“Aren’t you coming in?”
“No thanks, I’ll stay right here. I wouldn’t want to risk not being able to drive again.” He shot me a look with furrowed brows.
“I said I needed snacks.” I shook my head. I had no idea why he was being so testy.
I opened the door to the gas station and was slapped in the face by the scent of grilled hot dogs, slushies, and an assortment of spices. I grabbed chips, crackers, and a small pack of cookies. Then I saw the packages of beef jerky.
They set off a sarcastic thought: “Thanks a lot, Max.”
To top off my snacks, I got a bottle of water—at least that was healthy, plus it wouldn’t taste like pineapple.
I piled my goods onto the counter. The man behind the counter was on the phone. I waited for a minute. He was still on the phone. I stared at the bag of chips. It wanted me to open it. It called out to me. I looked up at the man behind the counter. He was still on the phone. I snatched up the bag of chips and started to open it. The rustling alerted the man finally.
“Hey, you have to pay for that before you eat it!”
“Well, then ring me up!” I shouted. I didn’t normally shout. But the situation called for it.
“There’s no need to be rude.”
“There’s no need to ignore a paying customer who needs her snacks!” I reached into my purse to find that my wallet wasn’t there. I winced when I remembered leaving it at home on the hall table.
“Well, are you going to pay or not?”
“Uh, I just have to get my boyfriend. I forgot my wallet.”
“You already opened the chips!”
“He’s right outside. I just have to get him.”
“Like I’m going to fall for that!” He shook his head. “I’m calling the police!”
“But I didn’t even eat any! I probably have enough change.”
“Too late.” He started dialing the phone.
All my anger melted into tears. I was going to go to jail for stealing potato chips. How would that look on my blog?
“Please, please don’t call the police. He’s right outside.”
“Sammy? What’s going on?” Max stepped through the door. “What’s taking so long?”
“He’s going to have me arrested!” I wailed my words.
Max’s eyes widened. “What? What for?”
“She doesn’t have money to pay and she opened the merchandise!”
“I forgot my wallet.” I wiped at my eyes.
“Oh, Sammy.” Max wrapped his arm around me. “I have money. How much is it?”
“It’s too late.”
“It’s not too late.” Max glared at him. “How much is it?”
“Eight-fifty.”
“Here is ten—for your trouble.”
“Oh, big spender!” The clerk rolled his eyes.
Max snatched up the snacks and steered me out of the gas station. “What is going on with you, Sammy?”
“I’m sorry.” I shoved some chips into my mouth. “I was just so hungry. I think I was a little emotional.”
“A little?” He tilted his head to the side.
The alarm on my phone sounded.
“Oh good, it’s time to eat!”
Max shook his head and opened my door for me.
“I’m sorry, I forgot to ask if you wanted anything. Beef jerky?” I held out the package to him.
“No thanks.” He started the car.
I chowed down on as many snacks as I could for the remainder of the drive. It wasn’t until we reached Cerulean Gardens that I remembered the twelve meals a day were only supposed to be one hundred and fifty calories each. I winced and tried not to think about it.
“Better?” Max looked over at me.
I nodded. “I’m sorry I acted crazy.”
“No problem.” He kissed me. “Mm, salty.”
I laughed. “Hey, at least I’m not in handcuffs.”
“Thanks to me.”
“Yes, yes—my hero.”
He grinned back at me.
We walked up to the front entrance, a wrought iron gate. A woman waited to greet us.
“Welcome to Cerulean Gardens.” The woman before us wore a long flowing dress. Her red curls were spotted with real white flower blossoms. I was impressed with her style, but more so with the gardens that stretched out behind her. In the middle of the city, it was hard to find a natural oasis. Cerulean Gardens appeared to be one.
“This place is amazing. How did I not know it was here?”
“We only recently opened it to the public. Up until last year, we only hosted private parties and field trips.”
“Why did you open up to the public now?” Max swept his gaze over the surroundings.
