Chapter 39
Rhodes
The week dragged on endlessly, each day driving me a little crazier that Sage kept her distance.
We’d now spilled over into April with the days getting progressively warmer, and Wild Bloom was busy.
I knew she was swamped with work, so I tried to stop by without pushing, but my thoughts were a constant jumble.
There was this distance that I hated, and more than that, I hated that it was my fault.
Wade had been spot-on telling me about Sage and her previous relationship, because it helped balance out the shit going on in my head.
I knew where she was coming from now, and that helped me be patient.
It might be selfish of me to think that way, but hopefully, when she was ready to talk, I could reassure her that loyalty was just the start of what I could offer.
“Boss,” Parrish’s voice came over the speaker phone.
He’d been watching Catherine closely, as she had been sticking a little too close to town for my comfort.
She’d swapped numbers and then bought a burner.
It seemed no matter how many numbers I blocked, she just found another one.
Each time the messages left were the same manipulative shit.
“Found some shit that you might want to know about.”
I wasn’t so sure I wanted to know anything else, but at this point, keeping things stable at home meant staying on top of what my ex was doing.
“She’s been doing a lot of partying,” he started. I wasn’t surprised by the partying, but small towns weren’t her usual crowd. “Out at some of the biker bars in a few of the outlying areas. Jenkins Mill for one. Looks like she’s using. It might be why she’s running out of money.”
Running a hand over the back of my neck, I blew out a breath. “Try to see if she’s interested in a program. Keep an eye on her.”
For a brief moment, I thought about just paying her off, but she’d only come back again, especially if she was dipping her toes into drugs. Throwing money at the problem wouldn’t solve anything.
“Will do. How’s your new lady doing?”
“Fine.” The one word was growled out. “Ellis seems to be having a nice time.”
“Except for all those proof-of-life pictures you want him to send.” I gave a noncommittal grunt. Too bad for Ellis if he had to send me a picture of her now and then. “She’s going to be fine, boss. We’ve got her system up and running now.”
“If we could just get a handle on who had sent those creepy notes and the flowers, I’d feel better about where we are on everything.”
“Whoever this fucker is, he’s smart. The proxies for delivery were a stroke of genius, and the people he picked …
” Parrish trailed off for a minute in admiration.
Whoever this was had chosen a low-tech method to stay under the radar, but it was effective.
They’d used street kids and the homeless to order and deliver the flowers, adding another layer of complexity to the search.
The guy was smart. All we had established was that they were male and between twenty and thirty, but that was as far as we had gotten.
By noon, the crew I hired had finished all the foundational work in the greenhouse, including the irrigation and soil preparation.
Opal was already at school, and the new kitten was safely settled in the house, napping in the sun.
The little orange monster was actually adorable, but I wasn’t going to admit that I was getting fond of the way it curled up with me while I was in the office.
Briggs had even caught me playing with Cheese when he’d video called me.
“Is that a cat?” he’d asked.
“If you have to ask, you have problems, man.” Flicking my pen back and forth for the kitten, he scrambled for it, making the papers on my desk slide precariously as his claws tried to capture the blue cap. “And his name is Cheese.”
“Dude. That’s a terrible name.”
“Can’t argue with you there, but he’s cute.” I held him up to the camera.
“He is pretty cute,” Briggs admitted reluctantly.
By the time he signed off, Briggs was a Cheese convert.
If the kitten wasn’t playing, he curled up in the crook of my arm, his little paws retracting back and forth.
He was soft as anything. It was one of the reasons Opal had picked him.
He looked a little like he’d stuck a claw in a light socket, with his long hair on end, but he was really fluffy.
Today, Sage was set to come over, and I couldn’t deny I was excited. Hopefully, I could finagle dinner out of it. When Ellis pinged me to say they were on their way, my stomach was in knots.
The van appeared on the gate camera almost ten minutes later, with Sage leaning out of the van to reach the call button, but instead I hit the gates. I could see her give a little chuckle and settle back into the driver’s seat before she put the vehicle into gear.
