Page 98 of Perfect Pairing
“I want to start a community garden.”
I blinked in surprise, which quickly morphed into genuine excitement. “Ezra, Ilovethat idea.”
“Yeah?” he asked, still unsure.
“Yeah,” I promised. “The community would love that, and it’d be a great way to teach kids about the benefits of growing their own food, as well as the hard work that goes into it.”
“That’s exactly what I’ve been thinking!” he exclaimed. “At Thanksgiving, I mentioned to Liam about setting up an appointment with him and Amara, and that’ll be happening sometime after the new year. We can’t exactly move on construction until the snow melts and the ground thaws, but I want to get a jump on design and ordering seeds and starters. Dad and Jay are excited to contribute to the project as well.”
“Sounds like you’ve got it all figured out, but…you should ask Ella for help.”
“I should?”
“She’s…Alfie dumped her.” I knew Ella wouldn’t want me to blast her business to everyone, but this was Ezra. I knew my secrets were safe with him. “So she’s struggling right now. And it’s slow at the flower shop in the winter too, so I bet she’d love to help. Plants are kind of her thing, after all.”
“What if I wanted you to help me?”
I shrugged, my insides warming at the thought of working on such a project with him. It would be a great addition to the community, and I fully planned on leaving my mark on it. I envisioned strawberry and rhubarb plants, chives and mint, but I wanted my sister to have something to distract her from her heartache, and there was nothing that girl loved more than having her hands covered in dirt.
“I’d be happy to assist, but you should also ask Ella.”
“Consider it done,” he said, and I grinned.
“Thank you.”
“I hated that Alfie tool anyway.”
I snorted. “We all did. I’m sad she’s hurting, but I know this is for the best.”
Ezra only hummed in response, his thumb drawing lazy circles along the back of my hand.
“So…my dad is watching Hansen tonight,” he said softly. “I mean, he lives with us, so that’s a nightly thing, but what I’m saying is, he’s not expecting me home.”
“Do you want to get out of here?” I blurted, ready to follow the path this night was headed down right until the very end.
Before Ezra could respond, my phone let out a loud alert—the one from my weather app. I withdrew it from my coat pocketand read the message on the screen, then glanced up at Ezra with wide eyes.
“What?” he asked, brow creasing. “Is everything okay?”
“Everything is fine, but apparently, the storm is pretty bad.”
Ezra frowned as I rose from the table and made my way toward the doors that led out to the patio. On the wall to the left was a switch that controlled the exterior lights, and when I flipped it, Ezra let out a low curse.
While we’d been wrapped up in our delicious meal and good conversation, the snow had continued to fall. In addition to what we’d already gotten, a few feet more had fallen, the mountain of powder now reaching about halfway up the doors. I didn’t need to look out in the parking lot to know both my Bronco and Ezra’s Subaru were buried.
I gave him a sheepish smile. “I don’t think we’re going anywhere tonight.”
Ezra reached for my hand, lacing our fingers together and squeezing reassuringly. I wasn’t scared or concerned that I had to spend the night here, but Iwaspleased I wouldn’t have to do it alone.
“Where are we going to sleep?” he asked then waggled his eyebrows suggestively. “Or not.”
I let out a girlish giggle at his ridiculousness. “I have an idea,” I said, pulling him out of the dining room and back toward the lobby.
All evening, I’d been giddy, basking in the glow of Ezra’s attention. But that effervescence in my chest increased, as though a host of butterflies had taken up residence in my stomach and their little wing beats made my heart pump faster as I led himtoward my favorite family secret. Very few people were granted access to the knowledge, and I couldn’t wait to share it with Ezra.
“The offices?” he asked in confusion.
I merely smiled and shook my head. Since the door that led to the Delatou, Inc. corporate offices was off the lobby, it wasn’t a bad guess, but it wasn’t where I was headed. Instead, I beelined for a door on the opposite side. The keypad to access what lay beyond was carefully concealed behind a panel flush with the wall. Someone would have to be paying extremely close attention to discover it, and even then, without the code, they’d never make it through.
