NORA
“Mind if we stop by the store on our way home?” Theo asked as he climbed into the driver’s seat and started the car. “I was thinking it might be nice to drop something by Amanda’s house for her son.”
“Sure,” I said, fastening my seatbelt. “I’m sure they’d appreciate that.”
And they probably would.
But I couldn’t help wondering what exactly had prompted the idea.
Was it just Theo being thoughtful? Because he was a dad and knew how much something small like that could mean when your kid wasn’t feeling well?
Or was it because he’d been looking forward to seeing Amanda today and this was a way to still make that happen?
He’s probably just being a nice guy, I told myself as I turned my attention out the window, trying not to let the thought ruin the quiet, lingering warmth from the balloon ride.
The store stop was quick. Theo grabbed a green stuffed dinosaur from one of the aisles, along with a “feel better soon” card.
It was simple.
Thoughtful.
Exactly the kind of thing you’d expect from him.
But when we were in the checkout line, his attention seemed to catch on the floral display close by.
After glancing at the various flower arrangements on display, he turned to me, quickly saying, “Can you hold these for a sec?” while handing me the stuffed dinosaur and card.
So I took them, watching as he stepped forward to pick out an arrangement of flowers already set in a glass vase.
Are those flowers for me? My stomach gave a small, hopeful little flip.
No… They were probably for his mom as a thank you for watching Charlotte today.
But still…
They could be for me.
I tried to keep my expression neutral as he walked back. Casual. Unassuming. Like it was totally normal to stand there while a guy you’d just shared a near-kiss with bought flowers.
“What do you think of these?” he asked, holding them up.
“They’re beautiful,” I said, taking in the soft pink roses, the white daisies, and all the greenery woven in between.
Honestly… I couldn’t have picked out a more perfect arrangement myself.
“Awesome,” he said, stepping back into line beside me. “Hopefully, Amanda likes them.”
“Oh.” The word slipped out before I could stop it.
Of course. That made sense.
“That’s really sweet of you,” I added quickly, forcing a small smile I didn’t mean. “I’m sure she’ll love them.”
He gave a small nod. “I just figured… after the night she had, it might be nice.”
Nice.
Right.
My chest tightened as I stared down at the flowers again.
Because getting a woman flowers didn’t exactly feel like a casual gesture.
Not when they looked like that.
Not when he’d taken the time to pick them out so carefully.
I pressed my lips together as I looked at the beautiful bouquet.
Yeah… those definitely weren’t the typical yellow friendship flowers.
Amanda’s neighborhood was quiet when Theo parked along the curb.
“I don’t want to wake her, so I’ll probably just leave everything on the doorstep,” he said, glancing toward the front porch with a navy-blue door.
“Good idea,” I said, glad I wouldn’t have to watch the exchange.
He grabbed the gift bag, the flowers, and the card, then stepped out of the car.
I stayed where I was, watching through the window as he walked up the path.
He took a moment to arrange everything on the front porch.
Setting the bag down.
Adjusting the flowers so they wouldn’t tip.
Making sure the card was visible.
My fingers tightened around my seatbelt.
He wasn’t simply dropping something off. He was setting up a display. Making sure everything was just right.
I looked away.
When he got back in the car, I asked, “Hey, would you mind driving me by my house so I can check my mail real quick? I want to see if the new key for my Jeep arrived.”
“Sure,” he said, smiling at me like he didn’t have a care in the world. “No problem.”
We drove in silence for a few minutes after that.
Not necessarily awkward. Just quieter than before.
When we pulled up in front of my house, I unbuckled my seatbelt and reached for the door handle.
“I’ll be right back,” I said.
“Sounds good.”
I stepped out and walked the short distance to the mailbox. Thankfully, our mailbox was close to the road, so it hadn’t been damaged in the fire.
Just as I’d hoped, there was a small, padded envelope inside with my name on it. I pulled it out, flipping it over before tearing it open right there on the sidewalk.
My brand new, shiny key fob slid into my hand.
Good. I sighed, feeling a bit of relief that I could drive my Jeep again. Because after a week of only being able to go on outings within walking distance with Charlotte, it would be nice to have more options for us to go on our daily adventures again.
I headed back down the sidewalk, a small smile tugging at my lips as I walked to the driver’s side of Theo’s Volvo.
He rolled down the window.
“It came,” I said, holding up the black key fob with a smile. “Looks like I can drive myself home.”
He smiled back. “I guess I’ll see you back at the house then.”
Like that was the obvious plan.
Like I’d just head right back.
But with the trip to Amanda’s house still fresh on my mind, I said, “I’m actually going to run a few errands.”
“Oh?” he asked, his brows lifting slightly. “Really?”
“Yeah, I…” I hesitated for a second, trying to come up with an excuse. “I need to get some things for the trip to Ky’s next weekend. Swimsuits, beach stuff.”
It wasn’t exactly true since I already had plenty of that at my brother’s beach house.
But Theo didn’t need to know that.
“Okay,” he said, nodding slowly. “Sounds good.”
And for a second, he almost looked disappointed.
Like he’d been expecting something else.
Had he been planning to spend the day together then?
Was I just being dumb and making unnecessary drama up in my head?
Had those flowers just been him being a good dude and I was reading too much into them?
But if so, why would he spend so much time making sure they were arranged just right? You didn’t just do that for someone you only saw as a friend.
Yeah… he’s probably been sending her romantic texts all week. Talking about how excited he was to see her this morning.
And he had just been holding me close on the hot air balloon ride because…?
I didn’t know.
I shook my head.
I couldn’t read his mind.
Though it would certainly be nice if I could.
I let out a small breath. “I’ll see you later, okay?”
“Okay,” he said, giving me a quick nod. He reached for the gear shift, like he was about to pull away, but then his phone lit up where it sat on the charging stand near his steering wheel.
And even though I knew I shouldn’t look, I couldn’t stop my eyes from flicking toward the screen. I didn’t catch the whole message before he picked it up. But I did see the name at the top.
Amanda.
“Oh, looks like Amanda found our gift,” he said, a smile pulling at his mouth as he opened the message.
And as he read more of it, that smile only grew bigger.
My chest tightened. Yeah. He’s definitely into her. This is what I get for thinking I ever stood a chance with him.
He typed out a quick response, then set his phone back on the charger. “I’ll see you later,” he said, looking back at me. “Enjoy your shopping.”
“I will.”
I turned toward my Jeep, ready to get out of there—
But then, before I could stop myself, I found myself saying, “I’m not sure when I’ll be home, though.” I looked back at him. “I was thinking I might hang out with some friends tonight. There are a few guys from the hockey team in town.”
The second the words left my mouth and I saw what almost looked like hurt flash in his eyes, I instantly wanted to snatch them back.
“Oh…” he said. “Okay.”
And suddenly, I wasn’t so sure that it had been the right thing to say.
Because what if I’d been wrong?
What if I’d just taken everything that had been building between us and completely misread it?
But it wasn’t like I could take it back now.
Not without looking like a complete idiot.
So instead, I just gave him a small nod and stepped back from the car, watching as he pulled away from the curb. And only once he was gone did I let out the breath I’d been holding.
Apparently, I needed a little space before I did something stupid.
Like admitting how much that small bouquet of flowers had gotten to me.