Page 98 of At First Catch

“Yeah.”

The answer sounds almost uncertain, which makes the gesture even sweeter.

“They’re beautiful.”

A faint smile tugs at his mouth as he hands them over carefully. “The woman at the flower stand said peonies mean romance.”

My pulse stumbles hard.

“She also threatened me if I bought carnations.”

A startled snort escapes me.

“There’s the Coral Bell Cove I know.”

A soft, almost undetectable smile touches Nolan’s lips as he hears the sound.

I step aside to let him in while trying not to visibly melt into the floorboards. The second Nolan enters the cottage, I realize the mistake of having him in such close quarters.

Luckily, Rook abandons me for him, distracting us both from the sizzling tension in the room.

“You’re dead to me,” I joke with the dog.

Rook ignores me in favor of leaning heavily against Nolan’s legs as Nolan scratches behind his ears absently while glancing around the cottage.

His eyes linger briefly on the framed photos along the shelves. The knitted blanket draped over the couch. The stack of library books near the kitchen counter. And I become hyperaware that this is the first time he’s really seeing my space.

“It’s nice here,” he says.

“Yeah?”

His eyes return to mine.

“Feels like you.”

I set the flowers carefully in a vase near the sink before turning back toward him.

“So,” I say lightly because emotional survival requires deflection apparently. “Where are you taking me?”

One corner of his mouth lifts.

“You trust me?”

“I think that’s already been established,” I say.

“You look nervous,” he murmurs as he takes a step toward me.

I exhale dramatically. “I hate that you notice everything.”

“I don’t hate it.”

Of course he doesn’t. The man pays attention like it’s breathing.

“Okay,” I admit. “Maybe I’m nervous.”

“Good.”

I blink. “Again with that answer.”