Page 95 of Rough Around the Hedges

I held out my hands. “If you’re the kidnapper, I’ll pay my own bloody ransom.”

“I’ll replace the watering can I broke the other day.”

“Damn right you will. I want one of those nice metal ones, not some cheap plastic shite.”

“Like the one you had?”

“Like the one you broke,” I corrected him.

He ran his hand through his hair and briefly looked away. “Fine. Will you come with me, please?”

“Ooh, a please. That’s new,” I teased, getting up. “Luckily for you, I need to go there anyway. It’s time to restock for the nursery, so another pair of arms will be helpful.”

I skipped over to where he was standing, somehow both exhausted and dumbfounded at the same time.

“What on Earth possessed me to ask you for help?” he mumbled, pushing away from the doorframe.

“Momentary burst of genius? Temporary insanity? Inexplicably missing me?”

He snorted, then shook his head. “You’re right. It’s been a couple of days. Maybe I did miss you a little.”

I pulled out my phone and opened the browser. “Huh.”

“What are you doing?” He took my phone from me, squinting as we stepped outside. “Nearest comedy club? What are you looking that up for?”

“You said maybe you did miss me.” I plucked my phone back from his grasp. “I was going to book you a slot, because you’re a real comedian.” I sighed, tucking it into my pocket. “Come on, then. Jump in.”

He eyed Ramona. “In that thing?”

How. Rude.

“I formally revoke your Ramona privileges,” I said, making her beep and flash her lights with one push of the key fob. “Guess I’ll meet you there.”

21

ROSE

Quiet Revelations

“Stop pouting.”

“I’m not pouting.”

“You know,” Oliver said, putting the token in the trolley to free it from the long line of trolleys. “Anyone would think you were hoping I’d get lost on the way here.”

I clasped my hands behind my back, whistling, and made a show of looking around innocently.

“It’s fine. You were the last person to see me. Shaun would just put you in jail, and that might be a good thing for everyone.”

“If I had that trolley, I’d ram it into the back of your legs,” I ground out.

“I know,” he said dryly. “Why do you think I’m not letting you push it?”

Damn it.

He was starting to know me a little too well.

“Where do we start?” Oliver asked, looking around at the bustling walls of garden knickknacks and solar lights. “This is more overwhelming than I thought it would be.”

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