Total pages in book: 90
Estimated words: 87179 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 436(@200wpm)___ 349(@250wpm)___ 291(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 87179 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 436(@200wpm)___ 349(@250wpm)___ 291(@300wpm)
I grin, but then my jaw drops open when he slips one hand between us and presses his thumb against my clit.
“I didn’t know I could feel like this,” I admit with a whisper.
“Goddamn, baby.” He tips his forehead to mine, and we fall over the edge together.
It’s raining harder than I’ve seen in years. I’m standing at the counter in the flower shop, watching through the window as it comes down in sheets, as if the gods are standing on the clouds, dumping buckets of water.
“It’s angry out there,” Ida says. “But it’s supposed to be done by this afternoon and become sunny again.”
“That doesn’t seem possible,” I murmur, shaking my head. “And we need the rain. It was a dry summer.”
The bell over the door dings as Holden Lexington pushes inside, dripping wet.
“You don’t own an umbrella?” Ida asks him.
“Hell no. I live in Montana. The weather changes on a dime.” He strolls inside to the counter and grins at me. “I need a bouquet of flowers, please.”
“Sure. Do you have anything specific in mind?” I ask him.
“Sunflowers, with red roses mixed in.”
My eyebrows shoot up in surprise. “That’s pretty specific.”
“They’re her favorite,” he says with a shrug. “Do I need to come back for them?”
“I can deliver—” Holden’s already shaking his head before I can finish the sentence. “Okay, no delivery. Give me five, and I’ll have them ready for you.”
“Excellent, thanks.” He chats with the other ladies as I pull the bouquet together, and I have to admit, the bright yellow and deep red are stunning together.
“She has good taste.” I pass him the wrapped bouquet with a smile.
“I’m the one with good taste,” he says with a wink. “Thanks, ladies. Have a good day.”
Just after Holden leaves, we see three people come running down the sidewalk, huddled under umbrellas. They rush into my shop, bringing the rain with them, and when they lower the umbrellas, I realize that it’s my parents.
“Mom?” I frown over at them, a little miffed that they’re soaking my hardwood floor. “Dad? What are you doing here?”
“Surprise!” Evan, the third in their little trio, offers me a big smile as he spreads his arms out wide, as if he just jumped out of a cake or stuck a landing at the Olympics.
“Hello, doll,” Dad says as they all walk over to me, and Dad leans in to buss my cheek. “We haven’t seen you in a while, and Evan thought it would be fun for us to come for a visit, since you don’t seem to make the time to come home.”
“I am home,” I say sweetly. My mom’s looking around the shop with a wrinkled nose. She never could understand why I would lower myself to retail. “How are you guys?”
“Oh, we’re just fine,” Dad says. The whole time, Evan just stands there, preening as if he found the holy grail. “Let’s head out and get some lunch.”
“I’m sorry, I can’t go. I’m working.”
“Surely you can trust your employees to take over for the day,” Mom says. “We’re here to see you.”
I notice that Ida doesn’t jump in to shoo me out the door the way she would if Chase was doing the asking.
“I honestly can’t, Mom. I’m sorry. We have a wedding tomorrow that we’re getting ready for.”
“Dinner, then,” Evan says, rubbing his hands together. “The four of us will go out, on me. It’ll be great.”
My first instinct is to say no. To stand my ground. But I find myself nodding. “Okay, that sounds fine with me. I’ll be done here at six, and I can meet you.”
“Wearing that?” Mom demands, eyeing my simple T-shirt and jeans. “Evan will want to take us somewhere nice, Summer.”
“You look great,” Evan assures me. “Trust me, there’s no place in town that requires formal attire. We’ll see you soon, Summer.”
And with that, they open their umbrellas, sending water spraying all over the place, and waltz back out the door.
It’s as though a mini typhoon just came through the place.
“I’ll grab a mop,” Sharla says with a sigh. “Evan annoys me.”
“Join the club,” I murmur, just as the door opens again, but this time it’s Jeannie, the manager of Mama’s Deli, just down the street. She doesn’t come inside but sends me an apologetic smile.
“I don’t want to get your floor all wet, Summer. I have a lunch delivery for you from Chase.”
At the mention of his name, joy rushes through me, washing away all the annoyance from just a few moments ago.
“Oh, thank you!” I hurry around the counter to collect the brown paper bag. “I’m sorry you had to come in the rain.”
“Oh, it’s fine. It actually smells really good out there, but I can feel fall in the air. Okay, I’d better get back.”
She waves, and then she’s off once more, running through the rain.