Library

Chapter 7

Lurkingin the shadows like any good stalker, Lucas stood across the street from Vale"s Flowers the next morning, watching as Maddie set up the sidewalk display.

Her dog shadowed her constantly, and Maddie took twice as long setting up because she kept pausing to love on her pit bull.

He watched as customers came into the store, lighting up when Maddie greeted them.

He grinned when an irate bride raced into the shop, her hair still in foils, and he marveled at Maddie"s ability to soothe her.

He saw an old man slump into the store, and walk out with a dozen roses, and a twinkle in his eye.

Maddie was great with people, and she had an inner sparkle that lit up everyone around her.

But at the same time, he noticed how much she looked around, checking her surroundings, pausing to watch whenever a man went by.

He knew that way of living, because he"d done it too. So had all of his siblings.

Still did sometimes, out of habit.

It was no way to live, especially for a woman. His brothers had had it tough enough, but his two sisters had taught him that women had to deal with vulnerability in a way that was very different than men.

Lucas spent most of his time trying to protect his family, not just from actual threats, but from the shadows that haunted them. Trying to build the protections that would help them feel safer, able to breathe, free to laugh.

And the longer he stood there watching Maddie, the more Lucas found himself wanting to bring Maddie into his circle of protection.

But she didn"t want him, his family, or the memories he represented.

He got that.

She stopped suddenly, shielding her eyes to stare across the street. It appeared as if she was looking right at him, but he knew he was hidden in the shadows.

She pulled out her phone, tapped the screen, and then held it to her ear.

His phone rang.

He pulled it out and saw it was an unknown number. He hit the screen. "Lucas Hart," he answered.

"Tell me it"s you across the street being all creepy and secretive in the shadows, and that it"s not some paid heavyweight coming to get me." Maddie"s voice rang out clear and strong, but with the faintest edge of fear.

Damn. He liked her voice. And she"d kept his phone number. He grinned. "It"s me," he admitted. "No nefarious intentions at all."

"Get over here." She hung up the phone and walked back into her store.

Lucas chuckled as he shoved his phone in his pocket and headed across the street. He loved that she spoke to him like he was a normal person, not a celebrity.

Maddie had solved the problem of how Lucas was going to approach her. Next step, getting permission to shadow her, without having to scare the hell out of her by telling her that Ivan"s half-brother was looking for her.

Maddie had madeit behind the counter by the time Lucas walked in, his dominating frame and engaging smile seeming to envelop the entire store the moment he stepped across the threshold.

Lucas Hart was dangerously compelling. She needed to remember that.

"Hey," he said. "You look beautiful this morning."

She heard the hitch in his voice, and she paused, surprised. "You mean that." She was wearing her work clothes, because she hadn"t yet had time to change into her dealing-with-customers attire yet. Old jeans. Boots. A baggy Vale"s Flowers tee shirt that was already wet and dirty. The circles under her eyes showed the effect of sitting up all night, listening to the creaks of her house, trying to decide if any of them were footsteps.

Even Violet hadn"t been able to help her sleep last night.

"I do," he said. "Beauty radiates from within. You have that." His matter-of-fact tone did more to make her heart go mushy than if he"d been all lovey-dovey.

She wouldn"t have trusted lovey-dovey.

But matter-of-fact felt safe. "Well, thanks. Come in back with me."

He cocked an eyebrow at her command, but shrugged. "Sure."

Maddie was viscerally aware of Lucas behind her as she pushed through the door to the back of the shop, which was four times the size of the front. It was stuffed with beautiful flowers, most of which had arrived that morning. She had so much to organize, and her dad had once again said he didn"t feel up to coming in.

Lucas stopped. "Hell. That"s a lot of flowers."

"I know. I have two weddings I need to prep for. I don"t have time to stand around and chat, but I can see the front door if anyone comes in." She hurried over to the white roses that she"d already trimmed and set in water to open last night. "You need to go back to Oregon." She picked up several vases, and then glared at him when he went to pick up more. "I can do it."

"I"m sure you can, but help isn"t a bad thing." He set the vases next to the ones she"d carried. "Don"t you have assistants?"

"It used to be my dad and me, but now it"s just me. I need to hire someone, but I don"t like strangers." She grimaced at his sideways glance. "I mean, strangers are fine. It"s just that I have a certain way of doing things, and I want someone who will make less work for me, not more."

