cases filled to the brim with fresh baked goods for the seven o'clock opening. The aromas of coffee beans and sugar fill her body with contentment as she sets to work each morning, thankful that she can sneak a scone and a cup of coffee from one of the signature roasts Mona sells from a local coffee shop that she's partnered with.

It all feels clean and chic, as if Lily's visiting a patisserie in Paris, giving her a renewed sense of excitement to go to work each morning. In the back of the bakery, Mona's outfitted the space with state-of-the-art equipment and has four or five pastry chefs working to create the day's selected menu as early as five a.m. Thankfully, Mona shares Lily's views on prepping ahead of time so that things are ready to go each morning, allowing for a slightly later start time.

While the pastry chefs busied themselves in preparing a multitude of recipes, Lily and Mona would sit down at an adjoining metal table and take on one or two desserts of their own to add to the line-up. One of the first recipes Mona shared with Lily was for her best-selling Victoria Sponge Cake, followed by her most popular galettes, and Lily divulges how she creates her recipes based on intriguing flavor combinations. She wouldn't say she has a signature item yet, but her passion lies in baking cupcakes and custard tarts.

Lily was a little sheepish when admitting this to Mona, but most of her work thus far has been for weddings, and cupcakes are the trend. She could have chosen to become sick of making cupcakes week after week for numerous events, but instead, Lily chose to offer different flavors in order to challenge herself and continue growing in her profession.

Mona supported Lily's admission and immediately knew how they would explore her specialty. With Valentine's Day fast approaching, she gave Lily full reign of the menu. It took a whole day of planning on Thursday and prepping on Friday, but now that the treats are in the oven and hitting the shelves for the swarm of customers, Lily couldn't be prouder.

It was important for both Lily and Mona to come up with a menu that would set Puff's Pastries apart from other bakeries in the area, and since they are closed on Sunday—when Valentine's Day falls this year—they want to ensure a spike in customers purchasing in advance. The finalized menu offers an assortment of custom cupcakes and donuts, as well as a few signature stand-alone items.

The signature items are a mix of both Mona's and Lily's styles. They've settled on individual red velvet cakes shaped like a heart and topped with a dollop of whipped cream cheese frosting and strawberry cheesecake bites that are each topped with a chocolate-covered strawberry. Lily is super excited about how the two selections have turned out, even if it's at the expense of permanently dyed fingertips from the red food coloring.

For the cupcake flavors, Lily chose white chocolate and raspberry, triple chocolate and Bailey's, pink champagne, and tiramisu. Creating four different cupcakes alone would have been enough to turn Lily into a full-blown stress ball, but Mona assured and reminded her that they had a team ready to create and execute all of her ideas, something she was still having trouble getting used to. Despite knowing this, and trusting her new co-workers, Lily still oversaw the batter and frosting preparations on Friday to ensure everything tasted up to her expectations, and she has to admit she's continuously impressed with Mona's team.

Finally, there are the donuts, which are Mona's idea. She reasoned that they might be a special treat for couples spending their mornings in bed or whatever it is that couples do. Lily can't deny that it's a genius idea, but her heart twinges with the regret of having no one of her own to spend the holiday with, despite having the day off. All of the donuts are heart-shaped, and they also agreed on four distinct flavors. The first is a simple cake donut decorated with frosting and piped sayings that resemble those candy hearts with the sayings on them, which Lily affectionately calls 'conversation hearts', followed by brownie batter, strawberry jelly-filled, and powdered red velvet.

So far, Lily's Saturday has been spent frying up fresh donuts and working with the decorating team to frost, dip, and fill the fried dough to perfection. Decorating is Lily's favorite part, so working with the team and sharing her knowledge and tricks to masterful piping is rewarding.

