by Misty Wright
"Hey, I never said I wanted to marry her," said Mark. He laughed.
CHAPTER 2 - Noisy Dinner.
"He was so cute," said Evangeline.
She sat at the kitchen table, tapping her fingers on the tabletop as her sister, Juliet-JulieJulie for short-sat across from her. Between them was the disgustingly huge bouquet that Mark-Mark Hartley, as he had introduced himself-had asked her to put together. She had done so with him hovering around her, which was entirely too distracting for her to admit.
Her sister had watched the whole time behind the counter while leaning her face on her hand and staring at him dreamily. Evangeline already knew that her sister certainly wasn't going to let this go.
Because of that, during that whole time he was there, she was angry at him over the attention. She was lucky that half the neighborhood hadn't heard about her admirer before supper, with the way Julie liked to talk.
Then, when she was done making the arrangement, she had walked off and let her sister finish ringing it up. So much for him buying it for another woman. She sighed inwardly. He had bought it for her. He had said it was for a beautiful woman. That gorgeous man thought she was beautiful.
She knew he had expected her to stay while he purchased the bouquet, but she had surprised him and hid her grin as she said goodbye without a backward glance. But he had had the last laugh. It turned out that the bouquet was for her. She was right about him, though; he had money. The arrangement cost over five hundred dollars and Juliet said he hadn't even hesitated when she told him the price. He had even paid in cash.
"Yes, he was handsome," she finally said, agreeing with Julie. She sighed again. Very handsome, she thought.
Mark had kept telling her to add more flowers even though the bouquet was already expensive. He had also picked up a small pretty bouquet for what he told Julie was for his best friend's wife. She had gotten the large, expensive one, so she had believed him. If it had been for a girlfriend, she would have gotten the latter as a gesture of how much he had appreciated her help. At least, that's what she told herself.
"If you add more, it'll take away from the arrangement," she had finally told him without looking up at him. She had a feeling he would have bought the whole shop if she didn't stop him. When he hadn't answered her, she finally had moved her eyes up to his and found that he had been waiting for her to do just that.
"Well, then, its perfect," he had said, but his eyes had been on her, not the bouquet.
Gosh, his eyes were so deeply attractive, she had thought. Her heart had actually skipped a beat, but she had tried to act like it didn't happen and had returned her gaze to her work. She had begun to wonder if he had even looked at it once.
*
"Really cute," her sister added, cutting through her thoughts.
She moved her head aside so she could see her sister past the enormous display of lilies.
"I heard you the first time."
Juliet smiled. "Oh, Evangeline, he bought you flowers."
"We work in a flower shop. It wasn't that hard," she said irritably. Truthfully, it was sweet, but she'd never admit it. Despite the fact they owned a flower shop, no one had ever bought her flowers before.
"They were expensive," said Julie.
"Just because someone has money doesn't mean I fall all over them."
"Can I have him, then?"
Evangeline rolled her eyes. "Mama would roll over in her grave, and Papa would come unglued."
Her eyes went back to the bouquet. It was pretty even though she had put it together for him-herself. She'd be lying if she didn't admit that she had taken special care to make it look extra nice because of how nice looking he was.
She fingered the wisps of baby's breath in thought. He seemed thoughtful, but he was way too much for her and she had known it within first thirty seconds of meeting him. Her family would never let her date a man like him to begin with, because they didn't know him. He was very confident in himself, so he had probably never been turned down by a woman in his life. He also seemed to think that she would just give in and hand over her name and phone number as soon as he told her his and flashed that gorgeous smile. Oh but gosh, it was gorgeous, too.
She may only be 19, but she wasn't stupid. He wasn't the first guy who went past the shop and hit on her, although he was one of the nicest looking. Then there was that lingering thought that there might be something wrong with him. While she didn't think she was ugly, Evangeline had never thought she was beautiful, so his attention seemed misguided.
Still, he seemed to be a one night stand kind of guy, and she was the commitment type. Not that she knew what a man like that looked like, but again, it was that charisma he carried himself with. She'd never had a one night stand in her life. In fact, she had never had any kind of intimate relationship. How could she? Her brothers were so overprotective and so was her father. Her older sister could get away with murder and they wouldn't say boo. Mind you, she was six years older than her and had her own way to do things. She had strong opinions and made them known. She figured they just gave up trying to control her.
"If you wanted to go out with him, I'd cover for you," Julie offered with a sly smile. Like Evangeline, Julie knew that her brothers and her father wouldn't let Evangeline near a man like that. Unlike Julie, Evangeline could not lie to her father.
"I'm not discussing this anymore," Evangeline said, getting up from the table. "Let's get dinner started before Papa comes home."
*
Dinner was a noisy event around their house, especially with her two full-blooded Italian brothers who were barely seventeen months apart at 28 and 30, with Glen being the oldest. They always got into heated discussions about little things, which was typical of an Italian family. Evangeline wasn't quite like that. She was quiet most of the time, and although she had strong beliefs, she really didn't need to voice her opinion over them. Unfortunately, her sister wasn't as subtle.
"Evangeline had a suitor today," Julie said, grinning at her sister despite the glare she was getting.
