Page 50 of The Scars I Bare
Happy birthday, Elizabeth Ashcroft.
“Mommy, how do you know if a boy has a crush on you?”
The orange juice I’d just drunk got stuck in my throat, and I nearly choked. “What?” I sputtered. “Why are you asking this?”
She shrugged, chomping on her mouthful of Cheerios. “It’s my first day of school.”
I took a deep breath. “Well, I guess that’s logical.”
“So, how do I know?”
“He might follow you around,” I said before adding, “and maybe compliment you. Or make you laugh. I don’t know. I’m a little out of practice.”
She seemed to be contemplating everything I’d said, holding a spoon in the air in front of her face. “I think Dean has a crush on you.”
Second choking attack of the day. “Say what?”
“Dean Sutherland. I think—”
“I know who you’re talking about. I just—” My brain was about to explode.Of all the children in the world, how did I end up with the overly clever, extremely observant one?
“He likes to make you laugh. A lot. And he’s always around. Like now,” she said.
“Huh?”
She raised her arm and pointed to the back door that led to the garden. I looked over, and lo and behold, there was the man of the hour, walking up the path, holding a small bouquet of flowers.
My stomach did that stupid flip-flop thing it had done every single time I saw him over the past week. I’d been an official resident of Ocracoke for nearly two weeks now, and in that time, my belly had felt like it was on a constant roller coaster ride.
All because of Dean and his charming good looks.
It had made work incredibly difficult, seeing as he was still there.
All the time.
Him and his gorgeous smile.
I ran to the back door and greeted him before he had the chance to knock.
His smile sent shivers down my spine.
“Hi,” he said.
“Um, hi.”
“I just wanted to drop these off for Lizzie. I know it’s a big day.”
I looked down at the flowers in his hand, and my heart instantly melted into a pool of goo on the kitchen floor. Thankfully, he didn’t seem to notice as he stepped inside and presented her with the small cluster of daisies.
“Thank you!” she said happily. “Did you know daisies can be found everywhere on Earth, except Antarctica?”
He smiled, brushing back a wisp of hair from her face. “I did not know that. But I’m not surprised in the least that you did.”
“Mommy got me an encyclopedia for kids. It’s fairly decent. Not as good as Google, but it’s entertaining,” she said with another shrug.
His eyes met mine, and that smile he held hit me so hard, I had to grip the doorframe to keep myself upright.
God, he was handsome.
