The bell rang, and seconds later, three young women came in giggling over a private joke. One glanced over and spotted Caelan sitting next to me and gasped.
“Lord Caelan!” She was short, blonde, and curvy, and from the smile she bestowed on Caelan, very, very interested. “I’m so surprised to see you here.”
Her gaze flicked over me and dismissed me in the same second. Anger sparked in my belly.
Caelan’s expression didn’t change. “I’m here all the time. My girlfriend owns the place.”
I sucked in a soft gasp.Girlfriend. It felt right and wrong all at the same time.
When the girl’s eyes widened, I held up my hand and wiggled my fingers at her in a mocking wave.
“I’m Evie,” I said. “Welcome to Little Shop of Florals. Tess can help you if you’re looking for anything in particular. I’m on break for another fifteen minutes.”
Her eyes tightened at my abrupt dismissal.
One of the other girls, a shorter redhead, pressed her lips together and took a step away from the blonde, her eyes sparkling with amusement. “My mom’s birthday is coming up. I’ll ask Tess for help.”
The other girl tugged on the blonde’s elbow. “Come on, Courtney. Let’s look around.”
For a moment, I thought Courtney was about to make a terrible mistake, but eventually she turned and followed the redhead deeper into the store as Tess showed her the bouquet options.
“Girlfriend?” I murmured.
Caelan tugged me closer. “Weird word,” he agreed. “You’re so much more to me than just a girlfriend. I’ll come up with a better word.”
“What do you want me to call you?”
Caelan stilled, and for a moment I thought I’d said the wrong thing. “Flower girl, you can call me whatever you want.”
I glanced up at him and narrowed my eyes. “Why are you being intentionally vague?”
He lowered his voice. “Evie, the moment you want to make this permanent, I’ll fly in a minister and have you married within the hour. In the meantime, you can call me whatever you want.”
“You always have a way with words.” I squeezed his bicep. “Must be part of the required Shifter Lord training.”
“Yes. Romance 101 is required coursework before we get our diplomas.”
“I bet you were an A student.”
Caelan grinned, making my heart skip a beat. “I’ll show you exactly what kind of pupil I was later.”
I snorted. “Want a refill before I have to get back to work?”
He took my cup and rose. “I’ll get it. Half?”
I nodded and watched him walk away, which was one of my favorite things to do.
Things were good. Really good.
The dowry thing was weird, but I’d take a marriage proposal over attempted murder any day.
Chapter
Six
Caelan left after his second cup of coffee, saying goodbye with a kiss so scorching, Moira screamed she was going to get the fire extinguisher to break us apart. When the door shut behind him, I let out a satisfied sigh.
Moira came up behind me and propped her head on my shoulder. “I’m glad you’re happy,” she said softly.
