Page 21 of Four of Hearts

Benson took the card while holding the flowers in his left hand, and after reading what was written on it, he started grinning.

“Who are they from?” I asked.

“Four of Hearts.”

I frowned. “What?”

“And they’re not for me, they’re for you.”

I stared at him as he came closer. He handed me the flowers, then the card, and I needed a moment to understand what was happening.

“I forgot to tell you. One of them came by two nights ago, asking about you.”

“Who was it?”

“Uh, Denver…Danny…”

“Kline?”

“Ah, yes. Him. You must’ve made quite the impression on them last weekend,” Benson said with a smile.

I looked at him and pressed my lips into a thin line. They made an impression on me, and now they sent me flowers. “I think I need a moment.”

“Understandable. Want me to take the flowers?”

I nodded and handed them back to him, and once he left, I went into the bathroom. I sat down on the edge of the bathtub and lifted the card to read it. I hadn’t fully read it yet. I had been overwhelmed just reading their name at the bottom of the card.

I took a deep breath before reading what they wrote.

Lola,

We want to thank you for coming to our show last night. It sure was a nice surprise seeing you in the crown. We hope you had a good time, even after we forced pulled you up on stage.

We want to apologize if we made you feel uncomfortable but know that it was never our intention.

We hope that these flowers make you smile.

Thank you again, and if you ever want to come back to The Hot Spot to see us again, use this card as a free ticket for you and your girlfriend(s).

All the best,

Four of Hearts

My heart was beating loudly in my chest. I reread the card a couple of times before dropping my hands to my lap and tilting my head back to stare at the ceiling.

They thought I hated being pulled up on stage. They thought me running off the second the show was over was because of them.

That wasn’t the case, and I had to let them know how I really felt about last night.

After washing my hands and heading out of the bathroom, I went back to the living room to let Willa know I was going to go upstairs. She was sitting next to Gavin now, far away from Jonah who was longingly looking at her from across the room.

I didn’t want to interrupt Willa’s conversation with Gavin, so I went to Benson. “Can you watch her for a moment? I’m going upstairs to thank them for the flowers.”

He nodded and placed a hand on my hip. “You okay?”

“Yes, I’m fine,” I told him, smiling tightly. “I won’t be long.”

I had never been more nervous in my life. I was normally an incredibly confident woman, and I walked into rooms full of people with my head up high. This time, though, I wasn’t as confident as I wanted to be.

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