Page 17 of Planning on Happily Ever After

“I’ve got this, Mr. Leary.” Holly’s bright voice hit a calming switch, healing his battered nervous system ever so slightly. The older man nodded at Holly, her word seemingly enough to give Ben a pass. Smiling shyly, Holly made her way over to him, the hypnotic sway of her hips putting him into a trance. When she was mere inches in front of him, he could see the blue of her eyes alight with keen interest. “Peony?”

The pink flower she’d been admiring moments ago found its way under his nose. “Um, is that what my mom picked?” The light, sweet scent was lovely, and familiar. Ben was tempted to lean into Holly’s neck to see just how similar hers was to the flower in her hand, but refrained.

A slender shoulder encased in another light blue sweater bobbed slightly. “No, this one is just my favorite.” She walked back to the basin and replaced the flower, gesturing for Ben to follow her around the store. “Your mom said we should take a look around until she can get here.”

Holly walked from one planter to another, explaining what each flower was and what they represented: red roses for passionate love and romance, white lilies for beauty and purity, and buttercups for charm and affection. By the time they’d made it all the way back to their starting point, Ben knew more about flowers than he’d ever imagined he would, but instead of brain dumping it all, he filed it away for later. Holly had taken the time to educate him, and if it was important to her, it was suddenly important to him.

Holly reverently touched the pink flower she’d originally showed him, a wistful expression on her face. Ben shifted closer to her. “And what do your favorite flowers represent?” He wasn’t sure his brain could handle one more flower-related fact, but he made room. Holly seemed to merrily live her life as an open book, but he knew there was more to her than what she presented to the world and wanted to uncover every fascinating detail.

“Like most flowers, Peonies represent romance and love, but it’s less about passion or attraction and more about an enduring emotional bond.” Reaching out, she seemed to gently run her fingertips over the petals, but never actually touched them, as if the bond she spoke of was out of reach, even for her.

Ben grabbed the largest blossom of the bunch and handed it to her. Holly took it, her smile looking nearly identical to the one she’d just been wearing, but he could see the difference. It was brighter, yes, but also less burdened somehow, and he couldn’t help but feel a swell of pride at having helped lighten whatever load she’d been carrying. Holly raised her brow in silent question, but he had no meaningful answer for her.

“I just wanted you to have it,” he confessed.

Ducking to hide his smile, Ben walked over to the man giving him side-eye earlier, sliding some cash across the counter as he watched Holly from the corner of his eye. Her expression was no longer wistful, but hopeful, and he would have given anything to know what she was thinking about in that moment. A buzzing came from his pocket, and it took every ounce of strength he had to wrestle his eyes from her to check his phone.

Mom: Not going to make it to the flower shop. Will text Holly to reschedule. Sorry, Benny.

His mom may be sorry, but Ben wanted to get her clients name and send whoever had their teeth causing so much trouble a dozen of the flowers Holly still held in her hand. Sure enough, her phone pinged and she glanced at what was likely his mom’s text, not looking all that bothered by her client’s cancellation. In fact, as her eyes met his once again, she looked almost grateful.

Surging with a renewed sense of hope that this woman could be his, even if only for a moment Ben did something he never did anymore. He took a chance. “Would you like to grab a coffee?”

Holly beamed at him before her face fell into a frustrated pout, one that was almost adorable enough to soften the blow he knew was coming. “I have to meet another client for her dress alterations.” Gnawing on her lower lip, she searched his eyes, her own reflecting the most beautiful shade of blue. “You could walk me? I mean, if you’re interested.”

Ben nodded and held out his arm, the gentlemanly gesture completely unpracticed and taking him by surprise. “I’m definitely interested.”

The cool weather hitting his face was refreshing in light of how warm he felt anytime he was around Holly. It came from attraction, yes, but also from her personality. Being with her was like lying on the beach in late spring, warm and comforting. He hadn’t felt that in so long it had taken him until now to realize just how much he’d been needing it.

They navigated the sidewalks easily. It was as if the people passing them knew to go around, to not even attempt to part the pair walking so closely together. They didn’t speak much, but every few seconds their eyes would meet before they both turned away, a shy smile on his face and pink on the apples of her cheeks. It felt incredibly old-fashioned but was completely perfect, Ben never once feeling uneasy or forced to make conversation. The silence between them was comfortable, almost cozy, and he could already picture the same silence hanging between them as they read together on a sofa, relaxed on a picnic blanket, or lay in bed at night. The images in his mind brought a feeling of serenity over his body, one so complete that he felt a sharp pain at the loss of it when Holly pulled away.

“This is my stop.” She nodded to the bridal shop, a very impatient looking woman glaring at the two of them from behind the window. “Thanks for walking me. It was...”

Ben nodded, right there with her in a loss for words to describe something so simple, yet so beautiful. “It was,” he agreed, smiling at the understanding in her eyes.

Holly backed up a step, but he followed, pulled by some invisible tether. “I’ll see you for the tasting tomorrow. Right?”

“Wouldn’t miss it.” With a small wave, Holly disappeared into the shop.

Ben watched from outside as she put on her trademark smile and greeted the already harried bride-to-be, impressed with her people skills. If he was going to make a bigger move than asking her to coffee, he needed to work on his own. He rubbed his hand down his face in frustration. For the first time in a long while, Ben truly cared what another person thought of him, and just like the prospect of socializing more often, it was both exciting and terrifying. Hopefully, he would make it through to the other side without driving anyone away, specifically the woman with eyes his new favorite shade of blue.

---