by Autumn Marks
She looked down at Ollie. A few hours ago, she’d been so angry at this dog. Now she wanted to hug him. She stroked Ollie’s head and scratched behind his ear. “I feel bad for him.”
“I wouldn’t. He has a good life now and does fine on three legs.”
Emily looked around and didn’t see a clock in sight. Through the windows, flashes of light from lightning bugs danced across the yard as the sun began to set. “Do you know what time it is?”
“It’s nine thirty,” Brandon said after checking his phone.
So much time had passed, and if not for the changing light outside, she never would have noticed. “I should probably get going. I have to show a few homes early tomorrow morning.” She got up from the couch and Ollie cracked his eyes open to check out the commotion, then closed them again.
Brandon got up from his seat and stood by the front door. When Emily approached, she spotted a mischievous glint in his eye. “Do you need me to walk you home?”
She chuckled. “Thanks, but I think I can handle it.” She walked out the door and got no more than a few steps away before his voice halted her.
“We never talked about your flowers. Are you free on Saturday? I don’t know what your work schedule is like.”
“I’m free Saturday. Do you want to go in the morning?”
“Does ten work for you?”
“Works for me. I’ll see you then. And, Brandon?”
“Yeah?”
“Thanks for dinner. I had a nice time.” Emily turned away before her grin took up her entire face. She really did enjoy her time tonight. And she would have the rest of the evening to dissect the way he’d made her body respond. Tonight, she’d probably dream about those eyes of his and how they’d spoken so much when he had said so little.
A rebound, she reminded herself. That was all these feelings were.
Chapter 8
Emily stepped outside at exactly ten on Saturday morning and found Brandon making his way across the yard to her house.
She’d already known he was coming.
She’d been watching out her window, waiting for him to appear. Watching for him was one of the many things she’d done that morning to occupy herself while impatiently waiting for ten to roll around.
Last night, she’d gotten terrible sleep. Securing a date to Stephanie’s wedding hadn’t brought the relief she’d thought it would. Instead, she was worried. She’d never had a fake boyfriend before and lying to her friends wasn’t something she enjoyed the thought of. Would they be able to pull it off and convince everyone that Brandon was the real deal? What if her friends started grilling him? What if they couldn’t keep their stories straight? Was this all a terrible idea?
But it hadn’t been all dire thoughts. She’d allowed herself to think for a moment about the evening going a different way. Would he try to kiss her? Or maybe more? That’s ridiculous, she’d thought, snapping herself out of it. They barely knew each other.
“Good morning,” Brandon said as the two of them met where their yards joined together. He was wearing a pair of tailored-fit khaki shorts and a light blue polo shirt that showed off his defined arms and upper body. His casual sneakers completed the look.
The light blue of his shirt made his eyes sparkle that much more. As much as Emily tried to ignore it, there was a sort of magnetism there making it impossible for her to look away. Didn’t he have sunglasses he could wear?
“Good morning,” she replied.
“Do you want to stop at the coffee shop before we head out? My treat,” he said with a grin.
A quaint little coffee shop had opened up last year and the teens in the area flocked there. Being that it was summer, it was always swarming with teenagers that had nothing better to do. She couldn’t blame them. Brookview was limited in its offerings for teenagers and if something like that had been around when she was younger, she’d probably have gone there too.
“I appreciate the offer—”
“But?” Brandon asked.
“I already had two cups of coffee this morning and if I have any more, my head will get all fuzzy.” I’m such an idiot. Turning down the chance to spend more time with an extremely hot guy? Was she nuts? She could’ve gotten decaf coffee or even one of those drinks that contain more calories than coffee, but noooo. The refusal was already out and there was no way to take it back without looking like an idiot—which was something she already felt. She hoped she’d get the chance to remedy her mistake later.
“Just thought I’d offer. Have you decided where you want to go?”
“There’s a place in Pickerington I’d like to try first. I usually have good luck there.”
“Hop on in then,” he said, motioning to the car door.
Emily got into Brandon’s black four-door sedan and scanned the insides. There was no dust on the dash that she could see and no trash anywhere. No more than a handful of pocket change sat in one of the cupholders. A blue blanket containing a thin layer of pet hair covered the entire back seat. Other than the pet hair, his car was clean. It didn’t even smell, unlike Jason’s car, which always had the faint odor of fast food.
One of her pet peeves about Jason was that he always ate in his car. While Jason may have kept his appearance neat and tidy, his car was a mess. It pleased her that Brandon didn’t treat his car the same way.
Brandon got in on the other side and reached above the rearview mirror and pulled a pair of black Wayfarers from a small compartment. Finally. She could get a reprieve from those distracting eyes. He started up the car and pulled out of the driveway.
“How does it feel being back in Brookview?” Emily asked once they were well on their way.
“Not much has changed, that’s for sure.”
She certainly agreed with him there. “Do you find that to be a comfort or an issue?”
“I don’t know. In some ways, I would’ve liked to see a bit of change. A few of the businesses in town are different, but that’s about it.”
