Page 56 of For My Finale
Lilah’s heart dropped, practically stopped beating for a second.
She stopped dead on the pavement, her brain struggling to process what was right in front of her own eyes.
Blossom had just been worrying about money. She’d been struggling, barely making ends meet, worried that her big new idea was both too complicated and too expensive. And yet here was a pristine, professional-grade espresso machine that looked like it could only have cost a small fortune.
So where had the money finally come from?
Surely not.
Surely Blossom wouldn’t…
Lilah swallowed.
Would she?
Chapter Twenty-Three
Blossom was wiping down the counter when the bell above the cafe door jingled. She glanced up with a smile, ready to greet her customer, only for her smile to turn into a grin as she saw Lilah stride in. Lilah did something to her. Made her heart beat funny. Made her day just a little brighter. She still couldn’t quite believe that Lilah Paxton was here and, even more, that she was allowed to kiss her.
Then Lilah stopped, arms folded, body stiff with tension.
Something was wrong.
Blossom set her cloth down and stepped toward her. “Hey, what’s—”
“I need to ask you something,” Lilah interrupted, her voice tight. Her eyes flicked to the new coffee machine gleaming beside the register. “Have you been talking to the press?”
Blossom took a step back, stunned. “What? No! Why would I?”
Lilah blew out a breath, pacing a couple of steps back the forward, then back again. “Because there’s a rumor going around that I’m here, and these things don’t just happen. Someone had to have told them. And...” She hesitated, then gestured toward the coffee machine. “Tabloids pay well. I know you’ve been struggling for money.”
Blossom just stared at her, hurt blooming sharp in her chest.Lilah really thought she would do that? That she’d sell her out for some quick cash?
Her fingers curled into fists at her sides, heat rising to her cheeks. She wanted to snap, to tell Lilah exactly where she could shove that accusation, but she forced herself to take a deep breath. Yelling wasn’t going to help. Not when Lilah was so clearly afraid. Not when it was trust at stake, which Blossom knew instinctively it was.
Instead, she exhaled slowly and unclenched her fists. “Lilah, I understand why you’re upset, I really do. But if you think that I’d sell your story to the press, then you don’t know me at all.”
Lilah’s jaw tightened, her arms were still crossed like she was trying to hold herself together. “Alright,” she said. “Then how did you get the money for that?” She nodded toward the coffee machine, suspicion still heavy in her gaze.
With a sigh, Blossom rubbed her face. She shouldn’t have to explain herself, and part of her didn’t want to. But she also didn’t want to fight, especially when Lilah was hurting. So she pulled herself together.
“The machine is a rental,” she said reasonably. “It’s from the company that sent out a mechanic yesterday. I called them last night, and they dropped it off first thing this morning.”
“A rental.” Lilah’s voice was calmer. “Why?”
Blossom smiled. “Because I finally decided that maybe you’re right. That maybe I can do this, that I can work for what I want and achieve it. And I can’t run a cafe without a coffee machine, can I?”
“No,” Lilah said. Her shoulders had relaxed.
“I haven’t suddenly come into a fortune,” Blossom said quietly. “In fact, between the bank loan and my savings, I can just about afford to rent this machine for the next six months. But it’s better than nothing, and it gives me a chance to get back on my feet.”
Lilah put her head in her hands, exhaling roughly. “It’s a rental,” she muttered. She looked up again, eyes clear and green. “I don’t know who to trust,” she said simply. “People have soldme out before. People I thought cared about me.”
Blossom thought about that, thought about how much that would hurt, thought about how awful it must be to go through life thinking you were the only person you could trust. She reached out, carefully taking Lilah’s hands into her own. Lilah let her, though she still felt tense.
“Lilah, if you really want to build a life here, you’re going to have to get used to trusting people,” Blossom said gently. “I know it’s hard, and I can see that you’ve been hurt before, but that’s not me, and I would never do that to you.”
Lilah swallowed hard, staring at their joined hands. “I want to believe that.”