“We needed the income. We always intended to open to the public, but we wanted to make sure that the gardens were sturdy enough to hold up to more visitors. Luckily, we had this amazing—oh, look there he is now.” She waved to a man who walked toward us.
When I caught sight of him I had to bite my tongue to keep from gasping. His dark wavy hair glinted in the sunlight. His deeply tanned skin was streaked with dirt, which only made his eyes brighter. He wore a sleeveless t-shirt that showed off his well-developed arms. As he waved back to the woman, he looked right into my eyes. I stumbled a little and leaned against Max’s arm.
“Sammy, are you okay? I knew that diet was no good.” Max whispered into my ear.
Chapter 16
I looked into the eyes of my soon-to-be-husband and gulped back a wave of guilt. Had I really just lusted after a stranger with Max by my side?
“I’m fine, I’m fine.” I smiled and gave his arm a squeeze.
I did my best not to look at the man who’d paused in front of me.
“Arielle.” He nodded to the woman.
“This is Stephen.” Arielle smiled. “He’s our miracle worker.”
“I don’t know if I’d say that.” Stephen lowered his eyes. His cheeks reddened. “I just love to garden.”
“And it shows. Our gardens are filled with love, which makes them the perfect place for a wedding.”
“Oh, congratulations.” Stephen flashed a wide smile. His teeth shimmered in the sun.
I looked at Max. I did my best not to look away from him.
“Thank you. We’re so looking forward to it—so happy.”
“Yes.” Max smiled at me. “I have to be the luckiest man on earth.”
“Yes, yes you are!” Will’s bright voice chimed in as he jogged up beside us. He clapped Max hard on the back—so hard that Max was knocked a few steps forward. Since I was clinging so tightly to his arm I was jerked forward as well, right into Stephen’s sweaty, perfect biceps.
“Oh no!” I jumped away from him. An alarm started going off loudly in my mind.
“Are you okay?” Stephen grabbed my hand to steady me.
“Watch it.” Max cast a frown in Will’s direction.
“So sorry, sometimes I don’t know my own strength. I’ll do better about that, I will—yes I will.” He sighed.
“I’m fine.” I pulled away from Stephen’s grasp, the alarm still pounding through my brain.
“Are you sure? Because you’re kind of beeping.”
I raised an eyebrow. How could he know that? Then I realized the alarm wasn’t in my head—it was my cell phone. It was time to eat again.
“Oops.” I pulled my phone out.
“Sammy, do you want to tour the gardens?” Max frowned.
“Yes, let me just turn this off.” I struggled with the button until the alarm turned off. “Actually, I have to run back to the car.”
“Sammy, can’t it wait until after we do the tour?” Max shot another wary look in Will’s direction.
“It’ll only take a minute. Max, you know this is important to me.” I met his eyes.
“Oh no, no, love birds. No squabbles allowed. I will fix this, yes I will. Max and I need to chat anyway, so why don’t you get what you need from the car and we can meet at
the center of the garden?”
“No, I don’t—” Max began.
“Perfect!” I smiled and pecked Max’s cheek.
I needed to get away from Stephen, and I had to get my next snack before I blew my new diet. I ignored Max’s pleading look and headed back to the parking lot.
As soon as I was away from Stephen, I was able to calm down. It left me a little flustered to think that he’d had such an impact on me. Maybe it had been the pineapple leaving my system. I grabbed a pack of crackers from the car and polished them off.
As I turned to walk back to the entrance I saw that Arielle, Will, and Max were gone. I walked through the entrance and looked around for them. The high bushes that separated the gardens made it difficult to see anyone.
I decided to just walk toward the center, but after about ten minutes I seemed to have lost track of which path it was that would lead me there. The gardens were much larger than I’d expected them to be.
I couldn’t help but notice that the garden truly was beautiful. The lush green leaves were speckled with large colorful blossoms. Butterflies danced between the different flowers. As my gaze followed the butterflies, I caught sight of Stephen’s dark wavy hair.
