Coming Up Roses

by Anie Michaels

  “There’s no reason to believe it won’t be a complete success,” he replied confidently.

  “I know you’ll do an awesome job.”

  “Rachel, what’s on your plate?”

  She let out a sigh and she sounded a little stressed, but she put on a smile and gave me a report anyway.

  “You know springtime is wedding season. From now until the end of September, weddings are going to be a main focus of the company, so I’m trying to stay on top of everything.”

  “How can we help?” Riley asked before I had a chance to.

  “At this point, if anyone has extra hands just for scheduling, that would be great. Perhaps some of the more experienced consultants could take my notes from brides and scout locations? A lot of venues have renovated and we need new info.”

  “Jasper is all yours. I have this coming weekend off for the fundraiser so most of my appointments are early this week. I can totally handle it on my own. Use him.”

  “Thank you,” Rachel said, slumping her shoulders with a relieved sigh.

  “We will round up a few people to do scouts and scheduling. You need to focus on the brides who have events coming up soon, yes? How many?”

  “I have two weddings this weekend—Saturday and Sunday—and three next weekend. And at least one per weekend for the next two months.”

  “When our meeting is over I want you to put together a list of what you need this week and next, and then we’ll go over it together and figure it all out, okay?”

  “And I can absolutely help out later this week. I’m yours all day Friday, in fact. I can rearrange my schedule mid-week and free up that day.”

  “You’re the best,” Rachel said to Riley, giving her a genuine smile.

  The rest of the meeting went just like any other. We made plans, rearranged them, and when all was said and done, everyone felt as though they had the tools and resources they needed to accomplish their goals. I planned on spending a lot of time with Rachel, helping her manage the wedding workload.

  Around lunch time a knock on my door pulled my attention away from my computer.

  “Hey, boss lady.”

  Aiden’s voice washed over me and I couldn’t stop the smile from spreading across my face. He was leaning against the doorjamb, looking like he jumped right off a roll of Bounty paper towels. Since the weather was unusually warm, he’d ditched the puffy vest and I was free to look at his chest in all its flannel-covered glory.

  “Hey, Mr. Lumberjack. What brings you into the big city? I thought you were out in the boonies today.”

  “I was,” he said, pushing off the doorframe and walking farther into my office, closing the door behind him. “Wasn’t a cell phone service bar in sight.”

  “Sounds horrible,” I said with a laugh.

  “It was beautiful.”

  “Hmmm. Well, what are you doing here?”

  “Made it back and thought perhaps you’d like to go to lunch.”

  I looked at the clock on my computer and winced.

  “You know I’d love to have lunch with you, but today just isn’t great. I promised Rachel I’d help her get a head start on her events for the week, and I still need to do a couple of things before I can give her all of my attention.” I gave him my most apologetic expression. “I’m sorry.”

  “You don’t have to be sorry, babe,” he said with a chuckle. He walked the rest of the way to my desk and then rested his perfect backside against it, crossing his feet at the ankle and folding his arms over his chest.

  I could have sworn he did that on purpose just to make me stare longingly at his biceps.

  “Can I convince you to skip the gym tonight after work and come home for a different kind of workout?”

  Immediately, my cheeks heated at his words and that now familiar ache between my legs made its appearance. I was very aware in that moment that the walls of my office were see-through.

  “Today is my cardio day,” I managed to reply with a smooth expression, even if the redness I could feel gave me away.

  “Need to burn some calories, sweetheart? I think we can manage that.” His eyes traveled down my body slowly, stopping at all the parts I knew he was particularly fond of.

  “You’re terrible.”

  “You seem to enjoy my personal brand of terrible most of the time.”

  He was in a mood and I was pretty sure if we weren’t in the view of my entire office he’d be removing all my clothing. Suddenly very graphic and detailed scenarios of him and me on my desk flashed through my mind, making every part of me hotter.

  “I’ll go straight home,” I finally managed to state.

