“Uh, sure.” I hated the nervous look in her eyes, the stiffness in her shoulders that told me she was far from comfortable with me. But everyone started somewhere, and if our start was rocky, it didn’t mean we wouldn’t end up exactly where we were meant to be.
I realized as we left the patio that I was still holding her flowers in a death grip.
“Here,” I said as I awkwardly passed them over, noticing with chagrin that I’d mangled the stems pretty badly, and there was, in fact, blood dripping off my palm.
“Actually, no, let me get you some new ones. I messed those up.” I tried to take them back, but she twisted, scowling at me.
“I don’t want another set. I want these.” She lovingly caressed one of the petals, a small smile on her lips that made me want to kiss her.
Score one for the re
