Chapter 5
Chapter
Five
Ifelt Caelan’s fury before he entered the shop. Petals fell from my hands as I rose, grabbing a towel to wipe away the debris before hurrying toward the door.
I didn’t get there in time. Caelan entered in a whirlwind of rage, his ever-changing eyes sweeping the shop before falling on me.
“Caelan?”
He stalked toward me, eyes glowing golden. One hand snagged around my waist, and he hauled me against him, lips claiming me in a fiery kiss.
My brain short-circuited. When we came up for air, his eyes had reverted to their normal stormy gray. He touched his forehead to mine. “Hi.”
I blinked up at him, touching my lips with my fingers, unable to come up with a single word for that greeting.
Moira let out a wolf whistle. “I wish I had someone greeting me like that at work.”
“No kidding,” Ash grumbled. “What the hell, Caelan? Is everything alright?”
“Any of you heard about a dowry concerning Evie?”
The term made my brow furrow. Wasn’t a dowry for a bride?
“A dowry?” Moira laughed. “Are we in the Victorian age or something?”
I took a step back. “Is that why you’re so angry?”
His posture vibrated with tension. “Several men were outside discussing social media posts and fliers announcing you’re in the market for a husband.”
I burst out laughing.
“From your reaction, I suppose there’s nothing you want to tell me.” Caelan’s lips twitched.
I stepped closer and brought him into a hug. “If I haven’t married you by now, I can’t imagine I’d marry anyone else.”
He rubbed a hand over his face. “Gods,” he muttered. “The Lords are at it again.”
“I don’t know why I’m such a hot commodity for them.”
“You’ve been very clear about them leaving you alone,” Caelan said. He shook his head. “Let me do some digging. I’ll get to the bottom of things.”
“They were waiting outside?” Moira asked.
Caelan nodded. “One of them had flowers.”
Ash let out a shout of laughter.
“What kind of flowers?” I asked.
Caelan’s eyes narrowed.
“What?” I said innocently. “There’s a big difference between carnations and dahlias.”
Moira grinned. “She’s right. Carnations say fast food. Dahlias say fine dining.”
“I don’t know what kind of flowers he had. If they’re smart, they’re on the way out of town as we speak.”
“Ooh,” Moira said. “Your Lord got all alpha on them.”
But Caelan had stopped listening. He sat up a little straighter, a tinge of gold in his eyes. His nostrils flared. “Who’s been here today?”
“Besides Evie’s harem?” Ash asked.
Caelan’s hot glare made Ash’s mouth snap shut.
I lay a hand on his arm. “He’s talking about Barrett.”
“He’s…” His voice trailed off. “Like you.”
I nodded. “He wants to bring the Chimeras out into the open.”
“He wasn’t here for the dowry?”
I rolled my eyes. “Not at all. He had eyes for Moira, though.”
The vampire wiggled her eyebrows. “Sure did. Blonds aren’t my thing, but I might give him a spin around the block and see if he can back up all that delicious power swimming in his veins.”
I stared at my friend for a long moment. “Gross.”
Moira cackled. She ruffled my hair and rose from the couch arm. “I’ll be in back finishing up the new holiday arrangements. Don’t leave before you come chat.”
She blew a kiss at Caelan and went to the back.
Tess floated to the register, and Ash went over to his workstation and settled in.
His new project was a magnolia bonsai. I knew how to manipulate flora, but Ash’s realm was trees.
He’d been working on this one for months now, and every once in a while, he’d mutter fiery curses under his breath about stupid magnolias and their stupid, high-maintenance roots.
When I saw that particular bonsai on his table, I stayed away.
“Want some coffee?” I asked Caelan.
“Always.”
I fixed us both a cup and handed him one. He’d sat down on the sofa and patted the space next to him. “Slow day?”
“Lunch is always a little slow. We’ll pick up after two.”
He checked his phone. “Good. I’ll stay for a little while if that’s okay.”
“It’s always okay.”
He flashed me a gorgeous grin that pulled at my heart. “I want to bring Seymour and Hannah by this week if you don’t mind.”
“They’re always welcome too. How are they doing?”
