Page 35 of More Than a Little Spark

Laughing, he points to the sheet in front of me.“You can skip the flattery.The decision has already been made.Your new title is Senior Executive Assistant.The promotion comes with a bump in salary and stock options.I want you to know that Marv and I truly appreciate what you do here, and we will do everything we can to make sure you don’t leave.”

I run my fingers over the words on the paper.“I’m not sure what to say.And here I thought you were upset that I took tomorrow off.”

“Not in the least.You deserve time off.”

“This means a lot to me, Mr.Graves, I mean, Austin.From the bottom of my heart, thank you.”

He nods.“And please hire someone who doesn’t chew gum.That noise makes me want to crawl out of my skin.”

“I know, and I’ll keep that in mind.”I fight the urge to walk around the desk and hug my boss.He’s not much of a hugger.Unless your name is Zoe and you look at him like he hung the moon.Neither of those are true for me.

As I walk back to my desk, the elevator dings, and a delivery guy exits carrying a vase filled with a mix of red, orange, and vivid pink blooms.I'm almost jealous of the recipient.Okay, not almost.I'm totally jealous.

Smiling, I ask, “How may I help you?”Which is a somewhat silly question because he’s obviously delivering flowers.

He checks a sheet of paper in his hand.“I have a delivery for Daphne Emerson.”

Surprised, I tap my chest like a dork.“That’s me.”

“Great.Then I don’t have to keep looking.”He hands over the vase.“Have a great day.”

Waving, I scan for a card.Please have a card because the curiosity of not knowing who they’re from will kill me.I find it hidden on the opposite side.

Daphne –

Beautiful flowers for a beautiful lady.I’m looking forward to our date tomorrow.

-Carson

I holdthe card to my chest and close my eyes.This man.Of all the men driving trucks on Texas backroads, this is the one who rescued me.How did I get so lucky?

Making rash life decisions after knowing someone a few months is risky, and I have no plans to do that.But I’d be lying if I said I didn’t have strong feelings for Carson.And he hasn’t even kissed me.

We’ve only known each other two and a half months, which may not seem like a long time to wait for a kiss.However, I’ve wanted one since the day he came up to the hospital the morning after my accident.With both our lives being busy and his pretending that he’s not dating anyone, I’ve only seen him once since Christmas, and that was almost a month ago.I’m really hoping for a Valentine’s Day kiss.

“I can’t talk long.He’ll be here any minute.”I peek through the blinds, watching the parking lot.

Rose laughs.“Not at all excited, are you?”

“Too excited maybe.He arranged a picnic for us.How romantic is that?But I’m also nervous.”

“Nervous?About what?”

Even though it sounds crazy, I can admit to Rose why I’m waiting for the bad thing to come.“There have been too many good things and not enough to balance it out.So I’m nervous that one big, horrible thing is coming.”

“Nothing bad?You mean like flipping your car or having your mom ignore your calls?”

“Okay, so maybe I’m worrying for no reason.”

“You spend so much time looking at the good that you forget that everything is pretty balanced.And I am sorry about your mom.Hopefully, that situation changes soon.”

I shrug.“Don’t want to talk about that right now.I don’t need to open the door with red puffy eyes.”Looking in the little mirror near my door, I make sure my misty eyes haven’t ruined my makeup.“He just pulled in.I’ll talk to you later.”

“Call me after.And let me know if he finally kisses you.”

“How do you know he hasn’t already?”Peeking out, I smile as Carson gets out of his truck.

“Because you haven’t called me squealing.I know you, Daphne.”

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