Some random genetic mutation causes the scales of your cones to express sugar. Birds come and nibble at them. Sometimes they eat a seed too, but the seeds are tough enough to survive the birds gut, and they get deposited many miles away, in a small quanitity of bird muck, which is a good start for a plant.
As time passes, the scales of the cone become softer, and sweeter, and wrap more closely around the seed. Eventually, they are clearly recognisable as fruit, and it is easy for a bird to eat a whole 'cone' - which is now a berry - and take one or more seeds along for the ride.
Your next decision is simply whether to make clusters of small berries, or take a little longer and make fewer, larger, fruit. Smaller fruit will probably be eaten by smaller birds who travel further. Larger seeds will cost more to make, but might get eaten by larger animals who will provide them with more, shall we say, compost.
Expensive big fruit for big beasts.
Cheap little fruit for little birds.
Evolution starts with the Last Universal Ancestor.
You can find out what happened before evolution here.
You can also short-cut to Land plants, or Animals
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