Page 61 of Stoker's Serenity

“Really?” I asked, taking the pot from his hands and smiling appreciatively as my gaze wandered over the line of buds arching out into delicate blooms.

“Pretty sure. Gonna need to move some things around, maybe tuck a towel around it to keep it upright, but should be okay for the hour or so until we get there.”

He didn’t waste any time, insisting I just stand by and enjoy my new pretty while he shifted things around in his hard-sided saddle bags to make a nest for it. He carefully tucked both the orchid and the plant food I’d bought inside and equally carefully closed it up.

I went to him and hugged him, kissing him soundly and murmuring, “Thank you,” against his lips.

“Do anything to make you smile like that more often,” he murmured.

I felt myself blush.

“I don’t deserve you,” I mumbled, and he smiled down at me.

“Disagree,” he said softly. “I’m just sorry we didn’t meet each other much sooner, but everything happens for a reason, in its own time, right?”

“Right,” I whispered.

He kissed me one more time before sighing and saying, “Let’s get this show on the road.”

I laughed softly, and we headed back to Ft. Royal.

Stoker wanted to take me to lunch, but I felt guilty with the idea of him spending so much money on me so I tried to reason with him and have him take us to the grocery store so I could cook, instead. It was, perhaps, on par with eating out expense-wise, but cooking for him would make me feel better, in that if I couldn’t contribute financially, I could at least still contribute to the meal somehow.

He wouldn’t hear of it, declaring that this weekend I was his to spoil, and the sentiment behind his words caused the stricture of guilt to ease from around my heart. He asked me to change into something cooler, answering his phone as I headed back into his bedroom. I slipped into a short white fluttery skirt along with the white corset top I’d worn earlier in the week. I loved this top; paired with a skirt or a pair of jeans, it was so versatile. To complete the new look, I slipped my feet into a pair of sandals before I stepped back out into the living room, where he was still on the phone.

“Yeah, we’ll be there. Uh-huh.” He grinned. “Aye, aye, Captain.” He disconnected the call on that note, and I smiled at his almost-excited look.

“Where are we going?” I asked.

“The Plank, later tonight,” he answered.

“What’sThe Plank?”

“A bar at the leading edge of town and our de facto clubhouse when the weather is shit. It’s almost guaranteed to rain tonight, so the captain called off the bonfire on the beach and is having the club convene atThe Plankfor drinks and some pool and maybe some darts.”

“Ah,” I nodded.

“You look great,” he murmured.

“Cooler, that’s for sure,” I said, my smile growing, and drifted over to the dining room table to look over my new orchid plant, checking the stem and leaves for tears and breaks, happy to find all of the blossoms still intact.

“I’m going to grab a change of clothes myself and then we’ll take a walk to the boulevard and find some food.” He raised his eyebrows, silently asking without words my opinion of the plan.

“Sounds good,” I said, and with a nod, he went back to change himself into something cooler, too.

When he came back out, he had on a pair of olive green cargo shorts, frayed just at the knee telling me they’d once upon a time been a pair of pants. His leather vest, he’d shrugged back into over his bare chest, and I admired the way it framed his drool-worthy physique, my eyes roving over the colorful patches on the front.

One caught my eye and made my lips part into a wide smile, pulling a laugh through them like a fish on the line.

It was a red flag, slashed upper-left corner to lower-right corner by a white line – the universal maritime flag for ‘diver.’ What made it funny though, was ‘MUFF’ written in all capital bold black letters across it.

He looked down at what I was looking at and laughed too, shaking his head.

I bit my bottom lip and giggled out, “Classy.”

“Sassy, and a little smart-assey,” he agreed.

“What’d you do to earn that particular merit badge?” I raised an eyebrow, not entirely sure I wanted the answer, but the genie was out of the bottle and there wasn’t any putting it back.

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