"I get that. Want me to bring the rest over?"

She sighed. "You"re ignoring me. I said you need to go back to Oregon."

"I will. How can I help you?"

She put her hands on her hips. "I"m not an idiot, Lucas. I"m well aware that you"re ignoring me. I don"t like it."

He turned to look at her then, his face serious. "Fuck. I didn"t mean to make it feel like I wasn"t respecting you. That"s not my intention. It"s just?—"

He stopped.

Her heart tightened and fear started to creep down her spine. "It"s just what?" She moved her foot so her left leg was pressed against Violet, who was right next to her, as always.

He swore under his breath. "I"d like to stick around for a few days."

She stared at him. "Stick around? Me?"

"Yeah. Help with the store. Maybe watch your house at night so you can sleep better. We don"t have to talk about your past. I just want to be present for you." He met her gaze with full candor, allowing her to see his expression.

But she couldn"t read it. "Why?"

"Jacob wants me to make sure you"re good."

Her stomach flipped. "That"s a lie. You just lied to me." Oh, shit. She"d just been starting to trust him. She stepped back. "You need to leave—" Her foot caught the table leg, and Violet shoved her to the side, knocking her out of the way as the table tipped, and the vases they"d just brought over tumbled. "Crap!"

She lunged for the nearest vase, but it hit the floor and shattered. The other two also fell, and both broke as well. "I can"t use those flowers. They"ll have glass in them?—"

The front door jingled, and a voice rang out. "Maddie," Piper called out. "We"re here. We"re a little early."

Oh, crap. Piper was there with a new bride already? "I"ll be right out." She spun around looking for her mop while Violet ran out to greet Piper, her tail wagging.

"No, it"s fine, she"s super friendly," Piper explained to the bride, who was no doubt running for the nearest exit at the sight of Violet.

Lucas grabbed the mop. "I"ll clean it up. You go do your thing."

"But—"

He raised his brows. "Go."

She hesitated, torn, but he waved the mop at her. "It will do my protective soul good to be able to sit here and help you while you go make someone"s day brighter. I got this."

When she still didn"t leave, he put down the mop and walked over to her. "Maddie."

She stood taller as he neared. "What?"

He stopped in front of her, not quite in her personal space, but dancing at the edge of it. And weirdly, she was okay with him being there. "I got you," he said softly. "You can go."

Sudden tears filled her eyes. God, she needed help, and she"d just gotten an angel with a cowboy hat dropped in her lap. She"d sort it out later, but right now, all she could do was accept it. "Okay. Thanks."

At his nod, she turned and bolted to the front of the store, where Piper and her newest client were fawning over her bridal display, always set out and ready for the brides that kept her business booming.

She met Piper"s gaze, and saw her friend look meaningfully toward the backroom and raise her brows.

"My new maintenance guy," she said.

"He"s very attractive," Piper said.

"What? Who?" The bride peered around Piper and looked in back. "He looks like Lucas Hart, doesn"t he?"

"Lucas is much better looking," Piper said with a snort. "Plus, he"d never be mopping."

Lucas turned his back on them, clearly overhearing the conversation, but not before she saw him grin. His smile made her chuckle.

"I"m sure Lucas Hart would never raise a finger for such mundane things as mopping," Maddie said.

"Right? That man is a national treasure," the bride said. She smiled, her brown eyes radiant with joy, her brown skin glowing like a woman who was so in love she could barely contain herself.

Maddie felt herself grinning. This was why she loved the flower business. Because flowers made people happy, so she got to see the best in people, day after day. She thrived on that energy, and she let it lift her up every day.

Plus, for right now, she didn"t have to worry that someone was going to sneak in her back door, because it was currently being guarded by an attractive, stubborn cowboy who seemed to think he had a life debt he had to repay to her.

Who was she to argue with fate?

She was going to enjoy every single minute of feeling safe for as long as she had that chance. She held out her hand. "My name"s Maddie Vale," she said. "Let"s get started."

Comments

0 Comments
Best Newest

Contents
Settings
  • T
  • T
  • T
  • T
Font

Welcome to FullEpub

Create or log into your account to access terrific novels and protect your data

Don’t Have an account?
Click above to create an account.

lf you continue, you are agreeing to the
Terms Of Use and Privacy Policy.