Total pages in book: 77
Estimated words: 74554 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 373(@200wpm)___ 298(@250wpm)___ 249(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 74554 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 373(@200wpm)___ 298(@250wpm)___ 249(@300wpm)
“I think I need to run home and get dressed.”
“You are dressed.”
“Appropriately dressed,” I clarified.
“This is your shop. Whatever you wear is appropriate.”
“That’s not how the church ladies who come in are going to feel about it. Or the moms of small kids.”
“Right. Because they don’t see boobs and bare asses at the beaches.”
Okay.
Fine.
It was really for my own comfort more than it was for the customers.
Any other day, I probably would have laughed it off and let it be. But I was already feeling pretty raw and vulnerable. I wanted to be covered up.
“Still, if you can hold down the fort for a few minutes, I’m going to run and—”
The chime above the door sounded at that, making me wince. Traeger, who was facing the door, on the other hand, lit up.
“Well, I have to go make sure the plants in the greenhouse are watered.”
No, I mouthed to him, but he was already turning on his heel and rushing out the back door.
I let myself squeeze my eyes shut and release an internal groan for a second before I turned.
And, yeah, of course.
Of course the hottest guy I’d ever seen in my entire freaking life would be in the shop on the day when I was objectively looking my worst.
No wonder Traeg looked so delighted.
Whoever this shopper was, he looked like he belonged at, I don’t know, a street race rather than a little plant shop.
He was tall in an ‘I didn’t know how small the shop was until he was in it’ kind of way and too sharp-edged to look natural among the hanging ferns and trailing vines.
You wouldn’t know that by his body language, though—long, languid, at ease. Like he belonged.
I craned my head up, looking past his lean, fit body toward his face.
And, yeah, that was where it got even hotter.
Because, damn.
He had one of those angular, chiseled faces that was universally attractive. All sharp cheekbones, firm jaw, straight nose, and a stern brow. Add in his generous lips, dreamy dark eyes, and gorgeous, silky black hair.
As a cherry on the pie of all that attractiveness, he had to go and have tons of amazing tattoos.
I suddenly felt like a goblin.
I opened my mouth to greet him just as his head turned to me. All my saliva dried up. The sound chirped and died in my throat.
“Hey,” he greeted, shooting me a smile that may or may not have made my panties combust.
“I, uh, hi,” I croaked, wetting my lips. “I mean, can I help you with anything?”
“I’m on the hunt for some new plants.”
“Well, you came to the right place. What kind of plants are you into? Trailing?” I asked, waving toward the spider plants and pothos. “Cacti or succulents?” I waved toward the wall of those. They’d originally been on one of the center tables. Until I realized that pokey cactuses within reach of children was a terrible idea. “Easy plants? More finicky ones?”
“I like this one. What’s its deal?”
“Oh,” I said, wincing a little as he gestured toward a stunning, heart-shaped, dark-leaf Alocasia with light veining.
“Bad choice, huh?”
“I mean… no. There are no bad choices. Except for parlor palms,” I said, gesturing toward the sole one in the shop because my patience could not tolerate having to care for another one. “I think everyone has their type.”
“Their type.”
“Yeah, so some people are Calathea people, others are Alocasia people. Or fern people. Or Maranta people.”
“What kind of person are you?”
“I want to be a Calathea person,” I admitted, gesturing toward them. “But I think I’m more of a Philodendron person. I like the big, showy leaves,” I told him as I gestured toward them. “And there are bonus points with them because they’re usually on the easier side.”
“Alright. I’ll bite,” he said, that smooth, sexy voice of his making a shiver move through me. The chill of that had my nipples twisting tighter. Did he notice? Did I want him to? “Talk to me about Philodendrons then.”
“My favorite topic. So, here is most of our supply. I love a Xanadu for its size, but there are smaller ones like heartleafs and pink micans.”
“Pink. I didn’t know there were pink houseplants.”
“It’s a whole trend lately. It was the white ones for a while. Now, everyone wants the pink varieties. But, fair warning, the ones with the pink and white variegation tend to be a lot more finicky than the ones without. Do you have any other plants? Just so I can gauge what to recommend to you?”
“Not a one,” he admitted, shrugging. “But I’m really into them all of a sudden. So I’m ready to dive in.”
“Okay, for beginners, you can’t go wrong with pothos, ZZs, or snake plants. They’re all basically unkillable. They let you learn how to take care of a plant, but they won’t hold a grudge if you get the water or light wrong for a while.”