  “I’ll make it worth the sacrifice.” He stood then, but only moved closer. He came to stand in front of me, my eyes following his, my head tilting back to take in his huge frame. When we were both standing, even when I was in heels, he still had inches on me. But with me sitting in my chair and him looming over me, that sexy smirk on his face, it felt as though I was his prey.

  He bent down, bracing his hands on the armrest of my chair, bringing his face level with mine.

  “I’m going to kiss you now. But I want you to know that this is only a fraction of what I’d like to do to you right now with my mouth.”

  Before I could even digest his words, his lips pressed gently against mine.

  It wasn’t exactly chaste, but it wasn’t filthy either. It walked a thin line between safe and scandalous.

  His tongue brushed my lips as he let out a small, growly rumble, making my breath catch in my lungs.

  “It was so hard to leave you in bed this morning.” He pulled back just far enough to brush the words against my lips.

  “Next time wake me up,” I replied, pushing forward just slightly until our lips met again, not ready to be done kissing him.

  The entire office could have been watching, and they likely were, but I didn’t care. I knew I should have, but I just didn’t. Nothing mattered more than feeling some part of him against some part of me.

  “You may regret asking me to do that. You’re going to lose a lot of sleep.”

  He laughed against my mouth and I laughed along with him.

  “I’ll take my chances.”

  “Fuck,” he said, pulling away. “I better go.”

  “Okay,” I replied, sitting up straight, trying to make the effect he had on me less noticeable.

  “You need a new office, babe. Something with real walls.”

  I balked at him.

  “I love my office. I’m completely transparent with my staff. They always know I’m here and working alongside them.”

  “Yeah, but one day I’d like to fuck you on your desk, babe. And even though I understand the appeal of having an audience, no one but me gets to see you come.”

  Holy. Sweet. Jesus.

  “Okay, time to go.” I stood up and pressed a hand against his chest, noticing the way it bounced as he laughed. “You don’t get to visit me at work anymore if you’re going to say stuff like that.”

  “Stuff like what? Stuff that turns you on?” He wrapped his fingers around my wrist and pulled me to him. I went willingly, damn it all to hell. His free hand cupped the back of my neck and he bent down until his lips were pressed against the shell of my ear. “A month ago, you were afraid to get close enough to touch me. Worried, for some crazy reason, you weren’t capable of having a fulfilling sexual experience. And now I’ve gone one morning without you, and I literally cannot think about anything except peeling off that skirt and burying my face between your gorgeous thighs. Tell me you’re aching the way I am, Rose.”

  I swallowed down the lump in my throat. It was either a ball of emotion or lust trapped there, or both, but it made it difficult to breathe.

  “I feel it too,” I managed, my fingers curling in the fabric of his shirt, needing to grasp onto anything available. “It’s not just the sex, though. Not just the physical connection. I missed seeing your sleepy face this morning, and watching you lace up your boots
while you sit on the edge of my bed. I missed waking up to your breath against the back of my neck.”

  He shuddered, a physical reaction to my words, and his grip on my neck and waist got tighter.

  “Nothing has ever changed my world like you have, Rose. I never want to go back to a life without you in it.”

  I couldn’t imagine it either—going back to the way it was just one month earlier. It seemed cruel, the existence I was leading before.

  “Aiden.”

  “I’m sorry,” he said, wrapping his arms around me. “I didn’t come here to get all serious. Quite the opposite. It’s just overwhelming, what I feel for you.”

  I pulled back far enough to cup his cheeks with my hands, his beard softly scraping against my fingers.

  “I feel the same way. I promise.”

  Pressing up on my toes, I kissed him one last time before I made him leave my office. I could only handle experiencing so much emotion in front of my entire staff before it became embarrassing.

  “I’ll be home right after work,” I said quietly. A shock ran up my spine when I thought about Aiden waiting for me.

