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“I was told that all flowers have some kind of deep purpose but I just chose these because I thought you might like them. They are called forget-me-nots.”
Her head snaps up and a sudden cloud passes through her eyes. Then, just as quickly, it’s gone, replaced with flat indifference.
I feel like I’ve missed something important.
“Thank you.” She says the words in a tone that makes it clear gratitude doesn’t come easily to her. “It was nice of you, Conner. And it was nice of you to stop by.”
“You’re welcome.” This is a good start.
Haven leaves the window and collects Lita’s flower bouquet. She peels back the paper and sniffs at the sunflowers within. While I watch from the across the room, she locates two tall plastic tumblers inside a cabinet by the door. Every move she makes is sexy and graceful. I could hang out and admire the lines of her body for hours. At the moment I’m fixated on the toned shape of her thighs. My face would fit very comfortably between them.
Focus.
I’m supposed to be shelving sex daydreams for today. Haven wouldn’t be impressed to know the contents of my mind right now.
Anyway, I shouldn’t be thinking about rubbing my cheeks all over Haven’s inner thighs while her sister is in the room. It’s just crappy manners all around.
In order to cool down my libido, I turn away from the sight of temptation and face the window instead. The sky is clear and flawless. And the view gives me inspiration. A longshot, for sure. But I like longshots.
Right now Haven is setting the sunflowers on a small white table beside the bed. The only other object on the table is a framed photo of two identical little girls hugging each other and smiling. Both girls are missing their front teeth and their dresses are similar to the color of the paper wrapped around the forget-me-nots.
There goes that deep crunch in my chest again.
Haven steps away from the table and inspects her sister. She presses a button on the chair’s arm and with a soft whirring noise, the chair inches to a slightly more upright position. Satisfied, Haven leaves Lita’s side and stands with her back to the opposite wall. She crosses her arms again and openly eyeballs me, a message that she doesn’t submit with ease. No surprise. I knew that already.
I smile at her. “I was just thinking.”
Her right eyebrow peaks. “Does that happen to you often?”
“Ha. Seriously, I have an idea.”
“That sounds ominous.”
“It’s about you.”
“Even more ominous.”
I ignore the dig. “You’re a goddess, Haven. But you could use some time in the sun.”
There’s a slight shift in her posture. “Thanks for the input. Thoughts of that caliber don’t come along every day.”
“Hear me out. You’ve got that whole pale mistress of the undead look down and it’s hot. Seriously, I’m into it. But you’re missing out on the vitamins.”
“What vitamins?” She could win a scowling contest. “What the hell are you babbling about?”
“The vitamins you can only get when you run around outdoors.”
She stares at me like I’m rambling in pig Latin.
I guess I’m not doing a good job of clarifying. I’ll try again. “The team nutritionist explained it all. The human body benefits from all the vitamins absorbed during reasonable exposure to sunshine. And fresh air is called fresh air for a reason. I’ll going out on a limb and guessing that you don’t get enough of either. The weather outside is perfect. Light breeze and warm without being hot. Ideal for hiking. How about it?”
“Hiking.” From the way she repeats the word, you’d think I’d just suggested snacking on tarantulas. “You are inviting me to gohikingwith you.”
“Sure. Look outside. We can see Glinda’s Peak from the window. It’s a twenty minute drive and there’s a lot of daylight left. The climb isn’t tough. I’ve seen little kids tearing up the trail like it’s nothing.”
She twists a piece of black hair around one finger, her face shrouded in doubt.
I decide to push my luck. “Don’t worry about keeping up. I’ll make sure to go extra slow so you don’t get left behind.”
