Chapter 16
It takes me several minutes to realize I’m hugging Aiden.
My arms are tight around him, my face pressed into his chest, tears slipping down my cheek. His shirt is damp across his back, warm beneath my hands, and he smells like sun-warmed skin, turned earth, and salt from the ocean. Something clean and solid. Something real.
His arms rest around me, gentle and steady, like he’s not trying to hold me so much as make sure I don’t fall apart.
I draw in a shaky breath and try to pull away. “I’m so sorry.”
He doesn’t let me go.
Not tightly. Just enough to keep me close as he lifts his hand and wipes the tears from my cheeks with the back of it, careful and unhurried. Worry is written all over his face.
“Don’t cry. I’m sorry, May. I didn’t mean to make you cry. This was supposed to have the opposite effect.”
“I’m crying because I’m happy.” The confession slips out of my lips.
The words surprise me as much as they seem to surprise him.
I barely know this man, and yet the honesty comes easily. He feels safe in a way I’ve only ever felt with my sisters. I don’t need to brace myself or soften the truth. He makes me feel anchored.
His expression is still tight with concern, so I let myself explain.
“This is the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me,” I tell him, softly. “And… Mom would have loved them so much.”
Something in his face shifts. The worry eases, melting into something warmer. Relieved.
He steps to my side, giving me space to really take in the garden lining my porch. “Do you like them?”
Hydrangeas stretch along the front—blue, pink, and purple, already blooming beautifully.
“I love them. They’re perfect.”
“They’re close enough that once they grow, they’ll turn more into a bush,” he explains. “The colors will start mixing. The weather here is perfect for them. They’re pretty resilient, and right here they’ll get the right amount of sun to bloom all spring and summer long.”
“Thank you.” I take my phone from my pocket and take a few pictures. “I have to show my sisters. They’re going to love them too.”
He gestures toward the corner of the porch. “Let me finish this one on the side. I only need a few minutes.”
“Sounds good. I’ll take more pictures once you’re done so I can show them off.” I head back toward my truck to grab the groceries.
I’ve just lifted one bag out when I feel him standing behind me.
“Can I help you with those?”
“You don’t have to—” I start, but he’s already taking the bag from my hands and grabbing another from the cab.
“Could you get the door for me? I’ll carry these in.”
“Sure.” I dig through my pockets for my keys.
“Oh.” He pauses. “The door’s unlocked. I took the liberty of going in earlier and letting Neptune out for a bit. I hope that’s okay.”
I stop, surprised, then smile. “Oh. Sure. Of course.”
I open the door for him, and he steps inside, pausing just long enough to shake out his boots at the entry.
Neptune comes barreling toward me immediately, sniffing at my clothes, leaning into my legs, demanding the attention he knows he deserves.
“Hey, buddy,” I murmur, scratching behind his ears. “I missed you.”
His tongue lolls out the side of his mouth, and it makes me giggle.
Aiden sets the bags on the counter and heads back out for more. I walk into the kitchen with Neptune at my heels and start unloading, filling the fridge and pantry. He’s back a moment later with two more bags.
“I hope it was okay that I let him out. I only did it because I knew you weren’t home. I wouldn’t just walk in if you had been here.”
I look up at him and smile. “Thank you for taking Neptune out. I’m sure he appreciated not having to hold it all afternoon, and I appreciate it too. I know he’s safe with you.”
His shoulders ease, his expression softening. “Okay. Good. I didn’t want you to feel like I was overstepping.”
“If you ever do, I’ll tell you. Deal?”
I hold out my hand.
He shakes it gently. “Deal.”
“I’ve just got one more bag to grab.” He turns toward the door.
“Aiden?”
He looks back, surprised.
“Do you have plans for dinner?”
He pauses. “No. I don’t.”
“I’m making pasta. Would you like to have dinner with me?”
His smile is immediate. “I’d love to. I just need to shower and make sure my uncle’s eaten, but I can be back in about an hour.”
“Perfect. I’ll organize these, take a shower, and get started on the sauce. I can make some extra for your uncle too, if you’d like.”
His smile widens. “I think he’d really enjoy that. I also have some fresh sourdough we can bake, if you want.”
“As in… homemade sourdough?” I ask, surprised.
He blushes. “What can I say? I like to bake.”
“Wait, did you make those bagels you brought me?”
His blush deepens. “Did you like them?”
“Like them?” I laugh. “Those were the best fucking bagels I’ve ever had. Please bring the sourdough. If it’s anything like your bagels, I might just eat bread dipped in pasta sauce.”
“That actually sounds like a really good idea,” he smiles.
“Oh, and bring Skye if you want. I’m sure Neptune would love the company.”
“Sounds good.” He heads back out to grab the last of the groceries, and something in my chest pulls tight as the door closes behind him.
