Page 30 of The Perfect Putt

“That was the worst joke I’ve ever heard,” she says through her giggles.

“It made you laugh though,” I say with a smile.

She smiles back at me, her hair falling in front of her face. My hand lifts involuntarily to brush back the strands, but I stop myself. I need to get a grip before something terrible happens.

“What can I say? I like bad jokes.”

“It’s going to be hard for me to make you laugh then, because I rarely make any.”

“I can’t believe I agreed to be friends with you,” she teases as she tucks her hair behind her ear. I shouldn’t feel disappointed, but I do.

“Me either,” I say earnestly. Then I look down at the pie so that she can’t see the emotions written all over my face. I’ve confirmed this is a terrible idea, but I have to see it through now or else she’ll hate me again and for good reason. And maybe her hating me would be better, but I can’t bear the thought of it. Not after seeing the pain swirling in her dark eyes on the beach.

I dig a fork into the pie, getting the perfect ratio of pie to crust before taking the whipped cream canister and swirling a dollop directly onto the bite.

“Here it is,” I say, holding out the fork. “The perfect bite.” I expect her to take the fork from me, or even roll her eyes and tell me my idea isn’t all that special. What I don’t expect is for her to lean down, mouth open, and eat off the fork I’m holding. I’m so surprised I almost drop it.

She hums, eyes closed. A tiny dot of whipped cream is on her bottom lip. I swallow and contemplate what I did wrong to deserve this level of torture. I’m committed to not dragging Ellie into my mess, but I’m just a man. My resolve can only get me so far.

“Okay, you’re right, that was life changing. Do you think Diane would give me a canister every time I order pie here?” She laughs, but I’m too focused on how badly I want to kiss her. How would it feel, I wonder? My eyes flick up to hers. Would she be as fiery as she is in an argument? My blood heats at the notion of finding out.

“What is it?” she asks me. “Is something wrong?”

“No.” I clear my throat. “You just have a little–” I gesture to her mouth.

“Oh.” She laughs a little, then swipes at her bottom lip with her thumb and licks it. “Better?” she asks.

Worse. So. Much. Worse.

Chapter seventeen

Ellie Hart

“Archie, no, don’t eat the dirt, sweetie,” Naomi calls out from her spot on my back porch. I look over my shoulder to find Archie with a fist full of soil headed toward his mouth.

I reach for him right as he’s about to ignore his mother’s words and manage to brush most of the dirt off his palm.

“Thanks,” Naomi says with a laugh.

“I figure he’s going to eat some, but I’ll minimize the amount as much as I can,” I tell her.

Archie toddles off to where his trucks are in a pile of dirt next to a bucket of water I set out for him to ‘wash’ them in. The water is already as filthy as the ground, but he’s having fun. I invited Naomi over today so she could have extra eyes on Archie while she works on a big project. She thinks it’s because I wanted company while tending my garden. To be fair, it is nice to have someone to occasionally talk to while I work. And since Naomi is busy with her work, it makes for the perfect amount of conversation. Not too much, but not absolute silence either.

Her working also means she’s too busy to interrogate me any more about Miles. I told her we left Hank’s to talk things out and then I went home. Which is true. Mostly. I left out going to the diner, because I know she and Molly would freak out. Miles isn’t the only one with matchmaking friends. I don’t keep many secrets from them, so this one didn’t seem too bad.

Another reason I didn’t want to tell them is that it would make it all too real. Right now, eating pie and laughing until my sides hurt feels like a hazy dream. One where I think Miles wanted to kiss me. I know I wanted to kiss him. And I can’t afford for that to be anything more than a dream. Not just because he’s my boss, but because of what he confessed on the beach. He doesn’t want to get married or even be in a serious relationship. I want a husband and a family in the future. I’m not going to waste time knowing that he doesn’t want that, even if we’re both in our early twenties. Maybe his mind will change, but I can’t count on it.

I wipe the sweat off my forehead with the back of my hand. It’s a humid day, but I don’t mind it. There’s something about working in the garden until I’m covered in dirt and sweat, then getting a long shower and rewarding myself with a glass of ice cold strawberry lemonade. Sometimes, in between gardening and my shower time, I go for a dip in the ocean. I probably won’t do that today though, because taking a toddler to the beach is a whole event, and I wouldn’t want to leave Naomi here alone with Archie.

“Archie, do you want to help me water the plants?” I ask him while holding up the hose. He grins big and reaches for the attachment in my hand. I help him hold it and guide him so that we water the base of the plants.

Once we’re done, I give him a little spritz on his head, making him giggle. Then I help him spray me, because it is hot out and I don’t mind a little water. This makes him practically double over laughing.

“What are you two doing over there?” Naomi asks, a smile in her voice.

“Just cooling off,” I say with a laugh as Archie gets ahold of the sprayer and hits me right in the chest. His little hands are stronger than I thought, because suddenly he’s running around the garden, water going everywhere.

He runs toward Naomi, giggling maniacally as he holds the hose in front of him. Naomi barely manages to set aside her laptop before he gets to her. She gasps as the cool water hits her stomach, then her chest.

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