Brody and I were color coordinated today, him in a light-gray suit. He’d even traded his normal dress shoes for sneakers. They were new and perfectly white, but they were casual. And he’d left his normal tie at home.
“Come on, little one,” I whispered. “Kick Daddy for wanting to name you Adler and Courtland.”
Brody laughed and leaned in to kiss my forehead. “You’re such a smart-ass.”
“You like it.”
“You’re right.” He put his forehead to mine and we both waited, our breaths held, until one tiny baby foot slammed into Brody’s palm. “That never gets old.”
“No, it doesn’t.”
“I’ve got to get back to work.”
I’d see him in hours, but I always hated to watch him walk away. “I know.”
I was so in love with him.
The realization had snuck up on me this morning when he’d curled his strong, tall body around mine. He’d held me and I’d realized that the soul-deep loneliness I’d felt for years had truly vanished. Not even Clara’s hugs or August’s cheek smooches had chased it completely away.
Only Brody.
And our baby.
I loved him, more than I’d ever known it was possible to love another person.
Soon, I’d find a way to say the words. But in this moment, as the three of us huddled together in a bubble away from the real world, I closed my eyes and savored the moment. The peace.
The bubble popped before I was ready.
“Sorry to interrupt.” Marty poked his head into the room. He was grinning from ear to ear. “We’ve got some guests. Friends. I’d like you to meet them.”
“I better get back to work anyway.” Brody lifted his hands and framed my face. Then he dropped a soft kiss to my lips. “Don’t work too hard.”
“I won’t.” I slid off my stool and took his hand. “Will you take a plant with you? We got the coolest snake plant in this morning and I decided to steal it for the entryway.”
“There are already seven pots in the entryway.”
“Your point?”
He fought a smile, then looked to Marty. “Don’t let her lift anything heavy. Yesterday, I caught her trying to move a—what kind of plant was that?”
“A fiddle-leaf fig tree.”
“A tree. She was trying to move a tree.”
“It wasn’t heavy.”
Brody’s expression flattened. “Ask Marty for help.”
“She won’t have to,” Marty declared. “I won’t let her out of my sight.”
“Good.” Brody took my hand and together we followed Marty into the shop. The easy grin on his face faltered and his feet skidded to a halt when he spotted the older couple inspecting the shop.
“Ned. Stephanie. I’d like you to meet Aria Saint-James.” Marty introduced me to the couple. “Aria, Ned and Stephanie Backer. Former owners of Welcome Floral.”
“Oh.” I stood a little taller and extended a hand. “Hello. It’s so nice to meet you.”
Because Brody had bought the shop from them, I’d never known their first names. Marty didn’t talk about them much, but when he had, he’d referred to them as the Backers. Never Ned and Stephanie.
“You too.” Ned took my hand, shaking it with gusto. “It’s just a pleasure.”
Stephanie simply smiled, her eyes wandering around the room. “You’ve made a lot of changes.”
“We have.” I held my breath, hoping they wouldn’t take offense. “I truly love this space.”
Ned turned to Brody and extended a hand. “Mr. Carmichael. Nice to see you again.”
“A pleasure.” The easy posture from lunch was gone. Brody stood stiff, his face drawn tight.
“What brings you to town?” Marty asked, leaning against one of the display tables. “Judging by your Instagram photos, I figured we’d never get you back from Hawaii.”
Stephanie laughed. “We love living there. It’s so green and wonderfully humid. My skin has never felt better.”
“We’re back for John Miller’s sixtieth birthday,” Ned said. “Then we’ll fly home.”
“It’s been lovely to see you.” Brody gestured for the door. “May I escort you out? We’ll let Aria and Marty get back to work.”
The smiles on Ned’s and Stephanie’s faces dropped.
I shot Brody a scowl. Why was he being rude? “No, please. Stay. We’re not that busy. And you should catch up with Marty.”
“Are you sure?” Stephanie asked me, giving Brody a cautious glance.
“Yes, it would be wonderful. Please.”
“Thanks.” She relaxed, taking another gander around the room. “We’ve missed this place. We ran this shop for twelve years. It was sort of like our third child.”
“A third child who actually made us money.” Ned barked a laugh. “I don’t see Suzie or MJ selling for four hundred and eighty thousand dollars. Not that we’d ever sell our kids.”
Stephanie laughed. Marty laughed.
Brody tensed.
And my jaw dropped.
Four hundred and eighty thousand dollars.
It was tacky as hell for Ned to announce that number.
And enlightening.
“You said one hundred and twenty-five,” I whispered, looking up at Brody.
His eyes were on the door, like he wanted Ned and Stephanie gone. Now I knew why he was so eager to shove them onto the sidewalk.
Except the damage was done. They’d spilled his secret.
“You said one hundred and twenty-five,” I repeated, crossing my arms over my chest.
He dropped his gaze to meet mine and there wasn’t an apology on his face. No, there was only guilt.
Tension settled like a black cloud in the room, thickening the air so much it was hard to breathe.
“Say something,” I demanded.
He blinked, then looked over my head at Marty. “Would you please excuse us?”
Brody didn’t wait for Marty’s reply. He gripped my elbow and led me back through the workroom and into the adjoining office, closing the door behind us. It was a small room, taken up mostly by the wooden desk and couch. But there was just enough floor space for me to put a good three feet between us.
“How could you?”
“Aria, let me explain.”
“Why? It seems fairly clear. You bought the flower shop for a half a million dollars—”
“Not quite that much.”
“Details,” I hissed. “Half a million dollars, then lied to me about the price. Why?”
“Because there’s no need for you to be saddled with an enormous debt. Not when I can afford it.”
“It’s not about the money!” I shouted, my voice bouncing off the walls. “You came to Oregon and told me you had a flower shop. Did you?”
His silence was the only answer I needed.
It slashed through my heart. It nearly dropped me to my knees.
All this time and I’d had such faith that Brody had always been honest. What else had he lied to me about?
“You lied to me.”
“I had to.”
I shook my head. “No, you didn’t. I would have moved. Without the flower shop, I still would have moved.”