Page 22 of Your Place or Mine

I stared at him.

Then the drink.

Then back at him.

“You picked me dandelions?” I asked, trying not to sound as blindsided as I felt.

He shrugged. “They’re weeds. They felt… appropriate.”

“You see me as a weed?”

“At least I picked one with a flower.”

I couldn’t stop the laugh that slipped out of me. “Wow. That’s both rudeandcharming. Impressive.”

He finally looked me in the eye, and for the first time, there was a flicker of something that wasn’t irritation. Or maybe itwas, but it had softened into something more… bemused.

“You said,Surprise me. You didn’t say the surprise had to be pleasant.”

“Well, you nailed it,” I said, picking up the drink. “Congratulations. It’s both adorable and mildly insulting.”

“You’re welcome.”

I took a sip and raised a brow. “It’s good.”

“I know.”

We fell into silence, but it didn’t feel heavy this time. It felt like a break between sparring rounds.

He leaned a hip against the bar and folded his arms, watching me like I was some puzzle he wasn’t sure he wanted to solve.

“Why’d you come here?” he asked again after a second or two.

I set the glass down and looked at him. “I told you. I needed a change.”

“People say that when they’re running from something.”

“I’m not running. I’m… rebuilding.”

“Same difference.”

“Not quite.”

He looked skeptical.

So I met him head-on. “I’m not here to roll over and let this town tell me what I can and can’t do. But I’m not here to ruin it, either.”

He said nothing.

“I get that you don’t like me,” I added. “But I’m not going anywhere, Callum. You can glower all you want, but I won’t be intimidated into keeping everything frozen in time just to avoid your bad mood.”

His jaw ticked.

Good.

Because I meant it.

Before bailing, I wasn’t some flighty rich girl here to play interior decorator for a month. I had no husband bankrolling a pet project or a corporate team behind me. I had a degree, a dream, and a little leftover savings.

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