He cocked his head, meeting my gaze with his deep brown eyes. “I guess I did. I never expected to be doing this, but maybe the universe knew what I needed more than I did.” He rubbed the back of his neck with a laugh. “That probably sounds stupid.”
“It doesn’t.”
His scent intensified and I almost swayed toward him before shaking myself back to reality. What was I doing? I was here to get flowers for Lucy.
I cleared my throat. “So I just select one of these vases?”
“What? Oh, yes. Who are you getting them for? Is it a special occasion?”
I glanced toward the wall that separated us from Spring in Your Stitch. “Do you know Lucy?”
His eyebrows raised. “Of course.”
“Well, umm, the flowers are for her, so if you have any idea of what she likes…”
“These are forLucy?” He took a step away, and I caught a burnt edge to his scent.
“Yeah. Is that a problem?”
“I’d go with these,” he said, avoiding my question. He picked up a large, irregular vase that was shaped like a newspaper withStarlight Tribunewritten on it. I didn’t really get it, but it was filled with flowers in all different shades of pink, which felt like something Lucy would like.
“Here, let me take that.” He gave me an odd look when I took the vase from him. I didn’t know why Leo walked with a cane, but there was no reason for him to carry a large, bulky arrangement when I could do it for him.
We headed back to the checkout counter. Leo did not meet my gaze as he inspected the arrangement, picking out a few flowers he found flaws with.
“So how do you know Lucy?” he asked, trying and failing to sound nonchalant.
My alpha bristled as I finally caught on to what was going on—he liked her. Possessiveness burned hot in my chest.
“We met not too long ago.”I’ve been inside her. Felt her pussy squeezing my knot.“She came with me to an event in Boston last week.”
“Ahh, I see.” Leo punched in my purchase on the computer, and I tapped my credit card.
“Thanks for stopping in,” he said in a clear dismissal.
“Thanks for the flowers. I’m sure Lucy will love them.” I was laying it on thick, but I couldn’t stop myself. I expected some sort of snarky response, but he just turned away and walked through the back door, slamming it shut behind him and leaving me with a strangely hollow feeling in my chest.
My odd interaction with Leo left me shaken as I exited the shop and stood in front of Lucy’s door. Was this a bad idea? Spontaneity was not my forte, and I doubted she’d be thrilled to see me. I was pretty sure I’d upset her when I dropped her off after our night together. She deserved better…but maybe I could give her better.There was nothing saying I couldn’t extend my stay in Starlight Grove. Nothing waited for me in New York besides my office.
I pushed the door open, and Lucy stuttered to a stop in the middle of the room. Her arms were filled with bolts of fabric. My lungs greedily dragged in her scent, settling my emotions and making my cock twitch.
“Hi.” I took a few slow steps toward her.
Her eyes were wide. “Hi?”
“Do you need help with that?”
“No.” A bolt of fabric fell from her arms and hit the floor with a loudthud. She glared at it like it had personally betrayed her.
I put the vase on a side table before gathering up all the fabric in my arms. “Where do you want this?”
“I don’t need your help.”
“Humor me. It will make me feel useful.”
She huffed and gestured for me to follow her into the back room. “You can just put it there.”
“On the floor?”
