I chortle a laugh. “Trust me, Brielle has enough of them. The men in her life enjoy buying her sunflowers.” I peer up to find his eyes set on me and a subtle wry smile on his lips.
“Then maybe chocolates are a better idea,” he mentions. I nod once and feel my mouth tug, wanting to smile gently. The air between us is peculiar, neither tense nor calming. He clears his throat.“Truthfully, you’re the item on my list that I came here for.”
Heat swells in my body, and my brows raise in surprise. “Whatever do you mean?” I say, playing coy.
His jaw flexes side to side as he grins. “Since flowers for Brielle are a no-go, then maybe you can arrange something else for me? Can you have something delivered to the Dizzy Duck Inn?”
“As in what?” I’m curious. I watch as he picks up a small square card with my logo from the pile on the counter, and he flips it between his fingers.
“Any flowers will do, they’re even optional, but the card is kind of crucial.” He tips his head gently to the side and hands me the card.
An audible breath escapes me. “Sure. What am I writing?” I click a pen and pose my fingers, waiting for him to dictate.
“‘About last night…’” He pauses when he notices that my fingers freeze mid-sentence, and I stop writing. Something inside of me boils. This man has some nerve, asking me to deliver flowers to some woman he spent the night with. “Shall I continue?” he asks.
I swallow, debating if I should throw him out of my store now, but something inside of me tells me to go on. It’s the tone of his voice. “Next sentence.” I remain defiant.
“‘My answer is yes, Violet.’”
“What?”
“No, I mean, the card is from you, so you’re signing your name.”
I wave my pen between my fingers and look at him for answers. “I don’t follow.”
He stands confidently, and a pleasing smile graces his lips. “You’re going to answer a question that I’ll ask at the BBQ and send me the card one day real soon, flowers optional.”
“Why the hell would I do that?”
“You’ll see.” It sounds like a delicious threat. He clears his throat as if he wants to switch topics. “I thought it would be good to clear the air.”
I notice a wilted rose on my counter that I forgot to clean up earlier. Picking it up, I pluck one petal off. “Oh?” I pretend to be surprised. “Nothing to clear.” I grip another petal, this time with a little more force.
Take the high road, Violet.
Declan’s eyes squint to study me as I continue to tear. “Yeah, not sure that’s true.”
I grab the scissors. “Do you mean leaving before sunrise? Or the note folded as a bird that saidCoffee machine is ready, door will lock on your way out, thanks for a good night, Declan.” I cut the stem rather ceremoniously.
“Something like that.” He reaches forward with a grin, cautiously wrapping his fingers around the scissors, causing our hands to touch and my body to jolt with electricity. “How about you put these down.” He takes the scissors and sets them back on the side.
“Why apologize now? Are you worried you hurt my feelings? Never fear, I knew what I signed up for.”
He runs his thumb along his chiseled jawline with a little bit of stubble, bringing my attention to his mouth that I want to kiss. “Still… I’m not sure I would have left had it not been for the fact that I needed to meet with my lawyer to finalize the paperwork to become owner of the Spinners.” My spine straightens at his admission, because thatisa crucial meeting. He seems to notice, as he angles his head to enable his eyes to catch mine. “I had a great night.”
“Really? You only mentionedgoodin your little note on your pillow,” I say rather dryly.
Declan chuckles from my humor. “I’m not one for notes. Anyway, I’m in town and thought I would stop by.” He scans the room around him. “It smells like you. This place, I mean.”
“Flowers do tend to have a fragrance.”
His fingers glide along the countertop. “You did well here.”
“Thanks.” I stare over his shoulder and notice the old lady from the knitting club peeking into my store. “The town gossip is here. She spreads stories like wildfire but ensures they never leave the Lake Spark bubble.” I wiggle my fingers at her with a bright smile which causes her to scurry off.
“If only she knew our little secret.”
My eyes whip to Declan who has a sweltering gaze.
