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“That’s for me?” she asked.
He grinned at her. “If your name is Aria, then yes.”
“Well, yes, it is.”
“Then it’s definitely for you.”
“Oh, thank you.”
“Enjoy!”
As she perused the contents of the basket, Aria was quite certain that she would. And given that each item appeared to be something she’d mentioned to Gareth during their conversations, it was obvious he’d curated the basket contents himself.
She moved the basket to the side, but when she sat back down on her chair, her gaze kept going to it and the beautiful bouquet of red roses that sat next to it. When the roses had arrived, she’d been surprised, though maybe she shouldn’t have been. Gareth had shown himself to be attentive in the times they’d been together, seemingly devoted to making her feel special.
Though they had plans later in the day, she’d wanted to give him something special, which was why she’d had Janessa give him the cookies she’d baked the night before. Those cookies felt so insignificant now when compared to the flowers and the gift basket. She hadn’t expected him to do so much.
“Who is the gift basket for?” Nora’s gaze was laser-focused on it as she approached the desk. “You should really call to let someone know that there’s a delivery for them.”
“The gift basket is for me,” Aria said.
Nora frowned as she shifted her attention to Aria. “You never mentioned that you had a boyfriend.”
“I don’t really feel like I should discuss my personal life here at work,” Aria replied, turning her attention to her monitor.
“Is he from around here?” Nora asked.
Before Aria could reply, the door opened, and a middle-aged woman walked in.
“Hi, Doctor,” she said with a smile at Nora before turning to Aria to check in.
Nora spoke with the woman for a moment before heading back to the exam rooms. Aria breathed a sigh of relief to not have to discuss that topic any further with Nora. When Janessa came to get the next patient, Aria told her to come back when she was done.
“What’s up?” Janessa asked when she returned.
“Uh… I’ve received another delivery,” Aria said, gesturing to the gift basket.
Janessa didn’t look at all surprised as she grinned at her. “I see that.”
Keeping her voice low, Aria said, “Nora is giving me the third degree over the deliveries. She thought the basket was for someone else and that I hadn’t called to let them know. Then she wanted to know if my boyfriend was from around here.”
Janessa sighed. “Trust her to spoil your Valentine’s Day.”
“Would Gareth be upset if I put the basket out of sight?”
“Of course not,” Janessa said. “Especially if Nora’s giving you hassles.”
Aria reached out to turn the basket around so she could see everything in it. “I can’t believe he got me this.”
“I have to say that I’m a bit impressed by what he’s done,” Janessa said. “I wasn’t sure he could be romantic. Apparently, he just needed the right inspiration.”
“I feel bad that I didn’t do any grand gestures for him.” Aria glanced at her friend. “I hope he doesn’t think that means I don’t care for him.”
“Don’t worry about that,” Janessa told her. “Gareth is doing this because it makes him happy, and he hoped it would make you happy, too.”
“It certainly does.”
“How about I take the basket and put it in the stockroom?” Janessa suggested. “And I’ll lock the door.”
