“You know those roses aren’t going to last through the whole flight, right?” Hanna held back a chuckle as the man sat down next to her with a huge bouquet of roses. “You probably should have waited till you landed. Do airports have flower shops? I’ve never checked.”
The man groaned, holding the flowers up and away from him. “Kill me now.”
“Are you going to hold them like that the whole flight?”
He speared her with an exasperated look. “Are you going to ask me personal questions the whole flight?”
Shrugging she settled back and leaned a little away from him. “No. I plan on ignoring you from here on out.” With that, she grabbed her headphones. Usually she would push herself to be social before she disappeared behind her book and music but that inclination had vanished at her neighbors continued scowl.
As she was fumbling to get the earbud in her ear and get the music started he sighed and shoved the entire bouquet under the seat in front of him, kicking it once. Hanna’s fingers froze and without thinking she looked over at the man’s face. His sheepish blush had her laughing.
“They really aren’t going to last if you do that.” She muttered, more to herself.
“What?”
Earbuds firmly in place she pointed to them and shook her head with a smile. When he mimed pulling them out she shook her head again. “I am minding my own business and not interacting with anyone at all. Not asking any annoying questions. Just me and my book.”
He left her alone, watching the stewardess explain the emergency exits and seatbelts. It wasn’t until the plane took off that he turned back her way and tapped her hand. She did not move, eyes fixed on her book. Out of the corner of her eye she watched him pull out a pen and write on the napkin that came with his drink. He slid it over.
I’m sorry.
After a few seconds he took the napkin back and wrote on it again.
I didn’t get the roses for anyone.
With an exaggerated sigh Hanna put the book down. “I thought you wanted me to keep out of it.”
“It’s a long flight and I forgot my headphones.” He held out his hand. “Can we start over? I’m Reed.”
“Hanna. Does this mean you’ll tell me about the roses?”
He kicked the flowers again. “They are from a girl.”
“Some girl gave you flowers?” She peered down at them again. “I hope you knew her.”
“I did. Do. We used to date.”
“And she didn’t get the no-longer-dating notice? Or refuses to accept?”
Shaking his head, he glanced back over at her. “I don’t know how I could make it any more clear to her. We haven’t been dating for months now. We don’t call or text or anything. Yet somehow she knew I was leaving today and knew when to show up to say goodbye and everything.”
“Stalker leave a card with the pretty flowers?”
He pulled a bright pink, heavily scented envelope from his backpack and dropped it in her lap. “I haven’t opened it yet. I didn’t want to kill anyone with the toxic fumes.”
“So you give it to me?” Hanna held it out and away from her. Someone must have dipped it in perfume and kept it in a sealed bag for it to be so strong still. “I don’t have a death wish.”
“I figured you might be able to stand it long enough to read it and tell me if she is going to follow me and murder me in my sleep.”
She shoved the card at him. “Why me?”
He shoved it back. “You are a woman. You have perfume too.”
“I don’t bathe in it.” He gave her the saddest puppy-dog-eyes plea. “Oh fine.”
Quickly ripping open the envelope Hanna pulled out the card and dropped the envelope on the ground. Scanning it, she laughed. “You won’t have to worry about her following but you probably won’t ever want to go back.”
“Why?”
Bumping shoulder to shoulder she lay her head on his broad shoulder and batted her eyes up at him. “Your one true love promises to have everything ready for the wedding by the time you get back.”
“No.” He instantly snatched it out of her grasp and read it himself. “No.”
Still chuckling, Hanna eased away and opened her book back up. “Don’t ask me to pretend to be your fiance or wife to get out of this. I have read way too many books and watched too many movies to fall for that line.”
“It would be rather clever.” He chuckled and elbowed her arm lightly, just enough to get her attention. “Besides, didn’t those all end in true love and happily ever afters? I could be you Prince Charming.”
She scoffed and pushed him away. “Only if you hadn’t heard it a thousand times before.”
“You have men begging you to be their fake wife often?” Now he looked beyond surprised and totally transfixed.
“No!” She held up her book. “Books. Movies. Not me.”
“Ahh. So are you dating someone?”
Dropping her book into her lap, she glared at him. “Is that relevant?”
“It is if I want you to have drinks with me. I wouldn’t ask if you are already in love with someone else.”
Raising her eyebrow she looked him over, studying him for a second.
He pointed up at the call button. “I believe there are the options of ginger ale, water, sprite, or diet coke. What do you say? Will your boyfriend beat me up at arrivals for even daring to ask you?”
She held for another minute before conceding. “No boyfriend to worry about here. Though I do worry about your rosy ex if she hears about this. Maybe she hid a camera or recording device in the flowers.”
He winked. “I kicked it already.”
Laughing, Hanna nodded. “Wise choice. In that case, you can get me a ginger ale.”
With a gentlemanly bow, or as close to it as he could get while sitting strapped into an airplane seat, he reached up and pressed the call button.
