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“She’s a client.”

“When I bought that for her, she wasn’t,” she replies. When I glare at her, she arches a brow. “Look, Ryker, I love you, okay? And I want to see you happy. Sawyer said it seemed like she got under your skin, and I was just testing the theory.”

“I am happy, Anastasia. And I don’t need a relationship to stay that way.”

“I know, but I just thought...” She trails off. “Fine, I was meddling, and I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay.” I laugh softly. “Thanks for caring.”

“Of course. And, for the record? That color does look fantastic on her whether it’s your favorite or not.”

I glance over at her as she lifts one of the mugs and studies it closely. It’s a pale blue, with bees and bright flowers painted all over it. To be fair, I don’t think there’s a color that wouldn’t look good on Dahlia.

But I won’t ever admit that to Anastasia.

“Here you go,” she says. “And consider me not meddling anymore.”

“Thank you for both.”

“You’re welcome for both. Bye, Dahlia!” she calls out with a wave.

Dahlia sets the mug down and smiles. “See you, Anastasia.” Her gaze drifts back to the mug briefly.

“Hey, save that mug for me.”

Anastasia arches a brow. “I thought I wasn’t meddling anymore?”

“Just do it, please.”

Anastasia laughs. “You’ve got it. I’ll even wait until you leave before I pull it off the shelf.”

“Thanks.” I head for the door, and Dahlia follows. Once outside, I hand her both her coffee and the bag containing her breakfast.

“Do you not eat breakfast?”

“Not typically. I tend to fast until dinner.”

“What are you drinking?”

“Black coffee,” I reply.

“Sounds serious.”

I laugh, appreciating the light tone in her voice. “Something like that.”

We start toward my truck, but Dahlia pauses for a moment. “I know we need to get to Charleston, but do you think it would be okay to just go stand on the beach for a few?” She bites down on her bottom lip, and I force my attention away out of sheer fear I’ll start drooling like an idiot.

“Yeah, sure.”

“Thanks. I want to live in denial a bit longer.”

“What about your fish?”

“I have a travel feeder I’ve used since my grandfather was in the hospital the first time. So long as I’m not gone for a month, he’ll be fine.”

“Effective.”

“It’s nice. Relieved a lot of stress from my shoulders at a time when even the smallest inconvenience felt like a brick being placed on my head.” She sighs as we reach the bottom of the beach steps. “This is gorgeous.”