Page 45 of He Loves Me, He Loves Me Not

‘I delivered flowers with Dax this morning.’

‘Oh…?’ Mercy asks, squinting as if she’s trying to look inside me.

‘It was so…’ I stare out the window, looking for the right word to describe it. ‘Enchanting? He’sverycharming. I didn’t expect that.’

‘Shit,’ she says. ‘He’s kicked Tristan’s ass, mesmerized you with his constellation bullshit, wooed you with flowers, and now you’re in love with him, aren’t you?’

Her question snaps me back into reality. I’d texted her early this morning to tell her what happened last night and she was shocked. So shocked her responding texts were just gibberish.

‘What? No! I’mnotin love with him. He’s River’s best friend.’ I glance at the menu secured under the tabletop glass, scanning it for something that will fill my mouth, so I don’t say something stupid.

‘However,’ I continue, avoiding direct eye contact with her, ‘I did agree to help him while he takes part in a floral competition.Battle of the Blossoms?’

Mercy raises an eyebrow. ‘He made it, did he? I figured he would.’ She studies the menu too then looks up at me.

‘Be careful, Hols. Dax is kind of, well, let’s just say he’s got a way of luring the ladies in with his pretty face and enchanting words but never makes them serious. Not that there’s anything wrong with how he lives his life. He’s single and allowed to do whatever and whoever he wants. Just know, the man could charm the panties off a mannequin at the half-empty mall. I don’t want you to get hurt again.’

‘I’m not going to get hurt because I don’t have those feelings for Dax. He’s just a nice guy. We’re friends.’

‘Trust me. I know the Dax you don’t, and he can separate his feelings from sex. You can’t.’

I want to argue with her, but she’s not wrong.

‘He can’t bethatbad. I met a girl he’s sleeping with the other day. She seemed relatively normal. I think her name was Sydney? And, truthfully,metmight be a strong word. I had her pinned against the wall with one of River’s lightsabers because I thought she was an intruder.’

Mercy bursts out laughing. ‘I’d have paid money to see that. Syd’s still flavor of the month, is she? She’s made it longer than I thought she would. Personally, I think she’s too serious for Dax. I mean, he posts videos on TikTok with your father.Dancing. Sydney is always stone-cold sober. They just don’t work.’

He’s done videos with my dad? I don’t do TikTok because social media makes me anxious, so I cap it at a few and ignore the rest. I know my dad, though, and he’s never left the professional dancer within behind. He even put himself through medical school while working as a back-up dancer and he’s been in dozens of music videos. But him and Dax? I had no idea.

‘Why have you never talked about him if you two are so close?’

‘Wearen’tthat close. We both work in the wedding and funeral world, and because we all grew up together, we’re in one another’s friend circles. I watched as he went from dorky Dax to the tattooed, flower-loving, bearded love guru he is now. If you’ve ever listened to me about anything, let this be it. Don’t get sucked in.’

I can tell she’s serious. Mercy doesn’t give advice like this unless it’s for your own good and I trust her.

‘I hear you,’ I say. ‘I promise I won’t fall in love with Dax. My heart can’t take another fall. From here on out, I’m treating love like I would if someone offered me drugs. I’ll just say no.’

‘Good,’ Mercy says. ‘Did Professor Assbag go home?’

I nod. ‘Texted me a photo of the inside of the plane this morning. Told me to enjoy the pretty boy and fuck off.’

Mercy shakes her head. ‘The boy’s got some stones; I’ll give him that.’

‘Speaking of stones, his mystery woman got a two-carat one. Two freaking carats, Merc.’ I roll my eyes, angry all over again.

‘Whoa.’ She stares at the menu. ‘I feel dirty as hell just knowing that. You dodged a bullet. Possibly a literal one after what he pulled last night. I’m glad Dax is good for something. He should have beat him within an inch of his life.’

I don’t dare tell her Dax and I slept in the same bed last night. To Mercy, that’s one step closer to me riding him like a bronco in a rodeo.

‘Back to your new gig with your favorite fuck-boy.’

‘I’m hisassistant, and I don’t know what the job entails yet, but I’m nervous. Hopefully, I’ll just be handing him flowers. That’s probably all I’m good for.’

‘Stop. They’re flowers. How hard could it be?’ she asks. ‘Maybe you’ll be wiping his brow as he creates flower arrangements like he’s performing surgery. He takes all this pretty seriously.’

‘I’ll know more tomorrow. We meet with a woman from the show, McKenzie, to sign the papers. If he wins, he’s putting the money towards buying back his dad’s old shop. Isn’t that sweet?’

‘Adorable,’ she says flatly. ‘If he wins, do you get part of the winnings?’

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