  He made an unhappy sound, like a rumbly grunt, then kissed me quickly before turning and walking out the door.

  Not moving, my body still as I watched him go, my mind raced at a million miles an hour. Thoughts lapping themselves as they circled.

  You’re falling in love with him.

  This is happening too fast.

  He has to be too good to be true.

  He’s the best man I’ve ever met.

  I’d never fallen in love before, but I never imagined it would be so tumultuous. The highs were euphoric and the lows devastating. I was a confident woman in most aspects of my life, but when it came to Aiden I was constantly questioning myself. Was I too needy? Was this how all women felt when they were sleeping with someone? Was it normal to think about sex this much? To need someone the way my body needed his? Was any of this healthy?

  “Rose?”

  Riley’s voice startled me out of my own head and I realized she was now standing in my door, looking at me with concern written all over her face.

  “Everything okay?” she asked tentatively. “It looked like things got a little intense in here.”

  I let out a breath and turned, then sat, slumping back in my chair.

  “Can we talk for a minute? Like, can you pretend I’m not your boss for a second?”

  Riley gave me a sad smile and then stepped farther inside my office, closing the door gently behind her. She took a seat in the chair on the other side of my desk.

  “Rose,” she started, my name said with such fondness. “You are my boss, but you’re also my friend, I hope.”

  “I appreciate that, and I hope so too.”

  “Tell me what’s going on.”

  “I think things are getting serious with Aiden. Seriously serious. And I have no idea what I’m doing or how to do it.”

  I couldn’t miss the smile that spread across Riley’s face at my words, or the smile on my face that mirrored hers.

  “There’s nothing to be done, really. Relationships, no matter how many you’ve had, are always messy and wonderful. The good ones are anyway. The only instruction you need is just to follow your heart. Trust your instincts. And for what it’s worth, I know I’ve said this a hundred times, but Aiden is such good guy.”

  I nodded, suddenly on the verge of tears, my bottom lip pulled between my teeth.

  “I know,” I managed before a cry snuck out. I swiveled my chair away from Riley so I was facing the window, hoping no one in the office saw my breakdown. I’d already given them enough fodder for one day. Trying to keep my voice even, I asked Riley, “Can you please close the curtains for me?”

  I heard her stand and the swishing noise of the curtains closing, then the tell-tale sound of a tissue being pulled from its box.

  “Hey, what’s this about?” she asked, kneeling down beside me, holding the tissue in her hand.

  “I’m just not sure I’m cut out for this.”

  “Cut out for what? Happiness?”

  “Is that what this is?” I asked through a sob mixed with laughter.

  Riley was laughing slightly too, her hand resting on my knee.

  “I don’t want to sound like a creeper or anything, but I couldn’t help see the way you guys look at each other. It was like there was no one else on Earth. You were all he could see, Rose. He’s smitten, if not completely and totally in love with you already.”

  “That’s crazy,” I whispered in argument, even though I knew it was true. I was totally and completely falling in love with him. “It’s only been a few weeks. We hardly know each other.”

  She raised one eyebrow sharply. “You’ve probably spent more time with him one-on-one in three weeks than we’ve ever spent together in five years. You know him.”

  She was right.

  Riley moved from my side to sit right in front of me on the ground, crossing her legs like you did in kindergarten when you sat on the rug for story time.

  “Just because it’s the first time you’ve felt this way, it doesn’t make it any less valid.”

  “I think it just makes it scarier. I don’t know.” Wiping under my eyes with the tissue, I tried to gather my thoughts. “How did you know it wasn’t going to hurt in the end, with Camden? How did you just let go of the fear of your heart getting demolished?”

  Riley’s face softened a little and her smile returned.

  “I didn’t. In fact, I pushed him away a lot because I was afraid to get hurt, afraid of what I felt for him. And he wasn’t even my first, so I can’t imagine what that’s doing to your poor, little brain.”

  “I think this would have all been easier if Aiden hadn’t turned out to be so wonderful, ya know?”

