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Chapter Eight
Flynn
WeekTwo
“Are you trying to get kicked off the show?”
Her head snapped up from behind the counter of the café, eyes wide. I took a quick survey of her space, enjoying the blend of florals and baked goods that scented the café. It was surprisingly comforting.
“How did you get in here? How did you know I was here?”
“You left the door unlocked, and I followed you.” I continued walking toward her bar, taking in the quaint tables nestled around the front of the building, warm photographs decorating the walls, and plants tucked away in corners.
“If I didn’t know you, that would creep me out.” She looked back down at a stack of papers and rubbed her forehead. “Besides, the show knows I’m here.”
“You’re working?” The concept equally horrified me and intrigued me at the same time as I realized why she was here.
“Congratulations, you found out my secret.” She waved a hand, without glancing back up.
“That’s what Steven was talking about…” I muttered.
“I’m sorry?”
“The night of my party, on the tubing hill.” I closed the space between us. Making myself comfortable, I straddled the stool in front of her, crossing my arms on the edge of the counter. “Steven told me you had this great flower café, and you’d just gotten some big job.”
“That blabbermouth.”
“Don’t get mad at him. He didn’t actually tell me what the job was. He froze, and then you came up and cheated in our race.”
“That might be the first time in all of history he didn’t spill a secret.” She laughed, the first relaxed sound I’d heard from her since the night of the sleigh.
“Fair enough.”
Guilt crept around the edges again, for all the time missed while I was off chasing my dreams. Had it even been worth it? They’d mostly crashed and burned. Everything I’d worked for brought me back here, trying to repair the damage with a television dating show. And the part that killed me? The woman I wanted stood right in front of me, and she didn’t seem to want me at all.
I’d played into that as well. But until her visit to my room last week, I’d had no clue of the impact it made on her. My gut said that I still didn’t know the full extent.
Not that it mattered. She didn’t seem to feel the same way I did. Every chance I got, she shot me down.
Harper’s hand came down in front of my face, and I jerked back in surprise.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.” Her eyes searched my face before dropping down to the pile in front of her again. “Where’d you go?”
“What?” I blinked.
“You kind of just zoned out. Are you okay?”
How honest can I be with her?
“Fine. Just tired, I guess.” I yawned, as if to emphasize my point.
“It’s got to be hard work juggling so many women. But aren’t you used to that?” She kept her focus downward, almost as if she refused to look at me.
“Ouch.” I frowned. “That hurts. And no, I’m not used to that.”
“Oh?” Her head popped back up, like she hadn’t expected that answer.
“I’ll have you know, Harper Evans, that I haven’t been in a relationship in a long time.”
