“One hundred and two, and twenty cents,” I tell him.
He hands me a credit card, and I swipe it.
The receipt prints painfully slow and I rip it, handing it to him to sign.
Cooper grabs a pen from the mug, and I reach behind me, plucking a leftover rose off the counter and give it to Naomi.
“This is for you,” I tell her.
She takes it out of my hand and glances at her father. He smiles at her, and she looks at me with curious eyes. “Every girl deserves flowers,” I tell her.
“These are for my grandmas. We already have some, but I guess we need more,” she says.
“Oh?” I ask her.
She nods excitedly. “I wanted them both to have something for a really late Mother’s Day since they’re both mama’s.”
My heart lifts. “That’s so thoughtful, Naomi,” I tell her.
She dips her nose into the red bloom and breathes it in. “These smell good.”
I laugh. “It’s good to stop and smell the flowers sometimes.”
She glances at Cooper, not sure how to respond to that.
“Okey-dokey, princess, we need to get back to the house and get ready for Grandma.”
She gasps. “We’re going to be late!”
He grins and picks up the vases.
“It was nice to see you again,” he says.
I force a smile, and something flickers in his eyes.
Yeah, buddy, I know what you’re about.
“Thank you!” Naomi yells and starts for the door.
I wave, and his little girl tugs on his belt loop, clearly ready to go. He glances at her and then back at me with a wide smile that sparkles.
“I’ll be seein’ you, Ms. Mae,” he says.
I ignore him and wave to Naomi.
“Off we go, sweetheart,” he says to Naomi as he holds the door for her and carries the bouquets in the other hand. She skips out the door with her very handsome father following behind.
The door closes and I drop my head back on a groan.Of coursehe’s married. Why do I bother thinking about any apparently single man I interact with as a potential man who wantsme?
Chapter 10
Cooper
Mystomachdoesafunny flip as I walk to the truck with Naomi, with two vases of flowers. They might be a bit much, but out of the women in my life, Aunt Dixie and my mama deserve much more than pretty flowers.
The way Mae spoke to Naomi gives me a bit of hope. But something changed between now and the first time. She flirted back; I know it. But this time was different. I glance in my rearview mirror. Naomi is focusing on the red rose in her hand.
Was it Naomi? Does Mae not like kids?
