Page 44 of The Floral Arrangement

I stood, brushing my hands down my dress. “What about you? Did you always want to be a... was it a management consultant? And agritainment farm owner?”

Roz snorted. “Management consultant, yes. Farmer, no.”

I tilted my head. “Why did you want to be a management consultant?”

“I was good at problem solving, had strong analytical skills and enjoyed learning new things. My parents wanted me to be a lawyer, but I wanted to do something different from them, prove I could make it without their help.” Roz pursed her lips. “Well, I think that’s the last of the questions.”

“Just one more.” I grinned at her. “Are you in love with me yet?” I cringed after the words left my mouth. It was a joke, but it had come out a lot more flirtatious than intended.

“No, but perhaps we haven’t stared into each other’s eyes for long enough,” Roz deadpanned. “Do you want to give it a go?”

Her gaze held mine and my stomach flip-flopped. Was there tension in the air between us, or was it all in my head?

An engine revved in the distance. I steadied myself and forced a casual grin onto my face. “I think I’ll pass.” I turned on my feet. “We should probably get moving.”

When we reached the bikes, I sniffed the air. What was that smell? Could it be Roz? The smell got stronger as I approached my bike.

“Oh no!” I exclaimed as I peered into my cooler bag in the front basket and wrinkled my nose. “I don’t think my quark is okay. The cooler packs have melted and it smells kind of rancid.” We’d talked a lot longer than I’d expected.

The blood drained from Roz’s face and she clutched her stomach. “Oh god, please don’t talk to me about rancid cheese. I don’t think I can handle it.”

I sighed and resealed the cooler bag. No quark on my granola tomorrow morning. “I’ll deal with it later. We better get a move on. I’m supposed to go over to my parents’ house for dinner.”

As we cycled back to Sapphire Springs, I replayed the events of the day in my mind. It had been a surprisingly enjoyable excursion. I was shocked just how much I’d liked the glimpses of Roz I’d seen under her terse exterior. When she let down her walls, she was funny and easy to talk to, and far less critical than I expected.

My eyes lingered on her Lycra-clad body ten feet ahead of mine. I frowned. I shouldn’t be checking her out. Our fake-dating arrangement was complicated enough.She doesn’t date. She doesn’t even like me.And once this is over, I needed to focus on finding someone to settle down with.Don’t forget that ticking clock.

As I stared at Roz, my bike bounced over a rock I hadn’t seen and skidded. I clutched the handlebars, managing to wrest back control of the bike before it fell.Pay attention, Olivia.The last thing I needed was to crash my bike and break an arm or a hand. I couldn’t afford any injuries or other distractions impeding my ability to do my job, especially not with the busy spring and summer wedding season approaching and the high-profile wedding I had coming up in the next few weeks. I needed to knuckle down and focus. I pedaled harder to overtake Roz so I didn’t have to look at her perfect butt anymore, breathing out as I shot past her.There. Out of sight, out of mind.But was it really that simple? My feelings toward Roz felt… complicated. And she was most definitely a distraction. It was probably best if I avoided her as much as our fake dating arrangement would allow. No more long lunches and bike rides.

As we pushed the bikes into Blake’s yard, her door opened and Blake appeared on her doorstep.

“Hi, I’m Blake, Olivia’s sister,” she said, a hint of wariness in her tone.

Roz carefully leaned Blake’s bike against the fence, wiped her hands on her top and then held one out to shake. “I’m Roz. Thanks for lending me your bike. Apologies if I smell. I managed to spill milk all over myself earlier today.”

Blake raised an eyebrow.

“Don’t ask,” I said, grinning. “The smell could also be my quark, which I left in the sun.”

Blake grimaced. “Okay, please don’t eat that Liv.”

“I’m not going to!” I replied indignantly. I might have been Blake’s “little” sister, but I was also a fully grown woman who knew eating rancid cheese was a terrible idea.

“Good.” Blake turned to Roz, a calculating look in her eyes. “So I heard that you were a management consultant in New York before you moved out here?”

I frowned. Where was Blake going with this?

“Yes. That’s right,” Roz said.

“Do you know much about economics?”

Oh no.I thought I knew where this was going. I glared at Blake.

“Yes,” Roz said. “I majored in economics and have an MBA.”

Blake’s face lit up. “What are you doing Thursday night?”

I sighed. So much for avoiding Roz as much as possible.

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