Burned (Cunningham Security Book 5)

by A. K. Evans

  “Hey, Zara,” she greeted me, cheerfully, as soon as I stepped inside.

  “Good morning, Leni,” I returned, using the nickname she’d shared with me months ago.

  Not giving me an opportunity to explain the reason for my visit, she wondered, “Are you here to take me up on my offer?”

  “I am indeed,” I started. “Not today, as I already have plans, but I wanted to stop in and see if you had a schedule I could take a look at. I need your most basic, beginner-level classes.”

  “I’m so excited!” she bubbled. “You can check the schedule out on the website, but I also have a hard copy here.”

  She handed me a piece of paper with her monthly calendar on it. Once she grabbed a highlighter from her desk, I watched as she filled the sheet with random, bright pink streaks. After she finished, she explained, “Any of those classes are for beginners. Take your pick.”

  There were a lot of options.

  “I won’t be able to come in this week,” I lamented. “With Mother’s Day being next week, I’ll be overwhelmed at the shop, but I’ll probably stop in one day the following week.”

  “Perfect. I’m looking forward to it.”

  Returning her friendly smile, I said, “Thanks, Leni. Enjoy the rest of your weekend.”

  “You too!”

  Fifteen minutes later, I had arrived at my destination. I got out of my car, took a deep breath, and looked around me.

  Yep.

  This was just what I needed.

  I grabbed my backpack from the passenger seat, locked my car, and tossed my keys in my bag.

  I’d decided to bring myself to a place I thought would remind me of one of the better memories I had of home.

  A mountain trail.

  I was going to go hiking.

  I moved from my car to the foot of the trail and started walking.

  It was just after ten in the morning and it had been a long time since I’d gotten any exercise. I decided I’d hike and do it hard until lunchtime. My hope was that I’d find a good spot at that point to take a load off and refuel.

  Just over two and a half hours later, I’d pushed myself harder than I had even before I broke things off with Brad. I was hot, hungry, and out of breath. Luckily, I found a great spot with a phenomenal view to stop and eat. There was a clearing just off the trail with a view of the mountains. When I looked down, I felt the breath catch in my throat.

  Living in northeastern Pennsylvania all my life, I’d seen my fair share of views that took my breath away. I loved the mountains. Loved them. But it didn’t even come close to this.

  I dropped my backpack down on the ground at my feet and stared at the natural beauty in front of me.

  After giving myself some time to take it all in, I pulled out my lunch and started eating. I was halfway through when, seemingly out of nowhere, a dog ran up to me.

  I was startled, but he seemed friendly.

  “Blaze!” I heard someone yell out.

  “Are you Blaze?” I asked the Siberian husky.

  He tilted his head as he looked curiously at me.

  “Blaze,” I heard called again. Though, the voice was now much closer and very familiar.

  Turning my head to the side, I saw him jogging in my direction. It took him a moment, but Pierce locked eyes with mine as he slowed his pace. Walking the remaining few feet toward me, he didn’t take his gaze off me.

  This could not be happening.

  I didn’t have a mirror, but it didn’t take a genius to know that I wasn’t looking my best. I could feel the heat in my face indicating I was beyond just having a slight tinge of pink in my cheeks. I could feel the sheen of sweat on my forehead along with the wet spots on my shirt at my lower back. To add to it, I was sure I smelled. Mortification didn’t begin to describe my mindset at that moment.

  “Zara,” Pierce stated when he stopped in front of me.

  Regardless of how horrible I felt about the way I was sure I looked, I smiled up at him and greeted him, “Hi, Pierce.”

  Blaze was panting, his head going back and forth between Pierce and me.

  “I think I found your dog,” I teased. He finally moved his eyes from mine to look at his dog. Before he could scold him or say anything, I corrected myself. “Actually, I think your dog found me.”

