Page 121 of Fragile Sanctuary

The only one who hadn’t been by was Kye. But I understood. He didn’t handle people he cared about being at risk well.

Duncan toed a piece of gravel with his boot. “Maybe they have.” He looked around my outdoor space. “You’ve certainly put your time off to good use.”

I grinned, following his line of sight. The entire garden was brimming with color. My mom would’ve absolutely loved it. To her, a garden should always be rainbow chaos. “It’s been fun to have some time to really bring it to life.”

“I’ve got everything else you asked for and a few hours to help you get it plugged in.”

I glanced at Duncan in surprise. “You never take off in the middle of a workday.” In fact, I would’ve thought he’d send someone else to make the delivery.

Duncan bumped my shoulder with his. “Told you. I missed you.”

Warmth spread through me at that. I had an incredible community around me. And that was more than enough to be grateful for.

“Let’s get started,” I said with a grin.

We set to work unloading the truck and then positioning the plants where I wanted them. It took a few rearranging attempts and talking things through, but we finally got things laid out in a way we were both happy with. I’d forgotten what great instincts Duncan had when it came to garden planning.

Before long, we had everything plugged in and were carefully watering the new additions. They were beautiful and melded into the gorgeous views beyond of the mountains and rock faces.

Duncan shut off his hose. “Do you mind if I take some photos for the website? It’d be great to have people see some end results.”

“Of course, not.” It was a great idea for a selling tool.

I kept watering the new plant babies until I heard a click and looked up.

Duncan grinned. “Action shot.”

I stuck my tongue out at him. “Living my best model life.”

He chuckled. “We could make you the Bloom mascot.”

I snorted at that. “I think I’m good with my usual dirt-covered existence.”

The sound of tires on gravel had me looking up to see a familiar BMW sedan making its way toward us. A trickle of unease slid through me. I hadn’t seen any sign of Davis for almost a month now, but I should’ve known I couldn’t escape him entirely.

Duncan frowned. “What’s the douche doing here?”

“Your guess is as good as mine.” But I braced. Trace said he’d been keeping a close eye on him. So far, nothing linked him to the things that had happened to me.

Davis climbed out of his sedan in his now-typical preppy look, and I couldn’t really picture him getting his hands dirty to set a fire. He frowned as he walked toward us, taking in my current state. “You’re covered in dirt.”

“Good to see you, too,” I muttered, turning off the hose.

“I’m sure you could hire someone to do this for you.”

I sighed. This was why he and I never would have worked. “I don’t want to hire someone else. I like doing this. Actually, Iloveit.”

Davis’s frown only deepened, but he shot a look in Duncan’s direction. “Would you please give us a moment?”

Duncan looked at me in question.

I nodded. “It’s okay.”

Davis bristled at that but controlled the slight flare of temper as Duncan walked toward his truck. “Rhodes.”

It was my turn to bristle. “Rho. Everyone calls me Rho. It’s what I prefer.”

He opened his mouth to argue and then snapped it closed. “Rho.” I tried to ease my posture at his acquiescence but couldn’t quite get there. “I wanted to apologize.”

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