“I do.” I frown.
“So then you know flowers aren’t going to get her back, right?”
“I do, Miss Violet.” I swallow. “Are you Team Lana?”
“I’m Team Lana and Christian.”
I nod, rubbing my hand over the center of my chest. “Thank you,” I mutter.
“Don’t thank me yet,” she sighs. “These flowers and that garden won’t fix everything but…”
I huff. “Don’t worry, I’ve… I’ve got plans.”
Barely, but I can’t tell her that I’ve been winging it all this time. Lana was right when she threw those shoes at me. Her love language is different from mine. I knew that—I did once.
“Alright,” she smiles, adding the bouquet's final touch. “Here she is. I think Lana will love this one the most.”
“What is it?”
“Sunflowers, lavender limonium, and baby’s-breath,” Miss Violet tells me, adjusting the bouquet in the vase.
I hope Lana falls in love with it, and with everything I’ve planned to do this afternoon with Julian’s help. “It’s beautiful.”
She smiles proudly. “Alright. Let’s pick out stuff for your garden now.”
At the house, I take in Lana’s flowers first and leave the other ones in the car. The plan is to surprise her with the garden with all of her favorite colorful flowers, but I need to give her these first.
I go in through the side gate, leaving it open for when I go back for the rest of the flowers. The back door is unlocked when I go inside, and I leave the vase on the island with the note card Miss Violet picked out for me. Then made me write something to win Team Christian some points.
For my sunflower.
I love you.
Maybe it’ll help Team Christian. But I’m not Team Christian—like Miss Violet, I’m TeamLana and Christian. I like that team better. So I leave the note beside the vase and a ray of sun shines right on the flowers as I go back outside.
I don’t really know how to garden, it’s never been my thing, that’s why I called Julian. I think Lana deserves a garden for her patio for whenever she watches the sun rise and set and when she sits out here with a book.
Waiting for Julian, I go back and forth to my car for the bags of dirt, plant food, and pots of flowers to plant. I trip on a bag of dirt on my way back in and drop the one I’m holding, the bag cracking open.
I groan trying to fix it up. I don’t want her to see it just yet, though she probably will. But even if she does, I hope this is one of those destination instead of the journey kind of thing because right now, the journey looks…traumatizing.
“Christian?” Lana calls out my name. “Babe?”
My heart flutters as the term of endearment. I try not tothink about whether or not it was on purpose as I wipe my dirt covered hands on my pants and stand. “Back here!”
Lana leans against the railing. “Where did the flowers come from?”
She stands up straight as I come closer, shadowing over her and blocking the sun from blinding her. “I got them for you.”
“Oh.” Her cheeks go pink.
“You don’t like them?”
Lana shakes her head. “No—No, I love them,” she says quietly. “Thank you.”
Feeling a bit emboldened all of a sudden, I bend and brush my lips against her cheek bone. The soft breath that comes out of her is like a quiet moan, and I don’t pull away just yet. I just put my head to hers and breathe her in. The moment.
We don’t get these a lot—not ones like these.
