Beau walked forward with a country-boy smile on his face, like a ray of sunshine peeking out from storm clouds tasked with making everything brighter.
And it did.
My eyes pulled to his, locking.
I don’t know what this sensation was, but it felt amazing. Charlotte silently waved as she turned back down the street, calling out, “See you Monday.”
Now Beau and I were alone.
“I bought Poppy a gift.” Beau casually said, like it was a dollar store item.
“You did.” My voice was oddly calm as I stared back at him. If this crush on Beau I had been denying for weeks wasn’t enough to make my knees weak, the fact that he did something extraordinary for Poppy was putting my heart on a cloud. “I was told you bought it for a helicopter pad.”
He started to lead the way across the street, then shot a quick glance over his shoulder. “It was a little lie I told to keep you away while I remodeled it for you. I know how stubborn you are, and once you learned what I’d done, I reckoned you’d stay away. I knew you’d make an exception and forgive me once you learned I did it for Poppy.”
“I’ll always make every exception for Poppy,” I said in a whisper, as I had this sort of scared feeling. I hadn’t expected to feel this vulnerable, but anything that had to do with Poppy always affected me on a deep level. He flung open the depot door, revealing a newly renovated space, resembling an upscale private school student lounge, with everything from computers to sofas, to a full kitchen. My lips moved but no audible sound came out. All my emotions seemed to pool at the base of my throat, creating a stop for my voice.
“There’s somethin’ else.” He removed a slip of paper from his pocket and nonchalantly passed it to me. “Do you remember when you told me to pick a favorite green charity?”
I kept my eyes low on the paper. “Yeah.”
“I talked to my accountants about setting up a special fund for Poppy’s Place, and I wanted this to be my special charity.”
It was a check with a number packed with six zeros behind it. I laughed, but not because it was funny. It was a release of overwhelming feelings. All he would have had to do was ask me out on a regular date. I would have been putty, but him planning all of these surprises for weeks . . . There wasn’t anything anybody could do more than this. I turned back to him, and mustered up the sincerest thing I could, knowing it didn’t begin to express what I was truly feeling. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome,” Beau said softly, but he didn’t break my eye lock when he took slow measured steps closing the gap between us. With a teasing twinkle in his eyes, he said, “Did you really believe I was buildin’ a helicopter pad after I drove your stupid scooter for weeks?”
“I didn’t know.” This was one of those moments that seemed to play out in slow motion.
Like I already knew the ending.
The expression on his face told me he already knew the ending too.
We had to live out this part—the best part. The part I didn’t even know I was waiting for, and somewhere deep inside, I hoped we’d remember this moment as the start of something and everything.
“I reckoned you’d try to talk to me at least, but you completely avoided me.” Beau’s voice came out sort of gravely.
“I wasn’t avoiding you.” I played coy, knowing my facial expression would give my lie away.
“Yeah, you were.” he said without flinching. He aligned his face with mine and went on, “I couldn’t blame you, though. I had called my contact on the city board of advisors to see if I could help your contract, but they said they were openin’ up the building for public bid because your funding likely wasn’t coming through. I knew I had to act fast.”
“I had no idea.” My voice floated out in whisps like I was afraid to breathe.
Not because of the building. Although I was still overwhelmed by this enormous gesture, something else was causing my breath to hitch in my throat.
He pushed the broccoli—that I had forgotten he was holding—toward me. “I got you this, too.” He saved me from having to ask why by adding, “Broccoli is classified as a flower, and I figured it would be eco-friendly since you can eat it instead of lettin’ it die.”
Speechless, because he had found such a thoughtful way to give me a gift that reflected exactly what I loved. I stood frozen as he took another step forward, erasing the rest of the space between us. I lifted my chin, and now we were standing kissing close. “Question for you.” He let his teeth play with his bottom lip while he waited for me to answer.
“What?” I could smell his woodsy scent, and I took a deep breath, savoring it.
His deep dreamy eyes glistened down at me. “Do you still think I’m a know-it-all rig pig?”
“Ah, no.” My voice was tiny, and I swallowed, feeling a tightness in my throat. “Do you still think I’m a know-it-all hippie with a nose antenna?”
“No.” His answer was firm, but slow. “Can I ask you about that date we talked about?”
My breath blew out in a relief. “I honestly didn’t think you’d ever ask.”
