Is heflirtingwith me? I mean, that’s what it seems like…or am I wishfully thinking? Gods, why do I want him to be?
No, he must be flirting. He asked to take me out when we were in the woods. But that could’ve been because I saved him from being a bobcat’s meal.
Or maybe this is a tactic to distract me from whatever he’strulydoing here in Harmony Glen. That’s a possibility.
“What’re you doing here? Surely your essential oilshaven’t run out already.” I study him closely, taking in the set of his shoulders. How his hands look so gentle hanging at his sides, his cuticles stained with paint from his last artistic creation.
To put it simply, he exudes charm without even trying, and the more time he spends near me, I’m not sure I’ll be able to resist.
His cheeks gain a rosy hue, the warmth seeming to spread tomyface.
“I wanted to see you again. Y’know,notin the woods. I’d like to get to know you more.”
“Well…” I shake my head, looking around me for any excuse to get him out of here. “I’m at work. I’m busy.”
He raises a brow, smiling as he looks around the store. The very empty store. “You sure you don’t have a few minutes to spare?”
Before I can protest, those piercing eyes find mine and instantly make their way past my defenses. There’s a genuineness in them that makes me feel like maybe,just maybe, I’ve been a bit paranoid up to this point.
There might be a chance that Orian is right, and Carson isn’t here to cause me—or Harmony Glen—any issues. Maybe our pathsweremeant to cross.
Maybe I can feel his presence for a reason beyond something bad.
Maybe our souls are tied together, some invisible string connecting us. Our paths were meant to cross, and I’m glad it has happened. Even if the reason is still unknown. His heart is calling to me, and mine him.
“I might have a few minutes.” I release the breath I washolding, letting my shoulders fall into a more relaxed position.
He grins widely, showing off those perfect, porcelain teeth. They’re more rectangular than my own, which have a pointiness to them. Another thing that will always separate me from being completely human.
“So, how long have you been in Harmony Glen?” he asks, wandering around the store, looking between me and the displays.
I cross my arms, keeping my tail movement as minimal as I possibly can. “A long time now. It’s home.”
He nods along. “I can understand why you’d choose to settle here. It’s breathtaking in a lot of ways.”
His eyes seem to linger on me when he says the wordbreathtaking, and it makes my heart-rate pick up. My tail no longer listens to me, swaying at its own will behind me.
I just shrug, trying to keep my eyes moving rather than stare at him. “Where are you from?”
“Everywhere and nowhere, it feels. My family moved around a lot my entire life. I never really got to settle anywhere, make connections.” He tells me so easily, like sharing a part of himself is no big deal. “That’s why art is so important to me—it’s all I’ve consistently had.”
There’s something new in his eyes as my attention darts to them. Something that seems to dim their normal brightness. A sadness, a longing.
Whatever it is, it makes me want to reach out and give him some sort of reassuring touch. If he weren’t across the room, I think I would.
I open my mouth, choking on air for a second beforefinding the words I want to say. “That makes sense for you—the art thing, I mean. You’re very talented. I wondered how long you’d been honing your craft.”
“Thank you. This—” He gives me a gentle smile, adjusting how his glasses are sitting before waving his hand around the store. “Makes sense for you, too.”
Raising a brow, I dare to ask, “How so?”
“Everything in here is so pretty and carries so much depth and meaning, like you.” He shrugs, that stupidly cute smile still across his lips. “And you’re so calm, a wellness store seems like an obvious choice.”
He doesn’t know me well enough to say that I’mso calm.I haven’t felt calm since he got to Harmony Glen, for fuck's sake.
More importantly, though…did he just call me pretty?
My cheeks flood with the heat I feel inside of me, so I do the only thing I can think of—I cross my arms and turn away, looking at my crystal display. “I thought you said you weren’t familiar with crystals. Can you name any of these, or tell me their meaning?”