“I’d love to see another restaurant open up. The Neighborhood could really use some competition,” she said.
Brandon laughed. “I don’t think the place has been painted in the last twenty years. And has their menu even changed…ever?”
“I doubt it. Ask Mickey. She’d know. I’m pretty sure she’s been working there since her teens.”
Brandon was quiet for a few moments. “Speaking of Mickey, it’s good being able to see her again. I leaned on her quite a bit during my teenage years and I feel terrible for not keeping in touch with her while I was living in Charlotte.”
Emily didn’t pry any further into his relationship with Mickey. It seemed like a private thing and she didn’t want to intrude. “Why Charlotte? What led you there?”
“Do you want me to tell you the real reason I ended up in Charlotte or the reason I told everyone to make myself sound better?”
“Let’s hear the real reason first.”
“I mapped out three cities about six hours from Brookview. Then I put them into a hat and picked one.”
“What were the three cities?”
“Chicago, Charlotte, and Nashville.”
“It’s creative, I’ll give you that. I wouldn’t have the guts to do it.”
“Once I made my decision, my mom helped me get settled into a decent apartment and then I was on my own from there. I think she felt guilty because my dad was the one who had pushed me out of the house.”
“Do you still talk to your dad?”
“I haven’t said one word to him since that day.”
“And what’s the reason you told everyone else?”
Brandon turned toward Emily. “That I got a job offer I couldn’t refuse.”
Brandon didn’t want to talk about his dad anymore. Since being back, he’d had too many reminders of that man and he really didn’t want to spoil their outing by thinking about him. Thinking about his dad was a surefire way to get in a bad mood. In order to shut this line of questioning down, he was going to
have to start asking questions about her.
“What year did you graduate?” he asked.
Emily snorted. “Why don’t you ask me what you really want to ask?”
She was direct and didn’t miss a beat. “What’s that?” he asked, playing dumb.
“I’m twenty-eight years old. I’ll save you from doing the math.”
“I was curious. I’m sorry. It really doesn’t matter.”
She shrugged. “I don’t care if you know. How old are you?”
“Thirty-five.” Brandon did some quick math. She said she’d been living in her home for three years. She’d been a homeowner since twenty-five. He reflected on where he’d been in his life at twenty-five. Still in college and floundering around to different jobs to pay the bills. It seemed that Emily had figured out her life at a young age. “You bought your first home at twenty-five? How long have you been working as a real estate agent?”
“Long enough. I knew early on that’s what I wanted to do. I’ve seen what a new home can do for people and I enjoy being able to provide people with a chance to change their life.”
There was a brief lull in the conversation and Brandon decided to fill it with another question. “So this ex-boyfriend of yours…how long were you two dating?”
“Five years.”
Brandon’s eyes widened. “Five years is a long time. You’d think he would’ve proposed by then.” He turned toward Emily and registered the sour look on her face. “I’m sorry. I’m not trying to disrespect you in any way, but if I were dating someone for that long, I would’ve popped the question by then.”
“On the day that he broke up with me, I thought he was going to propose.”
A pang of regret hit him in the stomach. “Shit. I’m sorry. I don’t know the guy, but he doesn’t deserve you.”
“Thanks. Don’t feel like you need to cheer me up though. I’m over him.”
“So soon? Don’t they say it’ll take at least half the time you were dating to get over someone?” It was a widely spread theory but Brandon knew about it because he’d once taken six months to get over a girl he’d dated for a year. To him, it had seemed like a long time to recover. In order to convince himself he wasn’t sinking into a deep depression again, he’d looked up how long it should take to get over a breakup. According to the theory, his recovery time was completely normal.
“I’m not wasting two and a half years of my life being depressed over Jason. If he doesn’t want to be with me then fine. And since he not only broke up with me, but admitted to cheating on me? Fuck him.”
Brandon pounded the steering wheel. “Yeah! Fuck him.”
The two of them burst out laughing. He looked over at Emily and she got quiet. She fiddled with her hair and tucked a strand of it behind her ear. She was nervous, that much he could tell.
“I want to thank you again for agreeing to go with me to the wedding,” she said, looking down at her feet.
If she was worried about imposing on him, she could forget it. The whole summer stretched before him and he needed a way to fill it. Besides, he could think of worse dates. Emily was attractive, funny, and nice to be around. It wouldn’t be a bad time. “You don’t have to keep thanking me. I’m happy to do it.” He turned toward her and smiled as redness bloomed on her cheeks. He looked back at the road and checked the nearest road sign. “Where did you say this place was again?”
“Right up here on the left.”
He put on his turn signal and drove across the highway into the greenhouse parking lot. After he parked, they got out of the car and looked around. Brandon watched as the dust cloud that had been kicked up from his car blew across the gravel parking lot. As they stood there, the sun beat down on the two of them and the humidity made the air feel thick and heavy, like a sauna.
“You can stay out here if you want,” Emily offered. “I can run in by myself to see if they have what I’m looking for.”
