Page 22 of When Fate Breaks
Blake’s lips pull up at one side, his brow furrowed. “Well, that’s what I came here for… Right?”
“Right,” I blurt.Yes, 100%. That was the only reason.“I mean, yes. But it’s a huge project. You said so yourself–”
“I can handle it.”
My back straightens, pushing off of the old door. “Blake, you said it would take more than two weeks.”
“I saidmaybemore than two weeks.”
My brows pull together. “Surely your company won’t let you spend that much time on this?”
“My company will be just fine with it.”
“But–”
“Evangeline. Do you want this place restored or not?”
“I– Of course I do. But I don’t want to impose on your life like this.”
“My life?” Blake chuckles. “Evangeline, we’re talking two weeks here. Two and a half, tops. Not a prison sentence. You won’t be taking any years off my life, don’t worry.”
“Are you sure?”
“As long as you’re okay with having me here for that long, I’m sure.”
I swallow hard. Two weeks–maybe two and a half–under the same roof as Blake. “That…that would be okay.”
“You know,” Blake says, taking a few steps in my direction, “ I know how much this means to you.”
My heart thuds against my chest, my brows raising. “Yeah?” my voice wavers.
“Yeah, I can tell. I can see it all over your face.”
I feel heat bloom in my cheeks, not entirely able to decipher what emotion it is a result of.
“You really love–” Blake cuts off, reaching out suddenly.
I take half a step backwards and find myself flush with the door once again. Blake doesn’t seem to notice, however, as his thumb grazes across my cheekbone. I feel the heat of his contact, as if it’s leaving a burn mark behind, as he trails across the side of my face. It feels like an eternity goes by before the pad of his thumb comes in contact with the loose strand of hair that has fallen in my face. Blake pushes it behind my ear easily, sending a shiver down my spine and tightening the current invisible hold on my throat. His thumb remains still for a moment, his gaze flicking to meet mine once, before his forefinger joins his thumb, pinching at something and plucking it from my hair. My eyes, which I didn’t realize had been shut, fly open to see Blake holding a single dried ivy leaf that had apparently been stuck in my hair.
“–this greenhouse.”
My eyes snap from the ivy leaf to Blake’s face. “What?”
“You really love this greenhouse,” he says, flicking the leaf from his fingers.
Oh.
My lips fall open. “Yeah,” I say, smoothing my hair back. “Yeah, I do. And it does mean a lot to me that you’re willing to fix it. Just let me know whatever you need. I’ll pay you every penny you’d normally charge.”
Blake’s eyes search me for a moment, his arms crossing and head tilting to the side, before catching me off guard with the last question I was expecting in this moment. “How’d you and this guy meet?”
I clear my throat to cover the fact that I just nearly choked in surprise. “Remy?”
“Is there another guy?”
“Well, none you need to know about,” I say with a wink. Nope, no other guys for me.
None in this lifetime.
