Gumleaf Valley

Marchelle Perryman has spent twenty years turning Loaves and Lamingtons into the beating heart of Gumleaf Valley.

She knows every customer by name and pastry order, and after decades of hard work is finally preparing to build the forever home she’s dreamed about for years. But when structural issues threaten the bakery’s heritage building, she’s forced to put those plans on hold, determined to protect the life she’s built before chasing the future she’s long imagined.

Luke has always claimed he stops by Loaves and Lamingtons every morning specifically for the coffee and cinnamon rolls.

It has absolutely nothing to do with the capable and gorgeous woman behind the counter who remembers everyone’s stories as easily as their pastry preferences. As one of the youngest lead carpenters in the region, he’s spent his career proving he’s more than his age—and quietly accepting that once the job is finished, so is his place in people’s lives. So when he’s hired to restore Marchelle’s bakery, getting to spend every day beside the woman he’s admired from afar feels dangerously like a dream come true.

Working side by side, admiration soon gives way to something far harder to ignore. While Marchelle is determined to save her bakery and reclaim her dream, Luke finds himself searching for reasons to stay long after the renovations are complete—hoping that, this time, someone might want him for more than what he can build.

The second in a series of interconnected stand-alones, this cosy Australian romance contains high spice.