Two dark male heads and one grey one turned toward her and all conversation came to a halt. Her brothers looked suspicious, but they were suspicious about any man that came around her. Her mother died having her and it seemed as though her brothers had decided to be her protectors since the day of her birth. Most of the time, they would threaten any man who came near her or intimidate them to the point of her never getting a second date. So she tried to downplay it.
"It was nothing," said Evangeline.
Then there was a burst of male voices all protesting as if she had a choice in men being attracted to her.
"Oh, he wasn't nothing," her sister said, fanning her face with her hand. "Oh, papa, he looked Italian, too."
"Really?" That piqued his interest.
"He bought flowers, that's it." She shot her sister another glare, but it didn't work.
"Yeah-for you."
Evangeline had moved the large bouquet to her room, hoping that no one would notice them. She should have known her sister wouldn't leave it alone.
"Oh Juliet, please," Evangeline said in a last desperate attempt to get her sister to shut up. It didn't work.
"He had lots of money, too," Julie added.
"That doesn't matter," her father said, waving his fork in Evangeline's direction. "If he has a job, and is a hard- working man, that's acceptable. It's all about character. I don't care if he has a lot of money; I care about whether he's a hard-working man, is honest and has good faith."
"Is he from our neighborhood? What's his name?" Tito said.
"None of your business," she said, starting to get angry. It was as if her family thought she was already dating him.
"Mark Hartley," Julie volunteered.
"You are not my sister," Evangeline said irately, glaring at her older sister.
"Really?" John's brows shot up. "What did he look like?"
"He was ugly," Evangeline said, hoping her sister would just stop. She should h
ave known better.
"You are a liar, Evangeline," Juliet said, "you just want us to leave this alone." She waved a dismissive arm at her. "He was really handsome," she said to her oldest brother.
"Handsome? Juliet, I asked what he looks like, not what your opinion of him is," Glen said impatiently, and turned his attention to his baby sister. "Dark hair, dark eyes, big man?" He lifted his hand above his head a few inches to indicate his height was taller than his own.
"I guess." She shrugged. Actually, he was describing him quite well. The brothers exchanged a look.
"What?"
"There's only one Mark Hartley I've ever heard of, and that's the left winger for our home team," Tito answered.
"Home team?" Evangeline asked.
"Hockey," he elaborated.
"It's got to be a coincidence," Glen offered.
"Actually," Julie cut in. "Come to think of it, he has the build of a hockey player. He was a really sexy beast." She made a space with her hands. "His shoulders were broad and he had a thick chest like there was muscle-"
"Oh, God." Evangeline put her face in her hands. This was the most embarrassing day of her life. She could literally kill her sister. She was making it sound like he had been half-naked and flexing in front of them. Even if he hadn't, her brothers would definitely see it that way.
John's eyes went from Julie to Evangeline. He narrowed his gaze.
"You are not dating a hockey player," said John. He set his elbow in the table and pointed a finger at her.
"I'm fine with that," Evangeline said, wondering why everyone was now looking at her as if she had started the conversation.
"Next time he comes to the shop, you send him away. Guys like that only have one use for women."
"It was one time," Evangeline defended and shoved a hand toward Julie. "Do you see what you started?" She got up and took her plate to the sink in the kitchen. She was done listening and being blamed for something she hadn't done.
"Go talk to your sister, Julie," her father, Glen, said without looking up from his meal as if this were an everyday occurrence.
"Okay, Papa," she said, feeling a little guilty for causing a stir.
Evangeline was scraping dishes with a little more force than needed before she rinsed them and put them in the dishwasher.
"I'm sorry, sis," Juliet said. She did feel bad. However, she was also jealous. Mark Hartley was drop-dead gorgeous, and Evangeline had all the best feminine attributes between the two of them. Juliet felt her nose was too big and so was her mouth, whereas Evangeline had this angelic look to her. She had a small pert nose, pouty mouth, and their mother's green eyes. Her glorious thick black hair was halfway down her back and had a slight curl to it. Juliet's was in tight curls and she had to keep it short because otherwise it frizzed up. When men came into the shop, they always flirted with Evangeline, yet she always kept it polite and professional.
She knew her baby sister was still a virgin because there was no way her Puritan ways would be corrupted especially with their brothers demanding to approve everyone she dated. For once, she'd like to see her get in trouble. When it came to her own boyfriends, her brothers and her father had given up on her years ago for misbehaving and barely lifted an eyebrow when she told them of a new love interest, yet they practically interrogated Evangeline if a man so much as flirted with her.
"I don't know why you push things like that," Evangeline said while shutting the door of the dishwasher. "Now Tito's going to park outside the store and wait for him. I know he is. He'll threaten him." Tito had a reputation for fighting. He was more muscular than Glen, who seemed to be the diplomat in the family. Tito thought he could solve any problem with a fight.
"I think Mark Hartley can hold his own, even against Tito. I mean, all the buff muscles he has can't be for nothing." She held her arm up and squeezed her bicep.
"Sis, that's not the point." It shouldn't even happen in the first place. She was an adult and her brothers couldn't keep running around threatening people who they thought may corrupt her.
