Enjoy!

A Dash of Cinnamon

Sam was prepared, he was always prepared actually but with Jones not readily agreeing to the deal was one thing he hadn't counted on. He also hadn't counted on thinking about how hot their daughter was or that he wondered if the other ones looked as good as she did.

It didn't matter either way, he never mixed business with pleasure and based on the scowl she'd given him, he was more than certain that she wasn't interested. He didn't care, there were plenty of willing women to warm his bed for the night and if they were good enough, he'd even feed them breakfast.

Now that he was thinking about it, he hadn't had that experience in a while. He wouldn't mind making- no, he stopped. She was the opposition, she was a hurdle that he needed to get over in order to get the parents to sell. He hated the smug looks from his coworkers when he came back with a box of delicious treats instead of closing the deal.

He had talked a big game about it and had to eat crow after not even getting a verbal yes, so he decided to regroup and show up when he felt the daughter wouldn't be there, which to his surprise was right on the money because instead of being greeted by her he was greeted by another beautiful woman.

"Welcome to Mercy's! What can I get for you today?"

Sam looked her over and knew immediately she had to be another daughter of the owners. "Yes actually, I am looking for Bea and Douglas." He answered and she beamed at him before slowly looking him up and down then nodding.

"I see my sister was right, you are cute." She said, winking at him and for ungodly reason he felt his cheeks burning. "I'm Monique, their daughter but they aren't here… they're-"

"Jesus Mo, don't tell that snake everything!" Sam looked over her shoulder seeing the one from yesterday and smirked.

"I was just saying that they're not going to be here today… sheesh!"

Mya walked up and moved her sister out of the way, glaring at Sam. "Mr. Evans, your presence is no longer welcomed."

"Please call me Sam and that's unfortunate considering, I really need to close this deal with your parents." he replied, looking her over. "But if you're offering to distract me until they return, I'm open to that too."

"Wow, sleazy and after my parent's business… guess the standards for being a decent human being went out the window." He heard behind him, he turned and was met by a pair of intense brown eyes. "They won't be selling, so you can go."

Sam stood there completely stuck, trying to rack his mind on how two people could create three absolutely beautiful daughters and if he thought he was attracted to the other two then the rush he felt when he laid eyes on the woman looking at him must've been something completely different.

Sam was in awe as he looked upon the third woman standing before him. She was shorter than her two sisters, but he could tell by the commanding presence she held that she was the one they were referring to. He knew this was going to be a problem, because there was an undeniable attraction between them.

He wanted her in a way that made him feel like a primal animal. His heart raced as his eyes raked over her body and he felt a flush come over his cheeks. He noticed she had been talking for a while, but he hadn't heard a single word coming out of her mouth because all he could focus on were her lips; they were full and inviting and all he could think about was how much he wanted to kiss them.

She was wearing a dress that showed off her curves perfectly and Sam couldn't look away. He felt himself being drawn in deeper and knew that no matter what happened, this woman would always have some kind of hold on him. Her curves, the swells of her breast, her thighs and he could tell she was blessed with an ass.

"Do you have a staring problem?" She asked, snapping her fingers in his face causing him to blink.

"What? No, and I'm not sleazy." He replied and she rolled her eyes.

"You hit on my sisters then drool over me, you're sleazy and like Mya said, a waste of space."

Mya made a face. "I didn't say all that…"

"Either way, you're no longer needed. Goodbye." She said so sweetly he could taste the sugar of her words on his tongue.

Sam frowned. "Now there's no reason to be so nasty, the offer I gave your parents is well above market value for this space and if I'm being honest it was a courtesy. If you don't want your parents to lose this location because of your nasty attitude I suggest you reconsider my offer. This is me being nice"

She sighed, flashing her eyes at him. "I don't have a nasty attitude but you seem like you're hard of hearing, leave now."

Sam shook his head, walking closer to Mercedes, and stopped right in front of her, towering over her. He took a moment to take in her sweet scent, the soft curl of her hair and the way her eyes made his throat dry. "This isn't over, and I will be back." He warned.

"If you come back, you will regret it." She replied looking up at him and for a short moment they stared at each other before he forced himself to move past her and out the door.

Mercedes stood there, shaking her head before looking over at her sisters. "Where exactly is mommy and daddy?"

Her sisters looked at her completely amused before Monique shrugged, "I'm only here because she asked me to be after she told me that there was some cute guy snooping around."

"Well, clearly Mya needs to explain what the hell is going on and why he's after the bakery." Mercedes said, taking out her phone, "What's his name?"

"Sam Evans." She answered, walking from behind the counter after the last customer they had in there left. She locked the door behind them and switched the sign from opened to closed. "Mommy and daddy are thinking about taking his offer and I saw it, it's a huge offer."

Mercedes frowned. "How big?"

Monique grabbed a few pastries and brought them over to a table so they could all sit and talk. "I don't see what the big deal is, if they're ready to retire why not let them?" She said, biting into an apple strudel.

Mya rolled her eyes. "Of course you don't, little miss housewife. You are literally handed everything from Kieth, but this is mommy and daddy's legacy."

Monique frowned. "I work! It may not be at some corporate office like you or live off in some fancy world like Mercedes but I work!"

"I didn't mean-"

"No you have always acted like I didn't earn any of the things that I have, I may be a housewife but I am also a mother to your nieces and nephews and I do a lot in the community. I'm so sick of the two of you acting like I don't contribute!"

