Reaching for my phone, I texted Evie.
Me: You home
It went unanswered for a minute, so I pulled up the menu for Chinese takeout. Then I heard the ding.
Evie: Yep, what’s up
Me: Want to do takeout, I need to talk
Evie: I’ll be right over
After unlocking my door, I began peeling off my work clothes as well. Nothing felt better than putting on sweatpants after a long day. Sweatpants, a long sleeve T-shirt, fluffy socks and slippers. My evening attire in the winter months.
“Mare?” Evie called out as she entered my apartment.
“Hi,” I said from the other side of my bed. She smiled from across the tiny space, and her eyes were immediately drawn to the huge bundle of flowers in front of my couch.
“Holy shit, where did you get those? And from who?” she asked as she walked closer to them.
“Aren’t they gorgeous?” I plopped on the couch and threw her my phone. “Here, add what you want to the order, I’m starving.”
As she did, I continued to stare at the fragrant stems that graced my table, overwhelming my small space. They would be a constant reminder of him for days.
Evie typed away on my phone, then tossed it to me. “You never answered my question, Mare,” she said, the air of expectancy in her voice.
All I did was stare as my eyes bored into hers and I tilted my chin.
“Hmm, so he’s playing hardball. Why now?” she asked. She joined me on the couch, each of us taking our respective ends.
That was when I turned away, refusing to maintain eye contact.
“Did you add your food?” I asked, knowing full well she did. I grabbed my phone and placed the order, thrilled when it said it would only take fifteen minutes. “Want something to drink?” I was already up and searching through my cabinet, getting some glasses and a bottle of wine from the bar.
“Wine again? This is one for the record books,” she said.
“Well, I still want to hear how things went with Declan,” I said. “Yeah, we have lots to talk about, so it’s another wine night.”
Evie took the glass from me as I repositioned myself across from her. We clinked glasses and after taking a long sip there was an extended silence.
“Well…” she said as she cradled her glass in both hands and smiled at me suggestively. She then gestured to the huge elephant in the room that would not be unseen. “Are they from who I think they are?”
I nodded.
“Although, at first I thought they might be from Garrett,” I said.
Her brows popped up, the question all over her face.
“You know we’ve been on two dates already, and we’re going out on Friday now, too. So I thought it could possibly be him, ya know? I gave him my address this morning since he’s picking me up for dinner, so it was kinda logical.”
She rubbed my foot, understanding how upset I was about my current situation.
“Oh, honey, it’s OK. Give him a chance tomorrow. If you’ve connected so far, there’s still hope he might be the one, the one to help you forgethim.” She looked at the flowers again. “But those are gorgeous, he did a fantastic job.”
“Well, he had help. They’re from Fiona’s, so I’m pretty sure Harper had a hand in these.”
“She’s a master at what she does, that’s for sure. He did have to go to her and order them and have some say in what she created. Dontcha think? And why would he have sent you such a bounty today, Mare?” Evie’s inquisitive tone told me I was not getting away without telling her everything.
I threw my head back against the couch.