After the final trays of donuts go out to restock the shelves, Lily wipes away the sweat from her forehead and checks her watch. 2:00. It's hard to believe she's been hard at work in the bakery for the last eight hours, with only one coffee break and a quick fifteen-minute freeze to wolf down a sandwich. Thanks to the bakery's promotions on social media, the shop is busier than ever, and Chelsea, Puff's Pastries front-end manager, is quick to update Lily and the rest of the crew on how quickly things are selling out.

Speaking of the devil, the doors swing open, and Chelsea walks in, taking a look at the halt in production. "Are you guys done, then?"

Chelsea's a few years older than Lily and a bit rough around the edges. Her silver-blonde hair is always tied up in a sleek bun, and she wears the signature yellow and black apron proudly when she's out front serving customers. She and Lily share the same work ethic, making it easy to get along.

"Yes." Lily knows Chelsea means well, despite the tiny hint of surprised condescension in her tone, so she goes on to explain the status of operations. "Vito and Tony are on clean-up duty now, and Lauren's going to help get the kitchen ready for Monday. Luckily, we've got enough prepped from yesterday so we can relax a bit."

"Oh, okay then. Brilliant! I don't think I've ever seen you all work harder than this, and I've been around for a fair few holidays."

"Yeah, well, Lily's a slave driver, you know," Lauren jokes as she wipes down the nearest counter.

"And to think I was beginning to like you," Lily teases back.

Chelsea laughs at the exchange but draws the conversation back to business without skipping a beat. "So, are there any extras of the desserts in the fridge, or do we have everything on the floor already?"

"We've got a dozen or so left of each cupcake flavor, and maybe the red velvet cakes, but that's it on the donuts. Not sure about the cheesecakes."

"There are two more back there that can be cut up," Lauren chimes in. "Do you think some of the front help can handle that or…"

"I already cut them!" calls Tony from one of the large sinks in the back. "Put the strawberries on too."

"Thanks, Tony!" Lily calls before turning back to Chelsea. "There's your answer. Once something's out, it's out."

"Well, with four hours left 'til close, I think it's safe to say we'll run out of some, if not all!"

"I sure hope so. Otherwise, we'd have spent all that hard work for nothing!"

"Not for nothing if we get to take some of it home," Lauren mutters, causing Lily and Chelsea to laugh.

"If there's anything left, you'll be the first one I ring, Lauren, how's that?" Chelsea wagers before turning back toward the door. "I should get back out there. Lily, you're free to go whenever. Not that you need my permission or anything, but you and the rest of the baking crew have done wonders today! You deserve a break."

"Thanks, Chels. I'll probably head out soon after I help these guys clean up."

"But you're the head chef, you don't have to clean," Lauren argues.

Lily shoots her a look. "Do you really think I'd use my title to that advantage? Besides, many hands make light work." She grabs a towel and starts to help dry some of the clean pans that the boys have already stacked next to the sink.

About a half-hour later, Lily hangs her apron on the hook and gathers her things. She's sure that she looks like an absolute mess. She never fails to leave the bakery without flour on her cheeks or nose, and her red hair, though pulled back in a tight bun, is likely frizzing out from the heat of the ovens. Typically, she'd exit out the back, but she wants to say goodbye to Chelsea and check on the stock.

As she gravitates closer to the door, she stops. Chelsea's waiting on a customer whose voice sounds vaguely familiar, but she can't quite place it. Lily strains her ears to hear more of the conversation, but there's a lull, which she assumes is Chelsea packaging the customer's selections.

"Oh, you're going to be so excited to try these! I can attest to their deliciousness," Chelsea gushes.

The customer's voice is mumbled, but Lily thinks she hears a 'thanks' and someone 'will love these,' followed by Mona's name and 'branching out.'

"It's actually not all Mona this year! She's just hired a new head chef who helped create most of the menu, and let me tell you, the customers are going wild for her creations. We're very lucky to have her!"

Lily's chest swells with pride, not only from the huge compliment that Chelsea just gave but also from the fact that she feels welcome and accepted into the tight-knit family Mona has created with her staff. She's so caught up in Chelsea's compliment that she doesn't hear the customer's response but does hear the manager speak again.