“If plants could mate, I’d guess Seymour and Hannah are about to get married.” He shook his head and chuckled. “I can’t move them apart without him trying to take a bite out of me.”
“Aww. They’re happy.” I’d made the Venus flytrap in a fit of pique after Caelan pissed me off. But Seymour was no regular flytrap. I’d modified his traps to produce a paralytic that could take a shifter down in less than a minute, and he’d used it to take several shifters down, Caelan included.
But Seymour’s occasionally bloodthirsty nature spoke to Caelan’s, and to my surprise, now the two were…friends, as much as someone could be friends with a sentient plant.
I’d made Hannah for Caelan’s boutonniere and toned her nature down a notch. She still had violent tendencies, but she had a sweeter nature than Seymour, something the male flytrap seemed to gravitate to.
“They keep sneaking out of the Keep. Garrett caught them once, Simone the next time. I caught them the third, right as they made it to the property line.” Caelan grinned. “Pretty sure Poe and Fee are helping those little escape artists.”
“How’d you get them to stop?” I curled my feet onto the sofa and soaked up his warmth. He ran several degrees hotter than me. Sitting beside him felt like cuddling up to a crackling fire.
“I had to promise visitation. Twice a week, they’re coming over to visit you.”
I laughed. “They’re welcome to stay longer if they want.”
“Is this how divorced parents feel? Seymour and Hannah go to you three days a week and stay at the Keep for four.”
“Yes, well, you can come with them and stay if you want.”
Caelan’s chuckle sent shivers down my spine. “I like that idea even better.”
I rose and whispered in his ear. “But you have to learn to be quiet. Honestly, Caelan. You’re so loud.”
He nipped my nose with his teeth. “Vicious woman.”
The bell rang, and seconds later, three young women came in giggling over a private joke. One glanced over and spotted Caelan sitting next to me and gasped.
“Lord Caelan!” She was short, blonde, and curvy, and from the smile she bestowed on Caelan, very, very interested. “I’m so surprised to see you here.”
Her gaze flicked over me and dismissed me in the same second. Anger sparked in my belly.
Caelan’s expression didn’t change. “I’m here all the time. My girlfriend owns the place.”
I sucked in a soft gasp. Girlfriend. It felt right and wrong all at the same time.
When the girl’s eyes widened, I held up my hand and wiggled my fingers at her in a mocking wave.
“I’m Evie,” I said. “Welcome to Little Shop of Florals. Tess can help you if you’re looking for anything in particular. I’m on break for another fifteen minutes.”
Her eyes tightened at my abrupt dismissal.
One of the other girls, a shorter redhead, pressed her lips together and took a step away from the blonde, her eyes sparkling with amusement. “My mom’s birthday is coming up. I’ll ask Tess for help.”
The other girl tugged on the blonde’s elbow. “Come on, Courtney. Let’s look around.”
For a moment, I thought Courtney was about to make a terrible mistake, but eventually she turned and followed the redhead deeper into the store as Tess showed her the bouquet options.
“Girlfriend?” I murmured.
Caelan tugged me closer. “Weird word,” he agreed. “You’re so much more to me than just a girlfriend. I’ll come up with a better word.”
“What do you want me to call you?”
Caelan stilled, and for a moment I thought I’d said the wrong thing. “Flower girl, you can call me whatever you want.”
I glanced up at him and narrowed my eyes. “Why are you being intentionally vague?”
He lowered his voice. “Evie, the moment you want to make this permanent, I’ll fly in a minister and have you married within the hour. In the meantime, you can call me whatever you want.”
“You always have a way with words.” I squeezed his bicep. “Must be part of the required Shifter Lord training.”
“Yes. Romance 101 is required coursework before we get our diplomas.”
“I bet you were an A student.”
Caelan grinned, making my heart skip a beat. “I’ll show you exactly what kind of pupil I was later.”
I snorted. “Want a refill before I have to get back to work?”
He took my cup and rose. “I’ll get it. Half?”
I nodded and watched him walk away, which was one of my favorite things to do.
Things were good. Really good.
The dowry thing was weird, but I’d take a marriage proposal over attempted murder any day.