Chapter 11

Three days later…

Deke arrived at La Havana just as Mateo was about to lock the front door. Mateo stepped back, pulling the door open to let Deke inside. "Hey. Come on in. Maya said you were picking her up. She's in the kitchen eating with Nora. Everyone else has clocked out for the night."

"Good. She doesn't eat enough," Deke responded. He'd been worried about her for the last few days. She'd worked long hours, and he'd only seen her late at night. Every night, he'd had to con her into eating or give her a bottle before she'd crashed. Luckily both of them were off until evening tomorrow, so they would be spending the day together. If he had his way, they wouldn't get up until nearly noon. They both needed sleep.

Mateo sighed. "I feel bad. We've been so swamped lately that it's hard for any of us to take a break. I had to fire one of my employees because she kept flaking. I haven't been able to go through resumes to hire someone to replace her yet."

Deke felt for Mateo. "I know how that is. I've dealt with it a few times at Stuff-It. Sometimes it takes a few trials before you find the right person for the job."

"Exactly. I've hardly seen my own girlfriend in a week."

Deke glanced at Mateo as the two of them headed toward the kitchen. "I've only been dating your sister for barely longer than that. Most of our relationship has been in the dark." He chuckled. Damn, he could not wait until tomorrow.

Mateo winced. He stopped before they reached the door to the kitchen and faced Deke. "I wish I could give her more time off. I know it's hard when you're in a new relationship. I hope you aren't getting so frustrated that you don't think she's worth it because you're the best thing that's ever happened to Maya."

Deke smiled at him and shook his head. "Your sister stole my heart the first time I set eyes on her. I will never grow tired of her. You don't have to worry about that."

Mateo blew out a relieved breath. "Good. I assumed you weren't giving up considering how many times you've sent her flowers this week."

Deke flinched. "Flowers?"

Mateo's brows furrowed. "Yeah. The roses. They're accumulating in the vase day by day. Please tell me you're the one sending them."

Deke shook his head. "I wish I could say it was me, but I've had a very busy week at work, too. I've eaten every meal on my feet. I haven't ordered flowers."

They stared at each other.

Deke ran a hand through his hair. "Who's delivering them?"

"They come from Blooms by Daisy. It's been a teenager delivering them every time. Definitely not the person who ordered them."

Giggling on the other side of the door jerked Deke's attention to the kitchen. As he followed Mateo through the door, he couldn't wipe the concerned look he was sure now covered his face.

"Deke," Maya exclaimed as she jumped up from her chair and rushed around the table. She threw herself at him, wrapping her arms around his middle. "I didn't know you were coming here," she told his chest.

He hugged her back, loving the fact that she'd lost her inhibitions when it came to expressing her feelings toward him in front of her family and the employees at La Havana. The first few times he'd come in after they'd started dating, she'd been more timid. Now, she was launching herself at him with no care in the world.

He kissed the top of her head before tipping her back and meeting her gaze.

Her face fell in an instant. "What's wrong?"

Mateo answered for him. "Deke isn't the one who's been sending you roses, Maya."

Nora gasped from where she still sat with a half-eaten plate of food in front of her.

Mateo carried a large vase over and set it on the small table. It had about a dozen roses in it.

Maya glanced at the roses and back at Deke. "It wasn't you?"

He shook his head. "I'm so sorry, but now I'm also concerned. Why didn't you mention the roses before, Precious Girl?"

She shrugged. "It's been so late every night, it kept slipping my mind, and then when I'd get to work and see them I'd feel bad that I still hadn't thanked you."

Deke kept a hand at the small of her back while he approached the giant vase. "No notes?"

She shook her head. "There's never been a note."

"That's kind of freaky," Nora murmured. "Who sends someone a few roses every day and never leaves a note?"

"Well, since I thought it was my own boyfriend, I wasn't concerned," Maya said.

Deke pulled her into his side and kissed her. He liked the fact that she so easily referred to him as her boyfriend. Even though as far as he was concerned, she was it for him, and even though she'd slept in his bed for the last several nights, they hadn't had a chance to really spend enough quality time together for him to know for sure if she was on the same page as him.

He had every intention of making tomorrow a quality day together, but now he also had to worry about an anonymous secret admirer. "I don't like it," he stated. It wasn't just jealousy speaking. Like Maya had said, it was a bit freaky.

Mateo stepped behind Nora and set his hands on her shoulders. "I agree. I don't like it either, but let's consider the fact that our meddling mother has been trying to set Maya up with everyone who dines here for months. It's possible a regular customer is trying to woo her. It could be innocent."

Deke drew in a deep breath. Hopefully Mateo was right. He made a mental note to make a visit to Blooms by Daisy tomorrow and see if Daisy knew who was buying the flowers. Even though he intended to spend every moment with Maya for twenty-four solid hours, he did plan to at least make a trip to Little Cakes, so they could also detour to Blooms by Daisy first.

When he glanced back at Maya where she was tucked under his arm, he found her eyes watery and her lip quivering. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you about the roses. I just thought you knew because after all I assumed you bought them."

He pulled her around to his front and held her closer. "Oh, Precious Girl, I'm not mad. Don't you worry. I'm just sorry I didn't think to send you flowers myself. Some anonymous stranger is upstaging me with my own girlfriend."

She wiped her eyes and gave him a wan smile. "No one could ever upstage you, Daddy," she whispered, though probably Mateo and Nora heard her. "You do more for me than anyone has ever done." She rose onto her tiptoes and kissed his lips.

Deke held her tightly while he looked at her dinner plate. "You should sit down and finish your dinner before we go, Maya. You haven't been eating enough lately."

"I'm full. I ate enough."

He cupped her face. "Are you sure?"

Mateo cleared the plates. "She's telling the truth. Guille loaded both her and Nora up with more than they could have possibly eaten before he left."

"Okay then. Are you ready to go?" He almost said home, but he wasn't positive if she'd told her brother that she was sleeping at his house every night.

"Yes. I just need to grab my backpack." She released him and turned toward the office, shuddering when she paused to glance at the roses. "You know, those aren't nearly as attractive now that I don't know who they're from."

"I agree," Nora said as she rose from the table. She looked toward Mateo. "Why don't you let your staff each take one home after work tomorrow? Everyone can enjoy them without Maya having to look at them. They have a weird vibe now."

"That's a great idea," Maya said before she dashed out of the room and returned a moment later with her lion backpack.

Mateo met Deke's gaze over Maya's head. "If there's a delivery tomorrow, I'll try to get information from the person who drops them off, but that's a long shot. I'll pop you a text."

"Thank you." Deke took Maya's hand and led her back through the dining room and out the front door.

Mateo followed them and locked up behind them.

As soon as Deke had Maya settled and was buckling himself in the driver's seat, he turned to face her. "You okay? You're fidgeting." She was rubbing her hands together and bouncing her knees.

"It's just those roses. If I hadn't met you and someone had delivered them with no note for several days, I'd have been in a total freaked-out panic. Now that it's sinking in, that panic is flooding in with it all at once."

Deke took her hand and brought it to his lips to kiss her fingers. "I'm sorry, Precious Girl. I bet it's innocent. Let's go home. You're so tired it's exacerbating the situation and making it seem worse than it probably is. Tomorrow we'll go see Daisy. Hopefully she'll know who's sending them, and that will be the end of it."

"Okay." Maya drew in a deep breath, released it slowly, and forced a smile. "Let's go home."