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I raised my eyebrow, and she immediately shook her head.
“You just grab this part in the middle, then kind of wiggle it around until it pops loose.” She demonstrated, and a moment later, she held the center of the rose in her hand. She tossed the pile of petals into a bucket.
“Let me try.” It couldn’t be as easy as she’d made it look.
“Watch out for the thorns,” she warned, passing me a stem.
I grasped the center of the rose and tugged, doing what I thought I’d just seen her do.
“No, stop it.” She rushed around the corner of the island and smacked my hand. “You can’t grab it like that. You’ll bruise the petals.”
“Petals can bruise?”
“Look, you have to maneuver your fingers down around the base of the center part,” she replied, ignoring my ignorance.
Without hesitation, she grabbed my fingers and guided them where she wanted them. My skin hummed with the awareness of her touch, the scent of roses heavy in the air.
“Okay, now wiggle it around, twist it a little, and you’ll feel it—”
The center part of the rose came loose in my hand, her hand cupped around it.
Until that moment, I don’t think she’d noticed how close we were. She’d been absorbed in her work, in showing me how to help. But now, the air between us hung thick, alight with attraction.
Cautiously, I dropped the rose center on the counter and pressed my hand into her palm, weaving our fingers together.
“Flynn.” Her voice came out barely above a whisper.
“Harper?” Not letting go of her hand, I raised my gaze to hers. She was such a little thing. She barely stood taller than my height as I sat on the stool in front of her.
My attention still focused on her, I raised her hand to my lips, pressing a kiss to the skin I’d wanted to touch since a couple of days ago. I smiled as her grip tightened, and I pulled her a step closer to me.
“What are you doing?”
“Tell me how you ended up here, on this show.”
“Why am I supposed to be honest with you when you won’t be honest with me?”
“It’s not like that, I promise.” I uncurled her fingers and pressed them against my chest, over my heart. “I just can’t talk about it right now. One day, I’ll tell you everything.”
She glanced at her hand, then back up at me.
“Someone dropped out at the last minute. Laurel, the producer, did some digging and found out you’re my brother’s best friend. Called me ratings gold.” She rolled her eyes, but the action lacked heart.
“You really never planned on being on this show.”
She shook her head slowly. “Only behind the scenes. My café was supposed to be a one-on-one date.”
“You think you could’ve been okay with seeing me here with someone else in your café? This place seems really special.”
“I’m living in a house with a bunch of women that want you. What’s the difference?”
I squeezed her hand, wondering if she could feel my heart galloping beneath her touch.
“You’re not the girl I remember anymore.”
“Things change,” she replied softly.
“I don’t know how, but you’re even more incredible.”