My heart jolted. Instantly I thought I should turn around and walk the other way. But it was too late. Stephen had spotted me.
“Hi there. Are you lost?”
“Uh, I got turned around, I think.” I did my best not to look at him. Instead I looked around at the foliage. I noticed that the flowers gave way to fruits and vegetables.
“Is this your garden?”
“Yes, it is. I keep the grounds here and in exchange, they allow me to use a large space to grow vegetables. I also offer classes to the locals in the area.”
“Wow, that’s amazing. I’ve never been able to keep much alive.”
“Oh, that’s nonsense.” He waved his hand in the air. “You just have to learn a few rules of gardening and you can grow just about anything.”
“I don’t know. I’ve never been able to do it.” I frowned.
“Then maybe you just haven’t had the right teacher. Why don’t you come to one of our classes?”
“Oh, I don’t think I could right now. I don’t have a lot of time. I’m getting married in two months and I have to lose twenty pounds.” I blushed. Why did that just pop right out of my mouth? Was it because he was so handsome? Even though I was off the market I still felt the pressing need to embarrass myself in front of handsome men, apparently.
“Oh, are you dieting?” His lips twitched.
“Yes, right now I’m trying out a few different diets.”
“Listen to me, you don’t need a fad diet or a crazy list of foods that you can and can’t eat. If you eat green, you’ll reach your natural weight in no time.”
“My natural weight?”
“Sure. We’re all built a little different, so we all have a weight that is suitable to our body types and genetics. Of course the magazines won’t tell you that, but it’s the truth.”
“Oh?”
“Well, it’s my truth.” He chuckled. “I like to think I’ve never been healthier, and it’s because I eat everything out of my garden. I won’t touch anything that I don’t grow.”
“What about meat and dairy?”
“I’m a vegan.” His smile widened. “I know that’s a big change, but even if you do it for just a week or two I guarantee you will see some improvement. Why don’t you come to my Monday night class? We garden, but we also talk about healthy sustainable diets. I think you would enjoy it.”
I thought about all of the difficulty I’d had with the alarm on my phone and the food I nearly choked on. The twelve-a-day diet did not work for me. I did enjoy the idea of a natural diet—something my body was designed to thrive on.
“Alright, maybe I will. Thanks, Stephen.”
“Any time. If you take the path on the right you’ll get to the center of the garden. But think about coming to a class, alright?”
“I will.” I smiled. Saying that reminded me that Max was still alone with Will.
Chapter 17
I continued walking along the path until I could hear voices.
“I’m thinking swans, Max, how do you feel about swans?”
“Actual swans?”
“Oh yes, we couldn’t have fake swans.”
“But why would we need swans?”
“Swans represent everything that Samantha feels about you.”
I could see Max trying to walk away, but Will followed right after him. Max shot me a look with smoldering eyes and tightened lips.
“And just how could you know how Samantha feels about me? You’ve only just met her.”
“Max, it’s just his way. He’s actually very perceptive.” I slipped my arm through his. I could feel the tension in his arm. I looked up into his eyes and noticed the heat there. The meeting obviously wasn’t going well.
“Thank you, Samantha. I was just discussing swans with Max—”
“Oh well, Max is a little afraid of birds.”
“I am not afraid of them!”
“Okay, he prefers to avoid them.”
“Oh, why didn’t you just say so? I will absolutely not get any swans—not a single one,” Will said, shaking his head almost violently.
“Good.” Max tipped his head toward the fountain in the middle of the garden. “I do think this place is nice though. What do you think, Sammy? Do you enjoy the view?” He lifted an eyebrow just enough to make my heart pound.
“I think it’s beautiful.” I searched his expression for a hint of what bothered him so much. “Do you really like it?”
His expression softened. “Yes, I really do. I’d be happy to have our wedding here. Is that what you want?”