  Pierce glanced back up at me while he began petting the dog. “He’s usually pretty good about staying close to me. That’s why he’s off the leash. I’ve worked really hard to train him. But he’s still a husky, I guess. Sometimes, he doesn’t like following the rules and marches to the beat of his own drum.”

  “He’s beautiful.”

  Pierce grinned at me. Blaze barked.

  “Okay, buddy,” Pierce started as he began removing the straps of his backpack from his shoulders. “I’ve got some water for you.”

  “You talk to your dog?” I asked, even though it was more of an observation.

  He smirked at me, clearly guilty as charged.

  “I do the same with Callie,” I shared.

  “Callie?”

  “My cat.”

  Realization dawned and he said, “Right. I remember you mentioned you had a cat.” I hit him with a smile before he continued, “I’m glad to know you can’t hold me talking to my dog against me. Do you mind if Blaze and I sit with you for a few minutes and refuel?”

  I shook my head. “Not at all. And, in all fairness to you, I talked to your dog before you got here.”

  Pierce chuckled before he took some water out for Blaze and himself, and shared, “I come here frequently. I’ve never seen you here before now.”

  After I swallowed a bite of my food, I replied, “This is my first time here.”

  He looked genuinely astonished. Through his surprise, he pulled out a sandwich, and asked, “Really? So, what brought you out here today?”

  “My friend from back home told me I needed to start seeing the sights.”

  Pierce went from looking surprised to looking curious. “Back home?”

  Grinning at him, I explained, “I’m originally from Pennsylvania. I moved here at the end of August.”

  Now Pierce was downright shocked. “No kidding?”

  I shook my head.

  “That explains why I’ve never seen you before. I was thinking about it the day of the fire when I met you. I grew up here and know just about everyone in town. It was bugging me that I hadn’t heard of you or your family. What area are you from?”

  I put the empty container that once held my sandwich back in my backpack and took a sip from my water bottle. Then, I shared, “The northeastern part. It was honestly the perfect location for everything. I lived in an area where the homes all had at least an acre and a half of land each, which offered privacy that I loved having. The nice thing was that it was a mere fifteen-minute drive to civilization. And where I lived, specifically, was centrally located between Philadelphia and New York City. Best of all, the mountains were right in my backyard.”

  Pierce sat there looking at me, contemplating, while he ate.

  Eventually, he spoke. “It sounds like you enjoyed living there. Was that rant you had in your flower shop yesterday the reason why you moved?”

  I took a deep breath and blew it out as I looked away from him and toward the view. “That was the final straw.”

  I didn’t turn back toward Pierce, so I didn’t get to see his reaction.

  Some silence had passed before he spoke. “What do you think of the sights so far then?”

  Letting the melancholy thoughts fade away, I let out a small laugh. “It’s absolutely gorgeous here. Sadly, my best friend, Gwen, is going to be pissed at me.”

  “Why is that?”

  Turning my attention toward him, I explained, “She told me to check out the sights, but she didn’t mean the landscapes.”

  The corners of his mouth tipped up.

  “Why here?” he wondered.

  “Pardon?”

  “What made you come here?”

 
I was not telling him the real reason I was out hiking today. I would have been even more humiliated to admit to him that I’d gained so much weight. Instead, I lifted my shoulders briefly before quickly dropping them. I answered, “I haven’t really left my place since moving here. I needed to get out and get moving again.”

  There was a trace of amusement in his voice when he replied, “I meant Windsor. What made you decide to move to Wyoming?”

  Shaking my head slowly back and forth, I looked back out at the view and said, “I don’t know. I made the decision on a whim, honestly. I just knew I needed to leave where I was. I also knew that wherever I went had to be a place with lots of mountains. The mountains were one of my favorite things about home, so it was important to me to not give them up. Can’t say I made a bad choice if the view I’ve got in front of me is the new place I’m calling home.”

  Pierce didn’t say anything. He was quiet for so long I eventually pulled my eyes from the mountains to look at him. I found his eyes on me, his look a mix of admiration and something else I couldn’t quite put my finger on.

