Page 79 of Hunt for the Roses
“Cheers,” Aria says as she holds her glass up. I clink my glass with hers and we both take a sip. “So what’s your move?” Aria asks. I furrow my brows to indicate I have no idea what she’s referring to. “I’ve always wondered what Dane Hudson’s move was to pick up a girl,” she confesses as she takes another sip of her wine. “So what’s your move?”
“Ah,” I say with a tight smile. I run a hand through my hair before responding. “Honestly, it varies from time to time, and it depends on the situation.”
She’s resting her chin on her palm. “Uh-huh…”
Getting the hint that she wants me to pick a specific situation, I sigh and continue on. “Let’s say I see a girl at Shippers, and she doesn’t have a drink in her hand, I’d probably say something like, ‘Can I buy you a drink?’”
Aria rolls her eyes. “Ugh, you’re no fun.”
I chuckle. “What? I don’t havemoves, I just go with the flow,” I say while making a swimming motion with my hand.
The waiter comes back to take our dinner orders, and we both take another sip of our wine as Aria narrows her eyes at me like she’s looking intently.
I narrow my eyes back at her. “Uh oh, you have that look in your eyes.”
“I was just wondering if you truly never felt a connection with any of the women you’ve brought home. I guess I can’t fathom the idea, having been in a long-term relationship,” she says.
I take a sip of my wine while keeping my eyes on her, and when I swallow, I decide to respond. “I have.”
“Who?” Aria’s eyes widen.
“I’m looking at her,” I say.
Aria just stares back at me as her cheeks flush, and she stretches a nervous smile before looking off at the water over the terrace.
I place my forearms on the table as I interlock my hands. “Hey, I’d like to take you somewhere after this, if that’s okay?” I say.
Aria turns her head to face me, and at first, she looks questioningly at me like she thinks I’m up to no good. “Sure,” she says with a hesitant smile.
She’s intrigued.
Our appetizer comes and then our entrees, and the conversation over dinner is light as always. We skip out on dessert, and once I pay the bill, we walk back to my car so I can take Aria where I’ve been dying to take her all night.
As we sit in the car, Aria is the first to speak. “My mom and dad know where you live if you are planning on disposing of my remains tonight. Just saying.”
I chuckle while keeping my eyes on the road. “Man, I shouldn’t have taken you to dinner then. So many witnesses know I was with you tonight.” Aria giggles back, and we fall silent near the end of the drive as Aria looks intently out the window trying to figure out where we are going.
When I pull up to the Bloom Rose Garden entrance, the gazebo is lit up with white lights since it’s dark out now, and there are only a few other cars here.
Perfect.
* * *
Aria
The Bloom Rose Garden is located off the beaten path, almost like a hidden gem. When we pull up, there are only a few cars besides Dane’s in sight, and I slowly get out of the car to take in the sight in front of me. The rose garden is about one green acre of land, and in the center is a lit, wooden gazebo covered in ivy. Surrounding the gazebo are six arched pathways. From an aerial view, it’s as if the gazebo is the sun, and the pathways are the rays.
My lips turn up in the corner as I look back at Dane, who’s walking up to me with two hands in his pockets. “How did you find this place?” I ask.
“It’s amazing the things you find out when you talk to people. Or use Google,” Dane says with a smirk.
I just stare up at him with a smile, in awe that Dane went out of his way to bring me to this beautiful place. Especially since I know the reason he did. Dane never fails to listen to everything I tell him and never ceases to surprise me. He’s opened up a whole new world for me in just one month, and it’s a month I know I’ll be forever grateful for. After several moments, I turn my head to look back at the garden, and I feel Dane take my hand in his.
“Let’s go,” he says as he guides me through the entrance.
As we walk closer to the gazebo at the center of the garden, I look around at all the arched pathways, the colors of the roses jumping out against the stark nighttime sky. I exhale a breath as I admire the scenery all around me, my feet following Dane on their own accord. Each pathway represents a different color rose; red, pink, orange, yellow, white, green.
While walking up the red rose pathway, I stretch my arm out to touch a couple roses, needing to feel the beauty between my fingers. Once we make it to the middle of the garden, I step up into the gazebo after Dane, and walk around taking a look at all the arched pathways of color from the central point. Dane leans a shoulder against a wooden post of the gazebo as he crosses one foot in front of the other, looking like he’s about to stand back and watch from afar.