I’d been getting my daily dose of her, but I was still a starving man. Somehow, every time I saw her, I wanted more. Her smile was cautious, her eyes guarded, but she was here. That meant something.
“You said that the greenhouses were ready for planting, so I brought a few things with me.”
Ellis was already opening the van’s back doors, revealing flats of plants.
The greenhouses were neutral ground, so I’d been hopeful that she’d come. That ‘maybe’ that she kept sending me had been a lifeline for me, and the relief I felt when she drove up suddenly washed over me as I moved forward to help.
“Let’s see what you have.”
“Just some more ferns, and I did bring you a nice Monstera cutting from Vera,” she said, handing over the flat. Our fingers brushed, a spark igniting despite the distance we’d had between us. “I figured I’d get a look at the work you’ve had done and go from there.”
“Hey man, you got this covered, or do you want me to hang here?” Ellis asked, already noticing that I might want some space with Sage.
“I’ve got it.”
Sage didn’t say anything but watched Ellis leave, biting her lip. “He’s been very nice. He and Ryatt.” They’d switched off shifts, so Ellis could get some shut-eye. I’d wanted twenty-four-hour eyes on her, and they’d better be nice. “I feel safer having them around. God, why is this so awkward?”
We both took a flat and headed towards the nearest greenhouse. “It doesn’t have to be awkward. I know my past with Catherine threw you off. We should have talked about everything beforehand. Everyone carries baggage.”
I could practically hear her thinking as she walked beside me, and I wanted so badly to prompt her, but I didn’t.
“I had a really bad relationship,” she finally said.
“I’m sorry.” Relationships really sucked sometimes. We all had big hopes for them, and sometimes reality didn’t live up to the hype.
“The guy I was seeing ended up going back to his ex.” She snuck a glance at me.
“I have a hang-up about it. That’s why I freaked out a little with Catherine, but that wasn’t fair to you.
” Her eyes slid toward me again, as if gauging my reaction.
“I want us to be honest if we’re going to date.
If that’s what you’re interested in.” She took a little breath.
“My baggage is kind of a lot right now with the stalker drama.”
Stopping in the middle of the lawn, I set my plants down and took her face in my hands, tilting it so she was looking at me.
“It isn’t a lot. I’ll carry all your baggage.
I just want you with me.” Pressing my lips to hers, I tried to infuse all those feelings into the kiss, keeping it brief, then brushing my thumbs over her cheeks afterward.
Her eyes had filled with feeling, and it felt like maybe that was what we had needed to do.
Share the load. “I’m glad you told me about your other relationship. It helps me understand.”
Picking up the plants again, she took another breath and shot me a big smile. A real one this time.
“Well, you’ve done it now, I guess. You’re not getting rid of me, whether you’re carrying stuff physically or metaphorically. I’m a lot.”
“That’s okay, sweetheart. I’m here for it.” I sent her a wide smile, meaning every word.
Inside the greenhouse, she took in all the upgrades. It looked amazing, with the beds cleaned up and the glass newly sparkling. Underneath everything, there were new plumbing systems and even a new boiler, so it could be heated in the winter.
“Wow. You’ve had some serious work done, and it’s only been a few days. It’s amazing. I can’t wait to plant here.”
“I gave specific instructions about the plants that you wanted left alone, and followed the plan you sent. No pressure, but I’m hoping that you’ll want to be involved in the project with me.”
“I’d like that.” Her eyes lit with pleasure as if I had given her the best and most expensive gift in the world.
I wanted to tell her I wanted her involved everywhere.
I wanted her living here with me, Oppie, and Cheese, but I kept those thoughts to myself.
There was no need to scare her right off the bat.
The greenhouse had some spectacular specimens, but they still needed care.
Sage had labeled them in her plan, but all the Latin names were beyond me.
They were green and leafy, with lots of ferns.
When I’d bought the property, the greenhouses were part of it, and I hadn’t expected anything alive inside.
The fact that any plants had survived had blown me away. Resilience took many forms, I suppose.