Her mom lives in same building as she does, but I could tell that she was anxious to get home in time to greet her kids at the crosswalk in front of their school.
The ring of the bell over the shop door pulls me back to my feet.
I smooth my hand over my hair. I bunched it into a topknot mid-afternoon. No one who comes into Wild Lilac is focused on how I look. I don’t want them to be. The flowers are the stars of the show.
“Hello again.”
I turn at the sound of that voice. It’s so deep and melodic.
Locking eyes with Liam Wolf, I smile. “Hi.”
He traded in the jeans and T-shirt he was wearing earlier for a pair of charcoal gray pants and a black sweater.
Anything looks good on him.
The man is a sight for my very tired eyes.
He’s invaded my thoughts throughout the day. I stole a glance at my phone from time-to-time waiting for a text from Liam to let me know when he’d stop by to pick up the bouquet he ordered. The two texts he sent me early this morning were straightforward. He apologized for unwittingly thrusting me into the middle of what he called ‘an uncomfortable situation.’
With a shake of my head, I snap back to the reality that I’m staring at a guy who had his heart crushed less than twenty-four hours ago.
“How did you make out with the sunshine bouquet?” His gaze trails over my shoulder to the coolers. “Tell me that’s not the arrangement you made for my mom.”
Without needing a peek, I know exactly what arrangement he’s talking about. It’s Leanna’s handiwork. She prepared the centerpiece for a sunset wedding tomorrow. Al agreed to deliver it to the venue after he drops his wife off at work in the morning.
“You told me to dial it back.” I laugh. “I listened.”
I turn and walk toward the cooler. Sliding open one of the glass doors, I reach in and retrieve the small bouquet from the vase.
When I spin back around, Liam is right behind me. He’s so close that the flowers brush against him.
“I’m sorry,” I say, swatting a hand over his sweater even though the flowers didn’t leave a trace of anything behind when they touched him. “I didn’t know you were there.”
His gaze drops to the bouquet in my hands. “That’s for my mom?”
I hold it up proudly. “It’s sunshine, right?”
He studies my face as a slow smile crawls over his lips. “I agree. It’s pure sunshine.”
Suddenly feeling as though I need air, I sidestep him. “I’ll wrap these up.”
I tug at the paper roll that’s positioned at the end of the table. I chose a light purple paper for the shop. It fits the theme of the store.
Moving to the other side of the table, he crosses his arms. “How long have you been doing this?”
“I took over the store last year,” I say. “But I’ve always loved floral design.”
“You don’t need me to tell you that you have talent.” He laughs.
I’ll take the compliment even if it’s twisted in its wording. “Talent and training go a long way in this industry.”
I’ll never discount the training I’ve received over the years. I took night classes in floral design while I was earning a degree in business. My years spent working in flower shops gave me the foundation I needed to build a career of my own.
I point at the front counter. “You can fill out a card over there if you’d like. You’ll find envelopes there too.”
His gaze doesn’t leave my face. “I’m good. There’s no need for that.”
I wrap the bouquet carefully before giving it to him. “We can settle up at the counter.”