Mercedes scuffed, scrunching up her face as she sat down. "I don't remember ever saying anything about you, so you're definitely projecting." She said taking the bear claw and biting into it.

Both of her sisters looked at her before smirking. "You're attracted to him!" Mya accused and Mercedes rolled her eyes.

"Why is it that you two always assume I'm attracted to any man that comes into my line of sight?" She asked, looking at her phone reading the information about that Sam Evans guy.

"Wellll, you're eating a bear claw instead of the cannoli which you love and whenever you eat bear claws it's because someone got under your skin." Monique pointed out and Mya nodded.

"Anyways, what all do you know?" Mercedes asked, looking at Mya after putting the bear claw down. "It says here, he's one of the best at his firm."

"He's not the first one to come around here, he's the fifth. The other ones I was able to persuade to stop their pursuit but he was different… he came in looking for mommy and daddy."

"Did the others come looking for them?" Mercedes asked, scrolling through and reading more up on this Sam Evans person.

"They assumed I owned it, I was able to sweet talk them out of even trying to finish a pitch. They had souls, that man… he does not have one."

Monique frowned. "I don't think he's soulless… he's just trying to do his job and like I said if mommy and daddy want to retire why not get a ton of money to do it?"

Mya rolled her eyes. "They never said they wanted to retire before and just because this man is throwing seven figures at them doesn't mean it's a good idea."

Mercedes coughed, placing her phone down. "How much?"

"One point two."

Monique shot her a confused look. "They're offering that much for this business? It's just a bakery."

"No, there's something else going on here and I'm going to find out. This place isn't worth that much and I know it." Mercedes said, picking her phone back up and calling her assistant.

"You know they're gonna be pissed you called her, right?" Monique said to Mya who just shrugged.

"She'll get him to stay away, look at her making people do stuff for her. Tiny ball of fire."

Monique looked at her little sister, "I think he's gonna eat her alive."

Mya snickered. "I mean someone should but if they fall for each other he'll leave the bakery alone."

"So you felt it too then?"

"I thought it was going to happen with you honestly but yes I felt that spark, so I know she did and she's gonna fight it tooth and nail." Mya answered, smirking.

"Would it be so terrible?" She asked.

"I mean we could play this to our advantage… she gets distracted and he will get distracted then we can figure out why his company really wants to buy the bakery." Mya replied.

Monique nodded. "So we just have to make Mercy think she's actually in charge when she's not. Doable but we're gonna have to eat some crow…"

Mya shrugged. "Who knows maybe we can get her a boyfriend out of this?"

Her sister shrugged uncertain of how true that was. "Only one way to find out…"

Sam angrily stormed back into his office, his breathing more labored than necessary. "Such an insufferable woman." He muttered, throwing his case down as he sat down in his chair.

He loosened his tie, glaring at the window that showed the city landscape below. The bakery seemed insignificant to the towering skyscrapers of the metropolis, but it was proving to be an unexpected challenge.

"Insufferable," he repeated, trying to shake off Mercedes' piercing gaze and defiant attitude. He had met many tough negotiators in his career, but never had he encountered someone quite like her. She was a force to reckon with, and that was putting it mildly.

The more he thought about her, the more he felt a strange mix of annoyance and admiration. Her determination was admirable and her fierce loyalty towards her family's legacy was not something he could ignore. He sighed heavily, sinking further into his high-backed chair. This negotiation wouldn't be as straightforward as he initially thought.

His phone buzzed on the tabletop, breaking his chain of thoughts. It was a text from his assistant - she'd gotten a call from the Jones, they had called for a meeting. A smirk tugged at Sam's lips as he read the text. "So, they want to play," he murmured, his fingers swiping across the screen to send a quick reply.

Back at the bakery, Monique watched Mya anxiously as she ended her call. The room was silent for a moment before she finally spoke, "He's agreed to meet us tomorrow."

Mya grinned triumphantly while Monique let out a soft sigh of relief. Mercedes looked less than thrilled, an unreadable expression on her face as she paced back and forth while she was on the phone.

"We need to be careful," Monique warned, garnering puzzled looks from Mya. "We don't know what he's really after."

Mya rolled her eyes, clearly amused by the whole situation. "What's there to be careful about? We just have to make him see reason. And if that means using Cedes as bait for a while, then so be it."

Mercedes walked back, grabbing her half eaten bear claw. "Fucking bastard. There's something else going on. I'll be back in the morning, I have Jane looking into that Evans character."

Monique stood, nodding. "Are you staying with me?" She questioned. "Your nieces and nephews would love to see their auntie."

Grimacing, she shook her head. "No offense but they scare me so no but I will be staying with moma and daddy…"

Monique snickered, giving her a knowing look. "True, you've never been one for kids. I'll see you tomorrow then?"

"Tomorrow." Mercedes nodded decisively before walking out of the bakery.

"When are we going to tell her?" Monique asked as soon as Mercedes was out of earshot.

Mya sighed, running her hands through her hair. "Never, the less she knows the better, besides it's just so that we can keep him distracted long enough to really see why they want the bakery. "

Monique nodded, but the worry in her eyes didn't ease. "Just promise me you know what you're doing."

"I always know what I'm doing, sis," Mya replied with a grin.

her sisters are sneakkky lol