Julie laughed. "Oh sis, I'm sorry, but don't worry. Tito won't do that. Besides, Mr. Handsome probably won't be back after you gave him the brush off."
Her sister may think so, but for some reason, Evangeline didn't believe that Mr. Handsome was used to giving up. How she wished she was wrong.
*
The next day, she was in the back room doing arrangements when her sister came in wearing a great big grin like the Cheshire cat. "Your suitor is back."
She groaned. "Julie, just send him away."
"No way. I think we should put him in the store front with a red rose between his teeth and attract customers. We had three women follow him in. One even asked for an autograph. I'm thinking that he must be who Glen and Tito say he is. Isn't that great? You're being admired by someone who is famous."
"You are relentless," she scolded and walked over to the doorway to peek around it. Mark was standing over in the corner wearing an expensive dark grey suit and a blue shirt. His black hair was neatly combed back and it looked like he had shaved off the stubble that he had yesterday. If she didn't know better, it looked as though he was dressed to go to church. That stunning masculine image left her practically breathless. Wow, he was really handsome, she thought, but she couldn't date him. Even if he was famous, she really didn't know him.
He was fingering the petals of an orchid and smiling slightly. She actually sighed. Forget that, he really wasn't handsome. He was completely drop-dead gorgeous.
"Go," Julie said, giving her a shove from behind.
That made her fumble in the doorway, causing a noise. Mark turned toward her, setting his charming smile to Evangeline. She still had a pair of scissors in her hand and briefly thought about stabbing her sister.
"Hi," he said, walking over to the counter and leaning lazily on it.
"Are you here to buy more flowers?" She had to clear her throat before she spoke. His blazer fell open and saw that Julie was right. His dress shirt stretched across his thick chest straining a couple of the buttons. He was in good shape. She tried her hardest not to notice or stare like an idiot, but he looked so good. Thankfully, he didn't seem to notice. It was probably because women often stared at him. It reminded her that this man was way out of her league. She had no experience to deal with the likes of him.
"No, I'm still after your name." His eyes dropped to her mouth briefly. Hell, she had a lovely, supple mouth, a perfectly kissable mouth.
"Her name is Evangeline," Julie said from behind her.
"Lovely," he said, flicking his gaze to Julie, then back to Evangeline.
"I can't go out with you," she blurted, "so you should just leave." For some reason, she started to feel her cheeks heat up. She wondered if she was blushing. How on earth did that happen?
"That's okay," he said, acting completely fine with her rejection while reaching into his inside breast pocket and pulling something out. "I'd like it if you came to the game tonight. These tickets are for seats behind the player's bench."
"Game?" she said, trying to see what he was trying to give her without touching them. She didn't want to take them from him. She wanted him to leave before she started falling over herself like Julie was doing.
"I'm a hockey player," he said with amusement and moved his hand toward her to get her to take the tickets. He couldn't think of one time he had had to tell a woman what he did for a living. They usually knew. Surprisingly enough, that still didn't change her mind.
"Oh." She waved a hand, trying to get him to put them away. "I can't. I can't date you."
"It's not a date. I'll be playing and we'll be on the opposite sides of the Plexiglass." His eyes met hers. "You'll be perfectly safe."
Safe? From whom? she thought. Just looking at him now, made her know that Plexiglass was just a word, not a barrier. He was potent enough to seep through a steel wall. What's worse, he knew it. That grin he followed it with just made it seem as if the heavens opened up and rained a
ll the confidence in the world down on him.
"Just come and watch. You'll be my own good luck charm." He looked past her to Julie. "Bring your friend."
"She's my soon to be ex-sister," she said, reaching up and pushing her long hair off her shoulder nervously.
He chuckled. "Doors open at 4.30, game's at 6.00." He looked past her to her sister. "Julie, make sure she goes."
"You bet," she said, grinning back at him and feeling her heart jump with the use of her name on his lips. It was interesting that he'd heard it. The only time he could have is when she had gone to get her sister from the back room. My, was he loaded with charm. Julie felt her knees weaken.
"I can't. My family is very strict about-"
"Someone came in the shop and offered you complimentary tickets for your help and advice in picking out an arrangement. Nothing more." He tilted his head slightly, letting his confident brown eyes work hers when he interrupted. "I'm innocent," he said while holding up his hands in surrender.
"An arrangement you bought me," she countered.
"Big deal. I didn't make a play for you. I didn't ask you out this time. I just gave you two tickets. People take gifts all the time." His eyes moved over her face. Her complexion was flawless. She was slightly tanned which really made those green eyes of hers stand out. Jennifer had green eyes, but they were more emerald. Evangeline's were lighter with gold flecks, and in his point of view, prettier with the contrasting ebony hair.
Evangeline stared up at him while considering his reasoning. He actually had a point. However, this was a little unorthodox. "But-"
"I'll see you there," he interrupted again, completely sure of himself. He set the tickets on the counter because she still refused to take them.
"How do you know I'm not involved?" she finally said, still trying to get him to go away.
"You're not."
Her mouth fell open. He had the audacity-!