Page 13 of Bloom

“You remembered?”

He smiled, still looking at his screen. “Hard to forget a name for an old people’s home.”

I resisted the urge to shove him. “Oh, okay, Mr perfect-name Keats McCulloch.”

He grinned spectacularly. “Did you know, floriographically speaking, Linden meanslove in marriage?”

Oh my god.

“Well, no. I did not know that. But maybe we should start with coffee or dinner first.”

He laughed. “Sound plan.”

“So,” I hedged. “Is that something you knew already? Or did you look that up after I left last time?”

“I might have looked it up.”

So he’d thought about me? Probably not as much as I’d thought about him, but still.

More customers came in, and Lina was already busy. Another guy came out through the staff door to serve them, but it wasn’t fair of me to take up so much of his time. “You’re at work, I should let you go,” I offered.

“Okay,” he said. “I’ll make some calls about the tree and see what I can arrange before I create the job file for you. I have your number, so...”

“So you should use it.”

His eyes met mine and he smiled. “I will.”

“Okay, then,” I said, stepping toward the door. “I have a thousand things I need to do.”

“Wait,” he said, going to a bunch of flowers at the far wall. He plucked out one single flower. “For you.”

Oh. My heart was back to thumps and jitters.

The flower was red and orange, looked like a poppy, but different. “Oh. Is this some kind of poppy? Is that for remembrance? Or are you suggesting I put you to sleep like Dorothy in theWizard of Oz? Am I that boring?”

He laughed. “No, it’s an Austrian rose.”

“Oh.”

He cleared his throat and shoved his hands in the pocket of his apron. “Uh, maybe search the meaning when you leave?” His eyes darted to Lina who was with some customers pretending she wasn’t listening to us.

“Okay,” I said, feeling giddy and ridiculously excited. I took the flower and with a smile, not wanting to leave but needing to, I took a step back. “Call me. Or I will text you about the... chickweed.”

He laughed. “See that you do.”

With my heart thumping, I managed to leave his store and pulled out my phone, googling the meaning of Austrian rose.

Thou art all that is lovely.

I stopped walking because my knees went weak, and I had to take a second to breathe.

I looked back at his store, wondering if he was watching me. Hoping he was. I laughed, so unreasonably excited, before continuing on my way. With my phone still in my hand, I called Cory.

He answered on the second ring, but I didn’t give him a chance to speak.

“Oh. My. God. Cory, you will never guess what just happened.”

Chapter Three