  Deciding to ignore whatever was in his look, I turned the conversation to him. “So, you’ve lived here all your life?”

  His mouth was filled with the last bite of his sandwich, but he still managed to reply, “Since day one.”

  “Do you like it here?”

  “Love it,” he stated, putting his hand out to the top of Blaze’s head to scratch. “I like the small-town atmosphere. Everyone knows everyone, but not in a way that they’re in your business. You’ve got friends, neighbors you can count on, and amazing views like this one. But it’s the winters that are the best. If you like these views now, just wait until you see them in the winter.”

  He was telling me that the place I’d moved to was a good place to live. One with good people. Something I’d already seen from the people who owned the businesses on my block in the days that followed the fire at Harvey’s hardware store. I’d also witnessed it in the news when it was reported how the citizens in the community were stepping up to support the business owners. It warmed my heart to know I’d made a good choice.

  And it warmed my heart even further to know that Pierce, too, liked winter.

  “It’s my favorite season,” I sighed. “I’m actually a bit disappointed with myself for not truly appreciating my first one here.”

  He was sweet when he reminded me, “You had other things on your mind.”

  I wanted to roll my eyes. Not at Pierce, of course. At life. At all of the things that happened that I couldn’t begin to understand. There was so much to sort through, something I knew I needed to do, but none of it was something I wanted to do now. This was mostly because it was sure to put me in a bad headspace, one worse than what I typically lived in. I preferred avoidance instead.

  My silence must have stretched on too long because Pierce spoke again. “Blaze loves the winter, too. We’d be happy to take you sightseeing when the temperatures drop and the snow falls.”

  That sounded fabulous.

  It was also a lifetime away.

  And I had to be realistic.

  The chances that Pierce would still be interested in being around me when winter rolled around were slim.

  Even still, a girl could hope. So, I couldn’t say no.

  “I’ll look forward to it,” I admitted.

  Pierce responded with a smile.

  Glancing at Pierce’s hand running through Blaze’s fur, I realized it’d been far too long since I’d had a man’s hands on me. And seeing his hand right then, I also realized I wanted to feel his hands on me. Of course, I’d felt his fingers wrapped around my arm in my shop yesterday. But that wasn’t what I was craving. I wanted more.

  So much more.

  I needed to pull myself out of my thoughts, so I claimed, “I should probably get moving again.”

  “Are you planning to keep hiking or are you heading back down the mountain?” Pierce asked.

  “I promised myself I wouldn’t go back home until dinner, so I was intending to do a little more hiking.”

  “Care for some company, beautiful?” he offered.

  My heart lurched every time he called me beautiful.

  Unsure of what I was setting myself up for, but not really caring either, I immediately answered, “I’d love some.”

  With that, Pierce stood quickly and held his hand out to me. I stared at it a moment, swallowed hard, but ultimately placed my hand in his. When I did, my eyes locked with his and something swept through me. I didn’t know what it was, but I knew I liked it.

  A lot.

  I had a feeling that Pierce felt something similar move through him because his face changed. Even still, he pushed through it and gave me a light tug.

  After I was standing in front of him, Pierce squeezed my hand gently and dropped it only to place his hand at my lower back. He guided me out from around the rock that was blocking my way to the trail. The sensations I felt from having him touch me were so overwhelming I thought I might trip. Thankfully, I didn’t.

  Pierce called out to Blaze and the three of us made it back to the trail. Once there, I no longer had his hands on me as I put my backpack on again. I instantly felt the loss but didn’t wallow in it too much. This was because, for the first time since moving out to Windsor, I’d had a really great day.

  A handsome guy who called me beautiful, hiked alongside me for the next couple hours. We talked, we laughed, and we got to know one another. In doing that, Pierce gave me the best day I’d had in months. And it was only then I started thinking that Windsor was beginning to feel like home.

  My eyes narrowed on the arrangement in front of me, assessing its worthiness.