"I can see if she's still here if you'd like to pay her the compliment yourself?"

Lily's eyes widen, looking around in a panic, but knowing she won't be able to escape in time. Instead, she backs away from the door so it doesn't swing in and hit her.

"Lily, are you—oh, perfect! You're still here. We have a customer who wants to compliment our new head chef!" Chelsea claps her hands in excitement before lowering her voice, "and he is super hot too!"

"Oh, Chels, I don't know, I'm exhausted, and I look like—"

"Nonsense! Get out there and take the credit you deserve!"

Chelsea reaches out and grabs Lily's arm, pulling her forward and pushing her through the swinging door. Lily can feel her face already heating up from embarrassment. She prefers to stay behind the scenes when she can. Not that she's opposed to receiving compliments for her creations, but it's normally in the form of a text or email or even the occasional thank-you note after an event.

Lily steps out onto the floor of the bakery, with Chelsea hot on her heels. Chelsea returns to her spot behind the counter as Lily walks around the large glass display case to come face-to-face with the mystery person. Only when he comes into view, Lily realizes the mystery person isn't a stranger that she's never met before.

"You're in luck! Lily hasn't left yet. She's right here," Chelsea gestures to the man, who Lily is desperately hoping was one of the other customers waiting in line.

"Miss Evans?"

So, that's why she recognized the voice.

"Mr. Potter. What a surprise." Her tone is less than enthused, but after such a long day, she doesn't have the energy to care about decency.

"A surprise indeed. Perhaps I should have known based on some of these cupcake flavors that you'd be the mastermind behind the menu."

"Well, I hope the decoration isn't too sparkly for you." Lily can't help the snide remark that slides off her tongue.

Potter frowns but doesn't respond right away, so Lily uses that opportunity to leave, though there are several questions burning in the back of her mind.

"If you'll excuse me, it's been a long day, and I need to get going."

Without waiting for a response, she brushes past him and exits out the front door. It takes everything in her power not to look back, even when she hears the bell jingle a few seconds after she heads home.

"Miss Evans, wait. Please? I feel as though we've gotten off to a rough start," he says as he jogs up to her side.

"A rough start? What does that—what are you doing here anyway? Don't you live in some fancy estate in Gloucester nearer to your business or something?"

Who does he think he is? Strolling back into her life when she's finally forgotten about him? And why hadn't Mona said anything?

"I daresay it's less of a stretch for me to be here in London than you. Why aren't you in Belfast?"

"Mona invited me to stay with her and work as her head chef while I'm between jobs," Lily huffs. The words escape her lips before she can stop, and her anger is rising from the fact that she answered him so willingly.

"Between jobs?"

"We're not talking about that. Especially since you haven't bothered to answer my question. What are you hiding, Potter?"

"Dropped the 'mister', have you? Alright, Evans, if you must know, I live here. Yes, I have an estate in Gloucester, but that's where my mum resides. I prefer to live in my own home given that I will be turning thirty-one next month. Does that answer suit you?"

Lily feels her mouth open against her will. She should have known he might have parents, and the estate in question might still be occupied by them. Now she feels—and probably looks—like an idiot. When they get to the corner of the street, she's determined to make a swift departure from his side by turning left, but he follows. With the realization that they are still traveling in the same direction, Lily knows she must respond to him.

"I suppose that suffices."

Tension and awkwardness stifle the cold air around them as their feet move in tandem. For the first time, Lily wonders if she's been too harsh with him and debates whether or not she should give him another chance.

"So, do you come to Puff's Pastries often?"

"Not often, no, but Dora happened to see the advertisement for this weekend's menu and begged me to go pick some things up. I guess my baking doesn't cut it for her."

Lily's heart plummets again at the mention of Dora's name. How could she forget about Dora? The young, spunky, wrinkle-free woman on his arm a few weeks ago.

"Oh, right. That makes sense with the holiday coming up," Lily reasons.

"What?"

