Page 9 of If Tomorrow Never Comes

“What kind of secret?”

“Whatever you want to tell me.”

Her beautiful gray eyes were steady on his. He moved his glasses higher on his nose. One of his nervous tells, according to his sister. “I kind of think I might tell you everything if you asked.”

Her cheeks flushed a soft pink. She dropped her gaze to the floor, but her lips tipped up. “Probably don’t have time for that.”

“Yeah.” He rubbed a palm across his jaw. There wasn’t much he’d say he intentionally hid from people, but one thing he’d always sort of kept to himself came to mind. “Okay, I’ve got one. Don’t judge me, though.”

“No promises.”

“Every Monday, I bring home a fresh bouquet of flowers. Just for me.” She didn’t laugh, so he kept going. “It might sound weird and not typical for a guy, but plants are my life’s work and they’re beautiful. It makes me happy to walk in and see them.”

Heat crept up his neck when she didn’t respond right away. Probably the only other person who knew this about him was Ian, his buddy and the owner of the nursery where he worked. But Ian loved plants even more than Jamie, so he’d be the last person to give Jamie a hard time.

Unlike Jamie’s dad and brother, who had stopped by unannounced a couple of months back. Jamie’d barely had time to process the fact that they’d stepped out of their ivory tower downtown to slum it with him, so it was even more impressive that he’d managed to stash his bouquet in the cabinet under the sink before they came in. He wasn’t embarrassed, exactly, but he didn’t need to hand his dad more ammo than the man packed on his own.

He was seconds away from assuming she was a woman who preferred a man more stereotypically masculine, and who was now wishing this date was over, when an unguarded smile spread across her face. “That’s ... one of the best things I’ve ever heard. That would make me happy, too.”

“Yeah?”

“Absolutely, yes. Though, I don’t know how you afford flowers every week. That’s some expensive happiness.”

“Nah, I get them at cost from the nursery I work for. You wouldn’t believe floral markup. I get them for next to nothing.”

“Oh, I believe it. Capitalism at its best, right?”

“Yep,” he said with a dry laugh. “Your turn.”

She wouldn’t meet his eyes. “Hmm?”

He cocked a brow. “To tell a secret.”

“I don’t have any,” she said with a shrug, picking at her thumbnail.

“Liar.”

Her hands dropped to her sides, and she let out the most adorable growl he’d ever heard. “Okay, fine! Give me a second.” She tipped her head back, thinking, then settled her gaze back on him. He waited patiently, enjoying the excuse to just look at her. A few seconds passed, and he realized she seemed to be doing the same.

“Is the secret on my face?” he ventured.

A breathy laugh escaped her, and she hesitated a beat before she said, “Maybe I just like looking at you.”

Her words sent his stomach falling like an elevator that just dropped two floors. Which was kind of ridiculous, right? It was simple flirtation.

But when had anything in his life ever felt this real, so soon? Normally he’d try to play it cool, at least through the end of the first date and probably the second, too. But something about this woman’s charming vulnerability obliterated any bid for pretense. “I like looking at you, too.”

She bit her lip and glanced away again. She seemed comfortable with him, and as far as he could tell, she was having a good time. But there were moments, like now, where she seemed almost ... shy. Inexperienced, as if some of her bolder statements had surprised even her. She was so pretty and funny that it was impossible she wasn’t turning away interested guys at every turn.

Had she had a bad experience? Did it have anything to do with why she was here? The protectiveness that filled his chest the moment she’d said she was dealing with something unpleasant had already alarmed him. He didn’t need to add any more fuel to that fire.

God, he hoped he’d see her again after tonight.

She spoke again, her voice so quiet he almost missed it, and it took him a few seconds to realize it was her secret. “Sometimes I feel like no one really understands me.”

Her tone was matter of fact, as if it was something she’d been dealing with for a while and had resigned herself to a lifetime of being misunderstood. Jamie had good friends he could be himself around, but when it came to his family, he knew exactly where she was coming from.

A long, quiet moment passed. When she let out another sigh and her shoulders dipped under some unseen burden, he took two steps forward. Sidling up beside her, he slid one arm around her shoulders.

---