  I was nearly through the Mother’s Day week, and it had been brutal. I spent my days fulfilling orders and had very little downtime. My nights were spent preparing bouquets for the following day whenever I happened to fall behind, which was every single night.

  And one of the biggest reasons I fell behind was because I couldn’t say no to anyone. I was so determined for Petals to be a success that even though I was a one-woman show and was performing the superhuman task of taking on more work than was physically possible, I refused to turn anyone away.

  If someone called to order a bouquet or walked in hoping to have an arrangement made for the special woman in their life, I was going to do whatever I had to do to make sure they had it. I also made sure they had the absolute best I could give them.

  This was precisely the reason why I was now in my shop on Saturday morning two hours before I opened. I had stayed late last night getting all of my remaining orders for today finished.

  All of them but two.

  The two that Pierce would be picking up today before I closed.

  Not only was it going to be the first day I would be seeing him since we’d hiked together on Sunday afternoon, but it was also the day that we were going to be figuring out the details of our date. I was beyond excited for it.

  Throughout the week, despite my busy schedule, I found my thoughts often drifted to him. We’d had such a great time on our hike on Sunday and he was so easy to be around. I never felt any pressure from him, and there was never any awkwardness between us. I realized he was true to his word when he told me that we could take the time to get to know each other as friends.

  And because I appreciated that he was giving that to me, I left those two floral arrangements he had ordered to be completed this morning. I wanted to have a fresh eye, so I set my alarm for a time much earlier than Callie would wake. I had been doing that all week since I needed the extra time in the shop in the mornings to finish up last-minute orders. As the week progressed, I found myself dreading the alarm clock, but when it went off this morning, I sprung up and got a move on. I made my breakfast, got myself ready, fed Callie, and was down in the shop just before eight o’clock.

  Now I was here and had put the finishing touches on the first one. I decided to start with the one for Pierce’s mothe
r. Pierce hadn’t given me much direction other than to tell me to use daises. I wanted to do something a little extra, so I pulled out a short, square glass vase for the arrangement, which I wrapped some satin ribbon around and adhered it using a hot glue gun. For the bouquet, I used an assortment of ballet-slipper-colored gerbera daisies, white hydrangeas, and bubblegum-colored roses. The colors looked beautiful together and when I accented them with some lush greens, it looked even better.

  Satisfied with how it turned out, I set it aside and moved on to creating the arrangement for Pierce’s twin sister. I’d selected a tall, slender glass vase for her arrangement. In it, I put only brilliant white roses surrounded by baby blue and sapphire hydrangeas. It took me some time to get all of the flowers positioned just right inside the bouquet since my goal was to have them packed tightly together. I eventually managed to get it perfect and put both bouquets into the cooler, where they’d stay until Pierce came to pick them up.

  By the time I’d finished cleaning up the mess I’d made, it was a few minutes before I was scheduled to open. Looking outside, I saw there were already three clients waiting. It was time to get down to business and make it through the final day of the busiest and most successful week I’d had since opening my shop.

  Moving to the door, I opened it up and let everyone in. Two of the clients had already placed orders and were merely there to pick them up. The third was hoping to pick up a last-minute bouquet. I still had some bouquets that I’d done up in nice vases, baskets, tins, and boxes instead of leaving them in the standard plastic floral wraps. He was happy to find an arrangement he believed his wife would like already done in one of the tin buckets. No sooner did those three clients leave when two more walked in.

  The rest of the day I’d dealt with a steady flow of customers. I had expected most of them would be those who were picking up their orders, but I was surprised to see just how many people were walking in at the last minute in hopes of finding something special for their loved one.

  When it was fifteen minutes before closing time, I started thinking a bit more about whether I could officially be labeled crazy. Throughout the entire day, I hadn’t managed to take a break. It was nonstop from the moment I opened the doors, and there wasn’t a time throughout the day when I didn’t have at least one other person in the store with me.