  Riley laughed again.

  “Yeah, damn him. Why couldn’t he have been a jerk?”

  “No, I mean, and I’m sorry if this is too much information for you, but he was so sweet with me. You know, afterward? I wasn’t expecting that. I had all these expectations and none of it mattered because he didn’t meet any of them. He exceeded them. And I hadn’t planned for that.”

  “I think that’s really the core of the issue here. You can’t plan this. You can’t plan when to fall in love, or who to love, or how. It just happens.”

  “It goes against my nature to just let go and hope for the best.” I nodded while I spoke, because she was right.

  “I don’t think anyone would blame you for being scared, Rose. Not even Aiden. In fact, this is probably something you should tell him. I bet he’s scared too.”

  “You think Paul Bunyan is scared of me?” I raised an eyebrow at her.

  “No, but I bet he’s scared of what he feels for you, scared that he’ll lose you.”

  “I don’t want anyone to get hurt—him or me.”

  “So, if there’s one thing I’ve learned about relationships, it’s that hurt and pain go hand in hand with love. You just have to decide if one is worth the other.”

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Rose

  I

  was terrified to go home that evening. I stalled as long as I possibly could, finishing up tasks I knew could wait until the next day: cleaning up the break room, unnecessarily making sure doors were locked and lights were off. I knew everything was in order. I was just afraid to face what was waiting for me.

  Everything.

  Everything was waiting for me.

  The pressure was almost too much to bear.

  When I approached my door, my stomach was in knots. The closer I got, the more dread I felt. Waiting for me on the door, though, was a note.

  Come to my apartment.

  Don’t change your clothes.

  ~Aiden

  I couldn’t stop the shudder that rolled through me, the way his words and their implications affected my body. Knocking on his door took more calming breaths and silent pep talks with myself.

  The door opene
d and Aiden appeared, smiling like he did so often, all the way to his eyes.

  Before I even knew it was happening, my mouth was opening and words were tumbling out.

  “I’m scared to fall in love with you.”

  The smile fell from his face and the crease between his brows scrunched as he became worried.

  “What?”

  “I’m afraid if I let myself get too close, it won’t work out, and then I’ll be hurt, alone, and in love with you.” I marched through the door and he was kind enough to get out of my way, closing it behind me. I turned to him, continuing with the verbal explosion. “There’s a reason I’ve never been with anyone before. I’m not good at this. I’m going to ruin it somehow. Or you will. I’ve never done this before, clearly, and it’s bound to end badly.”

  He stared at me, his pensive expression not changing.

  I stood there, breathing hard from the exertion that was spilling one’s emotional guts.

  Finally, after what seemed like too long of a time, he crossed his arms over his chest and his expression went from a pensive concentration to an irritated glower.

  “You think you’re the only one scared here, Rose?”

  “I—”

  “You think every morning when you walk away I’m not worried that you’ll realize there’s someone out there better suited for you? That today might be the day you realize you can do better?”

  His arms fell to his sides as he took a few very large steps toward me, and my mouth gaped open.

  A moment before I couldn’t stop the words from spilling out of me and now I couldn’t find any at all.

  I’d never seen Aiden angry before. Irritated, yes, when I tried to pay for things or really when I tried to talk him out of doing anything for me I thought was excessive. But nothing compared to the heat flaming in his eyes in that moment.

  “I’m terrified every single day that you’ll end this—whatever it is, because you won’t define it—and I’ll be left behind. It isn’t just you who’s scared, Rose. I stand to lose a lot too.”

  “What do you mean, whatever this is?”

  “I mean, what are we to each other? I haven’t pressured you about it because I’m afraid you’ll run away. You get so jumpy when things aren’t laid out in black and white. Whenever I bring anything up that requires a little bit of decision making on your part, you evade. And I’m okay with that, for now, but eventually I’m going to need more from you, Rose.”