“So, are you over it?” When she didn’t answer immediately, he continued. “Your divorce, are you over it? I was so caught up in my sister’s situation that I didn’t think to stop and ask you that before I brought you into this mess. I’m sorry about that.”
His features were soft and sincere, a mix of concern and regret that she’d never seen grace her ex-husband’s face.
“No need to apologize. I came here because it was the right thing to do. Am I over it? The regret and grief about losing a life I’d lived for twenty years? Yes, I’m over that.” The relief washing down his face was visible. She could’ve left it at that. She probably should have. Yet something inside of her compelled her to continue. “In the place of all that grief and pain, there’s a restlessness I wrestle with now. I’m ready for the next phase of my life. I just can’t seem to figure out what that actually is.”
He leaned carefully against the display case and smiled downat her. The inside of the shop was chilly from the refrigerated cases that lined the walls. The nip in the air notwithstanding, being positioned in the wake of his warm smile was like sunbathing in July on a Caribbean beach—hot, glorious, and utterly decadent.
“I have no doubt you’ll figure it all out in your own time.”
“Well,” she hedged, trying to get herself together. “It’s been two years and nothing yet. I’m starting to go a little stir-crazy, to be honest.”
He shrugged in a carefree, nonchalant way that had the audacity to make him look sexier than he had any business being.
“The idea that we have to have everything figured out at any given point in our lives is a lie. You know that, don’t you?”
She didn’t know that. That was the problem. She’d spent every day of her life since she’d married Karl knowing exactly what would happen in her life, until she didn’t. And since that moment, everything in her world had seemed out of focus and balance.
“Hopefully, I’ll remember that the next time I’m feeling like I should know what to do with my life.”
He placed a gentle hand under her chin and lifted her gaze to his. The moment was intimate in a way that ran much deeper than any physical connection. It was as if he was seeing inside her, the real her. And even more surprising was the fact that he seemed to enjoy what he saw.
“Don’t worry,” he said. “I’ll make sure to remind you if you forget.”
And just like that she stepped off the cliff into something inexplicable—something too amorphous to label while intense enough its presence was undeniable.
Welp, you done gone and fucked up now.
What the fuck are you doing?
If Michael knew, he’d certainly answer his own question. He’dcrossed the line, kissing her, and now he was digging into the private parts of her life that he had no business asking for access to.
Getting close to her was a bad idea.
You said that already.
Apparently, it still bore repeating. When the question about her being over her divorce had slipped out of his reckless mouth, he’d thought it was morbid curiosity. As he held his breath waiting for her to answer, hoping with all he was worth that she said yes, he realized this wasn’t about his naturally inquisitive nature. He wanted her to be over her ex for his own gain.
And you know why that is, don’t you?
If he didn’t, then he couldn’t deny it now. It was so she’d have room for him.
See, this is why you should’ve never kissed her in the first place. It was supposed to be harmless flirtation, maybe a little fun in the sack. Your ass shouldn’t be caring about taking up space in her world or her heart.
His conscience was so smart. Too bad he couldn’t say the same about the rest of him right now.
“So.” She stepped away from him, causing his finger to drop from her chin. She walked behind the counter, arranging and rearranging things. Since he guessed she hadn’t a clue how to run a flower shop, he figured this was her way of breaking the tension he’d created. “Is there anything else we need to do?”
He shook his head. “No,” he answered. “The booth is set up outside. The only thing it needs is us.”
She stopped fiddling with the things on the counter long enough to look at him. The intensity of her gaze bore into him, burning through skin, blood, and bone to get to the core of him, the cellular building blocks of him. Whatever uncertainty he’d seen in her eyes a few moments ago, it was replaced with something decisive and powerful.
“That’s fine. Give me a sec and I’ll meet you outside.”
Tempted to ask what she was thinking, he stopped himself. He figured he’d probably pried into her personal thoughts more than enough for one day. Although the way she stared at him with a mischievous grin, tilting her full lips, taunting him, daring him to push for more, he wondered if she wanted him to press a little further.
He took a breath, forcing his hands in his pockets to keep himself from doing something rash like walking behind the counter and putting his hands all over her. He should’ve just walked away. Instead, he continued to stand there, making himself a promise. Before Vanessa left Monroe Hills, he would know exactly what every one of her looks meant.
Chapter 12