I finish putting the groceries away, then jog upstairs, already peeling off my jacket as I go.
Shower. I need a shower.
But first, I need to control my nerves, so I grab my phone and text the group chat.
Me:
I just offered to cook dinner for Aiden. Someone come get their sister. She’s not being herself.
It only takes a second for the first response to come through.
June:
Excuse me? Who are you, and where is the black cat that is my sister?
April:
Clap clap clap. I KNEW you had it in you, you two-timing hoe.
Of course April would be the one to call me out for the fact that, yes, I went out with Finn yesterday, and yes, here I am getting comfortable and domestic with Aiden.
Who even am I?
Me:
In my defense, I came home to him on his knees, literally building a garden for me.
I hit send, and almost immediately, my phone rings in my hand.
A three-way video call. Of course.
I sit on the edge of the bed and answer. It takes a moment for the connection to catch up, but then their equally shocked faces fill the screen.
“June, close your mouth. You’re going to eat a bug.”
She scoffs, still staring.
April cuts in immediately. “No. Don’t change the subject. What do you mean you found him building you a garden?”
“On his knees,” June adds.
I roll my eyes. “It’s kind of a long story.”
“We’ve got time.”
I shift back on the bed, crossing my legs. “Okay, okay. But I don’t have that much time. He’s coming back in less than an hour, and I want to shower before he gets here.”
“Ohhh,” June laughs. “Air the cobwebs. Smart.”
They both giggle, and honestly, I can’t even blame them. I’m handing them content they’ll use against me for the rest of my life.
“Last I heard,” April chimes in, “you got a call from work. How did we go from walking the dog to inviting this man over for dinner?”
“And offering to cook for him,” June adds.
“Yes,” April raises her eyebrows. “That part. That is bonkers. How did we end up here?”
So I tell them.
About the whale rescue. About finding him at the station, planting hydrangeas. About him mentioning, almost casually, that he lost his mom too. That he keeps her gardens because it makes him feel close to her.
“That is fucking precious,” June clutches her chest, and April, for once, is silent.
I keep going. About mentioning hydrangeas being my favorite, and how they were Mom’s too. And then how I went on with my day, naming the whale, going to the grocery store, making plans for wine, pasta, and Friends—
“And I get home, and he’s on his knees planting hydrangeas by my front door.”
“Shut up.” April cuts in.
“Hold on, let me show you.”
I scroll through the pictures I took earlier and send them two.
June’s eyes go wide. “May, what the fuck.”
April completely loses it. “WHAT DO YOU MEAN this precious man lost his mom, so he keeps her gardens, and then he builds you one because you love hydrangeas because they remind you of our mom?”
My own eyes sting now, and I blink rapidly, trying to keep it together.
“What did you say to him?” June asks. “Thanks for the flowers, want to have dinner?”
“No.” I let out a small laugh, then pause. “Okay, don’t judge me, and don’t forget—I am the black cat of the family, okay?”
They both stare at me, waiting.
“I got out of the truck,” I say after a moment. “I ran toward him, and I hugged him.”
“What?” they yell in unison.
April is still crying. June looks like her brain short-circuited.
“I may have cried a little too,” I admit, covering my face with my hand.
April shrieks, “WHAT THE FUCK IS HAPPENING?”
A worried voice comes from her side. “Honey? Are you okay?”
Max.
April sniffles. “No. Well—yes! May is in love with two men, and one of them planted a garden for her.”
Within seconds, Max is on screen, gently wiping her tears and kissing her forehead.
“I thought something happened to you.” His smile is soft.
June and I both audibly “aww”.
Max looks at the screen then. “Hey, girls. Sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt. I just wanted to check on her.”
“Hi, Max,” June smiles.
“Hi,” I add. “And just for the record, I am not in love with two men.”
April scoffs.
Max smiles at her again. “I’ve got food on the stove. I should go.”
“Bye, Max,” June and I say together.
April watches him walk out of the room, still wiping her eyes.
“That was so dramatic,” I mutter. “Why are we all crying again?”
“Over a man,” June scoffs.
“The sweetest man on the planet,” April counters. “So what happened next?”
“Oh,” I say, laughing. “He carried my groceries inside, and I somehow ran my mouth into inviting him to have dinner.”
June gasps. “So you’re cooking for him? That basically means you want to marry him.”
“This is not one of your romantasies June… also—here’s the kicker.”
April leans closer to the camera. “What?”
“He’s bringing fresh sourdough.”
“That he made?” April asks.
“By hand?” June adds.
I nod.
“Oh my fucking God,” June breathes. “What planet is this man from?”
“Tolan,” April replies immediately. “He is definitely from Tolan. Sent to Earth to make all of May’s dreams come true.”