“Yes.” I smiled. “Yes, I think it’s perfect—and it’s all thanks to Will.” I looked over at him. “He’s the one who found this place for us.”
“It’s what I do.” Will bowed. He smiled at Max. “Don’t worry, Max. By the day of the wedding, we’re going to be the best of friends.”
Max didn’t answer; he only nodded. I could sense that something was quite off about his behavior.
“Are there papers we should sign?” Max looked over at Arielle.
“No need, I’ll take care of everything.” Will smiled. “Yes I will.”
“I see what you’re doing there.” Max quirked a brow. “I guess that we’ll be going then.”
“Thanks again.” I smiled at them both before we walked back toward the car. Max opened my door for me, but he didn’t speak.
“Max, are you okay?”
“Let’s just get going.”
I settled into my seat. When Max closed his door I looked over at him. “What’s going on? Do you not like the garden?”
“I’m not sure that I’m ready to talk about it.” He started the car.
“Max, what is it?” My heart started to pound. “Did I do something wrong?”
Max started driving. “I just need to calm down. Can we just not talk about it right now?”
I stared at him for a long moment. It made my heart ache to think that he was angry and unwilling to share it with me. Of course I knew it had to happen now and then, but it was quite rare with us.
In the awkward silence that filled the car, I thought about everything that had happened that afternoon. I wasn’t sure what I’d done to upset him.
The alarm on my phone started beeping to let me know that it was time to eat again. I fumbled with the phone to turn off the alarm. Before I could, Max snatched it out of my hand.
“Max?”
“It’s off.” He handed it back to me.
“Please tell me what’s wrong? Is the alarm bothering you?”
“No, it’s not the alarm.” Max drew a deep breath and then pulled over to the side of the road. “Alright, the truth?”
“Yes, please.”
“I don’t understand why you’re doing this.”
“Doing what?”
“These crazy diets, Sammy. You know how much I love you. You’re so beautiful and sexy—and everything I want. Why isn’t that enough for you?”
“Max.” I reached out and took his hand. “You have no idea how wonderful it makes me feel to know that you see me that way. But you also know how hard I’ve worked to get to my goal weight. I’m not there, Max. I made some mistakes. I want to be sure that I can lose the weight before the wedding. I just don’t understand why that upsets you.”
“Why?” He looked over at me. “Stephen is why.”
“Stephen?”
“Did you really think I didn’t see the way you looked at him? You practically fainted.”
Chapter 18
My cheeks burned with embarrassment. “Max, that was just a knee-jerk reaction—probably the pineapple still getting out of my system.”
“Or maybe it’s not our wedding that you are trying to lose weight for. Maybe my opinion about your beauty doesn’t matter to you because it’s just not as important to you anymore.”
“Max! How can you even say that?”
“How can’t I, Sammy?” He narrowed his eyes. “What am I supposed to think when my attraction to you isn’t enough?”
I sighed and wiped a hand across my mouth. “Max.”
“What? Please, enlighten me.”
“How a woman looks or wants to look isn’t always about pleasing a man. I’ve had a look—a size—in mind for my wedding day for years. Not because I want to please you, or Stephen, or the minister, but because that is how I see myself. That’s how I want to look—it’s how I feel inside.”
Max gave my hand a light squeeze. “I can understand that. I can. But these diets worry me. You’re going from surviving on juice to eating constantly. What’s next?”
“Whatever works.” I hardened my gaze. “I’m not going to give up on my goal. I want to achieve it, and I’m going to try what I have to until I do achieve it. You say that I’m beautiful and that you love me. Well, this desire is part of me.”
“I’m trying to understand, Sammy. If it’s important to you, then of course it’s important to me. I just wish you would relax and enjoy this. I feel like we barely get to see each other. I don’t know.” He shook his head. “Maybe I’m just expecting too much.”
Single Wide Female in Love Complete Bundle: Books 1-4 Page 24