Lily observes his confusion and matches it with her own. What's he playing at?

"Have you not noticed the heart-shaped themes everywhere you turn lately? I mean, who wouldn't want themed sugar to celebrate a day of love?"

"I don't know. Maybe a teenager who just prefers cute treats that aren't made by her godfather?" A tiny smirk is pulling at the corners of Potter's mouth, with one side lifting higher than the other, causing his 'hotness' factor to soar through the roof. Lily would be drooling if one particular word hadn't caught her off guard.

"Godfather?"

Shit, did I just say that out loud?

"Er, yes. Dora's my goddaughter. I've had full guardianship over her for three years now after her parents died unexpectedly. My mother was originally supposed to take her, but she's getting older now, and we didn't want Dora to have to move away from her life here in London. So, I volunteered."

"Oh."

Lily couldn't think of any other words. She'd gotten everything completely wrong. At least he hadn't caught on to the fact that she thought they were—

"You didn't think Dora and I were dating, did you?"

Fuck.

"What? No! Of course not, I—"

Potter laughs at her sputtering before cutting her off. "You absolutely did. Honestly, Evans, You don't think I'm that pretentious to rob the cradle? She's barely eighteen and more like a sister to me."

If Lily's cheeks could catch on fire, they would. If she felt like an idiot before, she's completely mortified now.

"Well, you can't entirely blame me."

"Why? Because you're convinced that I'm this vile specimen that you're determined to hate?"

"I am not determined to hate you," she argues. "But the jury's still out on 'vile specimen.'"

That comment elicits another deep chuckle from his throat that Lily can feel reverberate throughout her body despite the space between them. As they approach Mona's home, he asks, "Well, is there a chance for me to prove that preconceived notion wrong?"

Lily pauses and ponders his statement. Is he asking her out? No, there's no way. He despises her as much as she is disgusted by him.

"What do you mean?"

"When I was chatting with the manager, she mentioned that your other specialty is a custard tart. I've been experimenting with a new recipe and would love a second opinion."

The sensible side of her brain is screaming no, but she's tempted by his offer. Many pastry chefs tend to avoid custards unless they're making creme brulees. Custard consistency can be temperamental, especially when adding and incorporating more complex flavors that can throw off the cooking process. Against her better judgment, she complies.

"I think that could be arranged. When are you thinking?"

"I've made one batch earlier today but want to tweak things a bit. Perhaps tomorrow? Say, around two?"

She doesn't have any other plans tomorrow, other than relax on the couch and sleep in, and it's not like she's the one who's baking. Plus, the contestant will now become the judge, and if Lily's being honest with herself, she's curious about what's so special about Potter's expertise that qualifies him to judge baking competitions.

"Okay."

"Okay?"

"Yes, Potter, I'll taste-test your new recipe. But there's only one problem."

"And what might that be?"

"I don't know where you live."

"Ah, that's easy. I live right there."

James lifts his arm and points back to the large, stately brick house that they've just walked past. Two doors down from Mona. It's the largest on the street and one that catches Lily's eye every time she walks past.

Of course, he lives there.

"You—there? But Mona lives—"

"Here? Yes, I'm aware. We've been neighbors for the better part of five years now."

"But why didn't she tell me?"

"I think you'll have to ask her that," James chuckles. "So, tomorrow?"

"S-sure, yeah." Lily shakes her head in an attempt to clear her mind from the foggy realization that James Potter is Mona's neighbor.

"Brilliant, I'll see you then." Potter nods to Lily before turning and doubling back to his house.

He ducks his head down as his free hand slides into his pocket, and Lily stands there watching him walk away. She should really go inside and get out of the cold, but the chill helps keep her grounded as she processes what just happened. Not only has she just run into James Potter but he's invited her to his home to talk shop and test recipes. And she's accepted.

It's fine. It'll be totally fine. Surely, a couple of hours can't hurt, right?

Except for one tiny detail.

Tomorrow is Valentine's Day.