Arya is fine. A few scratches, a sprained wrist, and a concussion, but she will be fine. I need to push away thoughts of the siblings and focus on my own heartbreak. All those years I worked hard to build my business now feel like a waste of time, especially the holidays I missed because I was working. I don’t have much of a social life because my goal has always been to own a flower shop.

I told myself that I would date and socialize once my dream was realized because I didn’t want any distractions and now…it was all for nothing.

My phone pings with a text, and I imagine it’s Annie checking on me again. I texted her about an hour ago to report on Arya’s health and promised to call her when I left the hospital, but now, I can’t bring myself to do it. Heck, even the thought of going back to the scene of the accident has my heart clenching with pain. I know for a fact that there is nothing to besalvaged from my flower stand, and all those years of saving and planning were all for nothing.

I’ll have to talk to Annie and see about the wreckage of my cart eventually, but instead of calling, I send her a text letting her know that I’m done at the hospital. She’ll be too busy at the bakery to pick me up and Valor Springs is too small a town for a taxi, but maybe I can get an Uber.

I pull up the app on my phone; looks like Valor Springs is also too small for rideshares. Just my luck.

Today I wore my yellow sundress with a sunflower print because they represent good fortune and positive opportunities. So much for that.

I kick a rock across the pavement, looking for an outlet for my disappointment, but that isn’t at all satisfying. I need a release for my frustration, but I don’t know where to start. I’ve spent the last hour reassuring Arya that I don’t hate her, hiding my own pain behind a self-assured smile.

“Damnit!” I hiss, kicking another rock—a bigger one this time—except it doesn’t simply roll over the pavement like the first. No, it hits someone. Right in the shin.

I lift my teary eyes to the person I just assaulted, blinking in alarm when they connect with intense black eyes. He doesn’t say anything, only stands there watching me, his expression unreadable.

“Oh my God, I’m so sorry,” I sniff, running my palms over my wet cheeks. “I didn’t mean to—”

“You say that a lot,” Vlad says, making no move to step toward me.

“Huh?”

“Sorry. You say that a lot, and that you didn’t mean it.”

I don’t know how to respond to that, so we stare awkwardly at each other. Well, the awkward bit is all me as this man doesn’t seem moved by the tense silence between us. I look around to see what might have brought him out here, but we’re alone. Well, other than the few people walking in and out of the hospital, but they aren’t paying us any attention.

What is he doing out here? Shouldn’t he be in there with his sister, holding her hand or something? I want to ask, but I am not brave enough. Not because I am scared of the man, but I already have too much of his attention as it is. I don’t want to invite more.

“Tell me what happened this morning.”

I force my gaze back to Vlad, quickly looking away again when it connects with his. I wonder if there is anyone who’s able to maintain eye contact with this intense man. “I think you should wait for your sister to tell you.”

“You were there.”

I kick another rock, careful not to hit anyone this time. “Unfortunately.”

“Tell me what happened.”

“Your sister crashed her car right into my flower stand.”

I sense movement, but I resist the urge to look up. My only wish is that he is walking away from me so I can have a few moments to wallow in my pain, but instead, he sits down on the bench behind me and gestures for me to do the same. Reluctantly, I do, and I’m immediately aware of how close we are to each other. Close enough that I can feel his body heat and see the rise and fall of his muscular chest from the corner of my eye as he breathes.

“Was she distracted? On her phone?”

My eyes shoot to his in surprise. “No, Arya… Her phone was in her purse.” At least that’s where the nurse found it when Arya asked to call her brother. “I saw her car driving erratically down the road, and somehow, I knew she would crash into my cart. Our eyes connected right before she did, and she looked terrified. She said something about the brakes not responding and the steering wheel being too loose.”

“How bad was the damage?”

“To her car, quite a bit. She hit a bollard in front of Annie’s bakery after crashing through my flower cart. That’s what finally stopped the car. The front end is more or less caved in and the airbags deployed.”

Vlad is silent for a long time before he finally speaks. “I meant to your business.”

Oh.

My life’s savings is gone, and I have no way of starting over.But I can’t bring myself to tell him that. I don’t want to think too deeply about it, because then I will start bawling in this man’s presence, and I don’t want to make things more awkward than they already are. Tonight, I will bawl my eyes out, and maybe even tomorrow, before asking Annie to bake me one of her tasty dessert pies to drown my tears in, and then later, I’ll think about the damage to my business.

“Whatever the cost, I will take care of it.”