She was too considerate. Brandon wished to tell her she wasn’t a bother. It’d been a long time since he’d enjoyed the company of a woman. “No way. I am fully committed to our outing today and I’m not taking any shortcuts.”
He held out his arm and she linked hers through his. If they were going to go to a wedding together in a week, then they’d better start getting used to being close to one another.
They walked arm in arm through the steamy greenhouse, the closeness making Brandon feel things he didn’t want to acknowledge, until Emily tugged him closer to where some bell-shaped flowers sat on tables. “These are petunias and do you see that purple color over there? That’s the one I’m looking for. I can’t believe they have it!”
“How many do you need? I’ll help you carry them.” Emily held out a flat of petunias in a dark purple color and Brandon took them from her. “Do you need anything else while we’re here?” he asked.
He was trying to extend their outing. He’d been hoping to travel to at least a few more places before finding the right ones to give himself an opportunity to spend more time with Emily. He wanted to learn more about her. Emily was a mystery to him, one he looked forward to solving.
“No, I don’t need anything else. Besides, we still have the hardware store to get to, don’t we?” she asked.
“I don’t have to go to the hardware store,” he explained as they walked to the register. “I already have the fencing material in my garage. I ordered it online and they shipped it to my house. I’m going to put it up this weekend.”
“Oh, okay…”
Was she disappointed? Was she trying to spend more time with him too?
Brandon paid for the flowers and when they got to his car, he put them in the back seat on the dog-hair-covered blanket. When they were both settled in their seats, he started up the car and basked in the cool air that chilled his flushed skin. “Do you want to go grab lunch somewhere? There used to be a really good Chinese restaurant not far from here and I want to see if it’s still there.”
Emily looked back at the flowers on the back seat, then back at him. A few beats ticked by before she answered. “I don’t want to leave the flowers in the car that long. In this heat, they’ll probably get ruined.”
“Oh, right.” Brandon thought for a moment. “We’ll take them in with us. We’ll get a booth and we can put them on the seat next to us.”
Her eyes widened. “What? That’s crazy! Who would do that?”
Chapter 9
They were really doing it. Brandon was sitting at a booth in the Chinese restaurant with a flat of petunias right next to him. Their drinks had just been delivered but not before getting a few wide-eyed looks from their server and the hostess that had seated them.
Emily shook her head. “You’re crazy. You know that?”
“What’s the big deal? We can’t be the only ones to have done this,” he said, fiddling with the straw in his drink.
She couldn’t keep the smile off of her face. This was another way Brandon was so different from Jason. Jason was predictable—something she’d taken comfort in—and definitely someone that never veered outside the norm.
Brandon seemed like a wild card. This move by him was unexpected. He cared enough about preserving her flowers that he would sit next to them during lunch.
Or maybe he was just that hungry.
After what seemed like only a few minutes, their food was delivered to the table.
“I can’t get over how fast that was. It had to be less than ten minutes,” Brandon said.
Emily shrugged. “I suppose anything will cook quickly at a high enough temperature.”
“I’m disappointed. Yours looks better than mine,” Brandon said, eyeballing her plate.
“Want to trade? I don’t mind.” False. She did mind. Cashew chicken was her favorite Chinese dish and beat the pants off of Brandon’s beef and broccoli any day.
“No, I couldn’t ask that of you. Look at the way you’re hovering over your plate. You’re not going to let anything come between you and your cashew chic
ken.”
Emily sat up straight. “I didn’t realize I was doing that.” Does the guy miss anything?
“It’s okay. I made my choice, now I have to live with it,” Brandon said, pushing around a piece of broccoli with his fork. He pierced the broccoli floret and a piece of beef and brought the bite to his mouth.
“Well? Is it as good as you remember?” she asked once he finished chewing.
“You can keep your cashew chicken,” he said with a smile. “My beef and broccoli is so much better.”
Emily doubted that, but she played along anyway. “I’ll take your word for it,” she said, taking a bite from her own plate.
“I’m willing to let you sample if you’d like. That way you can see what you’re missing.” He pushed his plate toward her.
Emily sighed. “Okay. If it’ll make you feel better, I’ll sample some of yours. But don’t think you’re getting any of mine. I’m not sharing.” She took a bite containing both beef and broccoli and put it in her mouth. Dammit. It was good, and much better than the bite of cashew chicken she’d had. The first piece of chicken had been nothing but gristle.
“Well?” Brandon said, cocking his head to the side.
She thought about lying to him and telling him it was terrible. But as much as she tried to keep a straight face, she couldn’t. “All right. You win,” she conceded. “Beef and broccoli takes this round.”
Brandon threw his hands up in victory. “I knew you’d be won over,” he said with a smile. He quickly pulled his plate back and replaced his smile with a serious expression. He hovered over his plate. “But don’t think you’re getting any more. I’m not sharing.”
Emily laughed. Everything about Brandon was so surprising and the two bantered so easily together. If he was this much fun to be around just heading out for flowers and lunch, she couldn’t wait to see what the wedding would be like. “You’re crazy. You know that?”
