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The day hasn’t been the worst she’s ever had, but it’s certainly up there with the shittier ones.
Stede adores her bakery. She loves her work and everything the place is to her. It represents freedom from the suffocation of her family, it’s a safe space for the local community that she built from the ground up, and, most importantly, it’s the place where she met the love of her life. The bakery is her pride and joy and easily one of the most important things in her life.
It’s also a monumental pain in the ass.
Stede is more than familiar with the work that goes into running a bakery almost single-handedly, and she’s more than capable of running her team and making sure everything on the to-do list gets done, but today every move she makes feels like she’s walking through treacle, sticking with each step and draining her energy far quicker than it has any right to.
She knows Ed can tell, too; they text each other throughout their respective work days, shooting little messages of encouragement (sometimes wholesome, sometimes not so much) whenever they have a free second, and Stede hasn’t quite been able to inject her usual level of enthusiasm to her texts as she usually would.
Ed has been silent for the last two hours. Normally, this would be inconsequential– Ed is at work. It’s normal to be without a response. Stede is capable of going more than an hour without hearing from Ed, though she vastly prefers it when she does.
Today, however, when everything that could go wrong has gone wrong, when she has an hour left of the day from hell before she can go home and curl up in Ed’s arms on the sofa the way she so desperately wants to, Stede is well on her way to having a little cry over it.
One hour left, she tells herself. Just one hour left of business.
And then however long it takes to clear out the remaining customers, because there’s always at least one.
And then at least another twenty minutes locking up and tidying away ready for tomorrow.
And then another fifteen minutes to walk home, why the fuck didn’t she bring the car–
The others all go home at four-thirty, and thankfully, the remaining thirty minutes of Stede’s shift pass easily and without any hiccups. By the time five o’clock rolls around, the place is clear of customers, most of the tables are wiped and the chairs are cleared, and Stede is well on her way to getting home at what she deems to be a more reasonable hour. All she needs to do is lock up.
She’s itching to see Ed. She’s always itching to see Ed if she’s honest, but after the stress of the day and the last few hours of missing her, Stede is practically aching for Ed’s touch, desperate to be back in the comfort of the home they’ve built.
At five o’clock on the dot, the bell at the front chimes noisily as the door opens.
It’s the straw. Stede is the camel.
She stops in her tracks in the kitchen, takes a deep breath, and hears her own voice crack as she calls back.
“Sorry, we’re closed.”
The reply comes a second later.
“I’m not here for the cakes, sugar.”
Before Stede can whirl around, the strings of her apron are being tugged loose, and warm, tattooed arms are winding around her waist, hands resting on the gentle curve of her tummy and squeezing her back against a soft chest.
The stiff rod of tension cementing Stede’s spine melts like butter in Ed’s embrace, and Stede’s eyes slip shut, basking in the bliss of being in Ed’s arms after a whole day of feeling desperate for her touch. Stede holds Ed’s arms in place around her, stroking over the bare skin with her thumbs, feeling the soft hair under her palms.
“Hello, my love,” she whispers. “This is nice.”
Ed’s laugh is warm and quiet in Stede’s ear, and her lips fall to Stede’s neck, only barely brushing bare skin above the collar of Stede’s shirt.
“Fuck yeah, it is,” Ed grins, pressing lazy kisses to Stede’s shoulder. Stede can feel the heat of her mouth through the fabric. “Missed you.”
Stede lets out a broken little whimper, turning in Ed’s arms to capture her face in her hands. Her beauty still takes Stede’s breath away. “Oh, I missed you too. God, you’re a sight for sore eyes.”
“Mate, you only saw me this morning.”
“And that was far too long ago.”
Ed is still smiling as she leans in for a kiss, nothing more than a chaste, gentle press of their lips, sweet and tender. It’s only as they part that a thought pops into Stede’s mind and she frowns, questioning.
“Hang on, what are you doing here?” She asks, still clutching Ed’s shirt tight so she knows it isn’t anywhere near a complaint. “I thought you were supposed to be working late this afternoon.”
“I was,” Ed replies, “but you were having a shit day, weren't you? I raced through the last couple of hours like a fuckin’ madman so I had the evening off.”
The hours of radio silence. God, Stede loves her.
“Plus,” Ed stresses, squeezing Stede tighter once again as she drops a kiss to the end of Stede’s nose, “that show we wanted to catch starts at seven. If you think for one second I’m staying at work and missing the chance to watch possibly-shitty TV and cuddle the fuck out of you, you’re off your fucking head.”
“Oh sweetheart, thank you. But you didn’t have to rush yourself just for me. I would’ve been alright here.”
It’s a lie and she knows it, but she hopes it’ll be enough to–
“Bullshit,” Ed laughs, and Stede has lost. “First of all, if you’ve had a shit day, I wanna help, so fucking jot that down. Second, I know what you get like when you’re all grumpy. It’s cute as fuck. I wanted to see it.”
Stede pouts a little at that, and it only serves to make Ed laugh more.
“See?” Ed kisses the pout off her face. “Cute.”
They stand like this for a while, holding each other in the middle of the bakery kitchen and sharing sweet kisses, until Ed pulls back slightly, shifting shyly on the spot.
“It, uh–” she starts. “It wasn’t just for you. Me finishing early. I mean, it was partly because I missed you, so I guess it was about you, but like… your bad day hasn’t put me out or anything, so don’t go getting ideas.”
Stede’s heart really wasn’t built to hold all this emotion. “Oh, Ed…”
“I started missing you before my shift even started, actually, which is a new fucking record for me.” She’s rambling now, avoiding Stede’s eyes. “I usually make it to lunch time, at least.”
All of a sudden, Stede cannot go another second without Ed’s lips on hers, so she remedies it immediately. Her fingers wind into Ed’s hair, tangling in the silver-black tresses tumbling around her shoulders, and she feels Ed’s hands bring her in closer in response, splayed against Stede’s back just the way Stede loves, the way that makes her feel safe and held and desired.
“I love you so much,” Stede whispers when they part, her lips brushing Ed’s with every word. “I hope you never forget it for a second.”
Ed gently knocks her forehead to Stede’s, grinning against Stede’s mouth before stealing another quick peck. “I know. And I guess you’re alright too. I’ll tolerate you for a little longer.”
Stede rolls her eyes playfully, huffing at the non-confession. She’ll let Ed have her little jokes. The way Ed looks at her says enough as it is.
“In that case…”
Stede pulls out of Ed’s arms, ignoring the whine of protest she gets in response, and pulls her apron fully off, tutting when the neck strap gets caught on her ponytail. With Ed’s assistance, she gets it off and hangs it on its hook in the corner before reaching for Ed’s hand and lacing their fingers together with a squeeze.
“Take me home, darling.”