I felt myself just glow when he said that. Even if it was something you’d say to make a really awkward kid sister feel better, I was going to take the compliment with more grace than I’d done anything else thus far.
“Thank you, Damon. That’s kind of you since I’m making an idiot of myself today.”
“You’re not an idiot,” he said, and his handsome face, those aqua blue eyes looked so sincere that I started to melt under that gaze. “You’ve got a real way of making people comfortable. I bet that’s part of why your shop is doing so well. That, and your flowers are almost as pretty as you are.”
I leaned on the counter, placing me about four inches away from where he leaned on the counter. I blinked fast, trying to absorb the impact of Damon saying I was pretty. I didn’t preen or touch my hair. I just looked him square in his eyes and wished he’d kiss me when the fact was it crossed my mind that he was close enough that he could. I could feel the warmth coming off his skin, but it made me shiver for some reason. A few seconds of silence, and it was like electricity was zinging around between us like lines of lightning trailing all over the shop. I wasn’t sure if that was chemistry or if I was just that attracted to him.
I was close enough I could see that he’d shaved, that his perfect square jaw was smooth. His eyes looked tired, I thought. There was tightness at the corner of his mouth that I wanted to smooth away. I thought wildly of touching him, pressing my fingertip to the corner of his mouth, maybe leaning closer to see if he’d kiss me. Thirty seconds of eye contact and the man could melt my panties right off. As it was, I shifted back a little, broke the moment off, my thighs pressed together.
“So can I get you some daisies for Laura?”
“That’d be real nice,” he said.
“It was nice of you to come get flowers here when the grocery store’s got them right by the checkout. I get a lot of funerals and some weddings, Valentine’s Day, but most people, they just buy the ten-dollar mixed bouquet when they’re getting ground beef and toilet paper,” I said.
“That doesn’t seem very special. If you’re gonna say it with flowers that kind of says, ‘I’m lazy.’ I don’t buy my beer at the grocery store because I want something good. I go down to the liquor store because it’s worth the trouble. Just like this.”
“So my flowers are like good beer,” I said wryly.
“You could say that. But I stand by what I said earlier. They’re just about as pretty as you are.”
“I—I’m not great with compliments. Or with talking to people apparently. But thank you.”
“No need to thank me. I’m not the one that made your face that way. I just pointed out the obvious. You probably hear it all the time.”
“Not really, no. I mean, I was an awfully awkward kid.”
“I might remember you running around with skinned knees and a ponytail a long time ago,” he said with a smile that was almost fond. “But that’s been a few years. You had that killer smile. You still do,” he laughed.
I thought he was so adorable I could die. Also, if fourteen-year-old me had known he even looked at me twice I would’ve died of a heart attack. I blinked at him, needing to change the subject before I totally geeked out.
“I’m glad your dad is doing better. My mom said that your mom told her his new medicine was really helping. I know he’s had a hard time.”
“Yeah. It’s been a big help. And those flowers you sent when he was in the hospital were real nice. And my mom really liked that wax melting thing you sent along with it.”
“I’m glad. Hospitals always smell bad, and you can’t burn a candle cause of the oxygen, so those wax warmers let you have a little cinnamon smell to make it more homey.”
“Well she uses it all the time at home. I got excited the other day, thought there was apple pie. Fooled me, too,” he said, shaking his head.
I wrapped a bunch of daisies in tissue paper and passed him a card that said congratulations. He signed it and then paid me the total.
“I bet she’ll really like these,” I said. “It’s sweet of you to do that for your sister.”
“Thanks for your help. You have a good day,” he said. Then he gave me the panty-melting smile one more time and left.
I sagged against the counter and wondered if I wanted a cigarette or a new vibrator after that encounter. Maybe both.
2 Damon
The diner was always packed on Saturday morning. Rachel’s pies were excellent, but her pastries were incredible. Her apple Danish was legendary, and if you didn’t go early, you’d miss out on them.
So Brody and I drank our coffee and waited for the final batch to come out of the oven. We had already eaten our eggs and sausage, and both of us were usually in a hurry. Him because he wanted to get home to my sister, and me because I had a shift at the fire station or I was going to work out or check in on my parents. But we had decided to loiter until we could score those Danishes this time.
“You think we’ll find somebody good enough to replace the Gibbs kid that moved last month?”
“Yeah. He was a great shortstop, but there are kids around here we can teach to do a good job.”
“I hated to lose him, but when his dad got that new job in Overton—”
“We’ll have to play against him. You know he’ll play in Overton,” I said.
“They have travel ball. He’ll probably do that instead of Little League.”
“That costs a fortune. Hope Dad got
