Page 31 of Poinsettia Lane

“How many of those ridiculous socks do you have?” he says in lieu of a greeting.

Everly’s stomach drops, as does her smile. She resists the urge to step back and instead sticks her nose up into the air. No one will make her feel bad about her favorite socks, especially in her own home. “More than I care to admit," she says cooly, hoping she hasn’t misjudged him.

“Good,” he replies, “I like being surprised with a new pair each time. Keeps me on my toes.” He gives her a little wink, and she realizes he wasn’t judging her with his question. Ridiculous to her is a bad thing, but ridiculous to him must not be. Her shoulders relax andshe exhales a relieved breath. Asim cocks his head at her, noticing her reaction.

“You thought I didn’t like them.”

Everly shrugs. “They’re not exactly a fashionable choice.” She looks down at her feet and wiggles her teethy-toes.

Asim tips his head the other way, like a bird trying to figure out its prey. “I don’t know when I gave you the impression that I care about ‘the fashionable choice,’” he says slowly, “but rest assured that you could wear a burlap sack and I’d feel the same way about you.”

“Oh," Everly says, eloquent as always. “Okay then.”

She resists the urge to roll her eyes, but she doesn’t know how to respond to him when he says stuff like this. As usual though, Asim covers for her awkwardness.

“I do like the socks, with those tiny teeth about to nibble on your toes.” He chuckles, and then his eyes skim from her feet back up the rest of her body. “And I really like your gardening outfit today.”

Everly ushers him in, giving herself a chance to chill after that mini emotional rollercoaster, and they follow their customary routine of grabbing iced drinks and heading out back through the patio doors. Asim sees her shoes, with the gloves he gifted her resting on top of them, and although he’s not facing her, she notices his pleased smile and the way his shoulders straighten slightly in response. She slips the boots on, plops the hat over her braided hair, and sticks the gloves in her pocket for now.

Turning to him, she grins and pulls the door open. “Let’s go.”

She’s been ready for this for days.

They easily settle into their routine from last time with Asim digging the hole and Everly filling it in. Now that she knows better what to do, he leaves her to fill around each plant on her own while he gets started on the next one. They get a couple planted before Asim points out that he still needs to unload the other plants from the truck.

“I could use a break anyways,” Everly says. “Why don’t I grab us some refills from the kitchen?”

“Perfect.”

When she gets to the kitchen with their glasses, she sees she left her phone on the counter and it shows a missed call from Addison, but she didn’t leave a message. Everly’s mind flies into overdrive, assuming something is wrong. Her sister might be in trouble, or hurt, or need her help, and although Everly recognizes this is her anxiety flaring up, logic doesn’t come into play with her emotions very well.

She rushes to set the glasses on the counter and grabs her phone, returning the video call and pacing around the island while it connects.

“What’s wrong?” she snaps as soon as her sister picks up.

“What? Nothing.” Addison’s eyebrows pinch together. “Why would something be wrong?”

“Oh, thank goodness," Everly says with a relieved exhale. “I saw the missed call but you didn’t leave a message so I assumed the worst.” She takes a deep breath to slow her heart-rate and flops onto one of the kitchen stools, resting her arm with the phone on the counter in front of her.

“What are you wearing?” Addison still looks confused, squinting her eyes as she leans into the camera, and Everly glances down at herself, having momentarily forgotten what she was doing right before freaking out.

“Uhh…”

“You’re wearing a straw hat? And overalls?” Addison’s entire face is scrunched up and she’s looking at Everly like she’s lost her mind. “Why…”

Her face suddenly clears and Everly hears her snap her fingers.

“Oh my god!” Addison’s eyes go big and round, and Everly cringes at how loud she yells.

“Shhh!” Everly flicks her eyes up, glancing down the hallway that leads to the back of the house.

“Are you trying to impress Hot Delivery Guy?! Is he there right now?!” Addison yells in a stage whisper this time.

“No! I mean, I don’t know, maybe.” Flustered, Everly stops talking and glares at her sister. Addison opens her eyes wide and raises her eyebrows, waiting for Everly to explain.

“Fine, yes he’s here right now. We were just getting started with the landscaping for the day.” She relents and quickly recaps how things have been going. She doesn’t know why Addison insists on calling him Hot Delivery Guy still. It bothers her a little, as it feels disrespectful for some reason, like she’s minimizing who he is, but now isn’t the time to get into it. Everly pushes the annoyance away and re-focuses on the man in her backyard.

“You are so in trouble.” Addison is grinning now. “You totally like him! I can see it all over your face.”

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