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Olivia grabbed a muffin from the basket on the table, then quickly poured coffee into her travel mug. She planted a kiss on her father's forehead and headed towards her baby blue VW bug sitting parked in the driveway.
After pushing the speed limit all the way into town, she arrived at the Youth Center in the downtown area, briskly making her way through the hallway amid high- fives from a group of kids anxiously waiting for recreation time.
The moment she entered her small, dimly lit office a light, floral scent assailed her senses. A huge bouquet of flowers rested on her desk – roses, lilies, snapdragons, peonies, tulips. She'd never seen anything like it in her life. Her mouth hung open in shock as she grappled with the notion that this gorgeous arrangement was meant for her. She reached out and lightly fingered a lily, luxuriating in the satiny feel of the flower between her thumb and forefinger. Although she'd grown up surrounded by her mother's flower gardens, this was the first time anyone had sent her a bouquet of flowers.
A group of children had followed her into her office and were buzzing around her desk, smiling and pointing at the elaborate floral arrangement. Olivia had never seen such an exotic, magnificent assortment of flowers. Was it really for her? She smiled as she spotted a white envelope with her name on it nestled in the basket. Warmth filled her at the realization that she hadn’t been mistaken. This incredible arrangement was hers!
Harlen, a beautiful, cherub-faced eight-year-old with honey colored skin and a wild riot of jet black hair, pointed to the flowers and asked, “Miss Olivia, is it your birthday?”
“No, Harlen, it's not my birthday,” she answered as she reached out to finger a fuchsia colored tulip.
“Is it from your boyfriend?” a ginger haired boy named Sam asked with a frown.
Olivia reached out and tweaked Sam on the nose, trying to distract him from his jealous feelings. “I don't have a boyfriend. You know that.”
Sam immediately turned his frown into a beatific smile, one that was sure to break numerous hearts in a few years. For now, Sam was determined to make Olivia his “girlfriend” and he didn't take kindly to any man who showed her the slightest bit of attention. After a few minutes of listening to the kids ooh and aah over the flowers, she shooed the children out of her office and sent them to the locker room to get changed for archery class.
Olivia didn't need to read the note to know that the flowers were from Hunter. Who else would order a decadent flower arrangement that must've cost a small fortune? Only Hunter, she thought dreamily. Curiosity got the better of her and she eagerly ripped open the small envelope, her cheeks feeling flushed as she read the sweet words.
Thanks for the home-cooked meal. Next dinner is on me.
The words were like an assault to her senses. She closed her eyes as memories from last night came flooding back to her. Hunter had made her so furious, yet moments later he’d treated her so tenderly. Hunter Rawlings had been back in town less than twenty-four hours and he'd already managed to tie her up in knots.
Shake it off, Olivia! Get your priorities straight.
Hunter was only back in town for the wedding and to reconnect with his family. And she needed to find a way to sway Hunter to help her father out of his financial downturn. Anything romantic between them was out of the question, for more than one reason.
Tell that to your foolish heart, a little voice buzzed in her ear.
Although she was tempted to linger in her office and admire her floral arrangement, she knew the kids were waiting for her outside on the archery range. As usual, they'd be full of excitement and enthusiasm, yearning to learn something new and different. Part of her objective was to allow the kids to experience activities that were out of the norm and far out of their reach. More than anything, she wanted to expose these children to a wide range of activities and experiences that they couldn't
get in their everyday lives.
As she made her way outside to the archery range she saw that the girls and boys had arranged themselves on opposite sides of the range.
“Girls go to college to get more knowledge. Boys go to Jupiter to get more stupider.” The girls were lined up in a row, their faces filled with glee as they chanted the inflammatory song. The boys in response were thumbing their noses at the girls and sticking out their bottoms at them.
“Hey, girls,” she called out, “We've talked about this before. That's not nice talk. Where do we put words that aren't nice?”
In unison the girls shouted out. “Trash talk is for the trash bin.”
“That's right, cause it's nothing but garbage.” She turned towards the boys and wagged her finger at them. “And since when do gentlemen stick out their bottoms at young ladies?”
The boys hung their heads and mumbled a few apologies to the girls, who were looking way more innocent than they had a right to considering their own bad behavior. Olivia tried unsuccessfully to hide the smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. She loved these kids! She loved the ups and the downs, the bad attitudes and the fights, the diva attitudes, the hurt feelings and the smudged little noses. She loved it all! There was something about being here at the youth center in the presence of these kids that made her feel alive. Vital. Needed.
And even though life was taking her in a new direction with Savannah House, she still intended to volunteer here at the center. It meant far too much to her to leave behind.
“Everyone line up with their bows and quivers.” As soon as the words left her mouth the kids raced towards her, jockeying for position to make the head of the line. With no more than a raised eyebrow she was able to put a stop to all the pushing and shoving in the line. Although the kids loved her, they knew better to risk earning her disapproval. Olivia had been known to put the kids in their place when they got out of line and she prided herself on meting out discipline as evenly as she gave out love. None of these kids were going to have an easy time of it growing up with parents who ranged from addicts to inmates to absentee parents, so Olivia took it upon herself to give them a healthy dose of reality mixed with affection.
She gazed on with pride as a pint-sized boy named Solomon assumed the perfect stance, placing his body sideways with one foot in front of the other, the bow prepared and ready to shoot. The kids let out a whoop of approval as he hit his target dead center. Olivia clapped vigorously and let out a holler of triumph. Solomon was greeted with high fives and claps on the back. The young boy reveled in the attention, his face full of smiles and a joy that she'd never thought she would see on his face. Having lived through the nightmare of domestic violence in the home and a father who'd been incarcerated since he was a toddler, Solomon was a boy who craved a normal life.
Suddenly, Hunter appeared out of nowhere, standing twenty feet away from the action, his hands folded across his chest in a powerful stance. He looked amazing! As usual. He'd definitely gotten better with age, she realized as she looked him over from head to toe. Although he'd always been good looking, he now had a more rugged, masculine appearance that defied his sophisticated lifestyle. Dressed in dark jeans and a long-sleeved rugby shirt, he looked like he could have graced the cover of a men's magazine. GQ. Italian Vogue. Casual, classy and confident.
She strolled over to where Hunter was standing watching the kids. He seemed to be enjoying himself, she noted, as she took in his relaxed stance and the smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. She deliberately made her movements appear way more casual than she felt on the inside. Her heart was doing flip flops inside her chest and her belly was rumbling like thunder. Clearly, nothing had changed since she was seventeen.
“The flowers were a nice surprise. Thanks,” she said, unable to stop a full-fledged grin from breaking out on her face.
“I owed you something wonderful after last night,” he said with a sheepish grin. “I put my foot in my mouth and said things that I shouldn't have. Same old Hunter, huh?”
