War and Roses by Kat Baxter

Chapter 9

Jacob

I wake up alone and I know Bethany has been gone for a while because the sheets beside me are cold. My hand finds a piece of paper when I feel up to the pillow. I pull the note to my face to read it.

Thanks for a great night. Good luck with your interview and email me sometime when you land wherever you're going.

Bethany

I sit up. What the actual fuck? That's it?

Did she just one and done me?

Fuck that noise.

I glance at the alarm clock on the nightstand and realize that I actually slept in. That never happens. But it's already nearly ten in the morning. I've got to get ready and go find Bethany because we're not done yet.

I know she's still holding something back from me. I knew something was off last night when she wouldn't take off her shirt. She's got a secret. I know that she hinted at some health problems that she had, and I can't help but wonder if maybe it was breast cancer or something. The thought of her having to endure something like that makes my stomach roll with nausea.

Especially alone because I know her family is gone. I don't like the thought of her going through anything like that. And I sure as fuck don't like the idea that she thinks she can't share everything with me.

I know she loves me too, but she's scared. My beautiful girl is definitely hiding a secret that she thinks will change how I feel about her. But she's wrong. I crumple her note and toss it in the trash, then take a shower. Twenty minutes later, I'm dressed and outside waiting for a ride-share. I probably should just rent a car, but for now, this will work.

When I arrive at Petal Pushers, I immediately go inside.

"Maggie? Right?" I ask the woman behind the counter. She's trimming flower stems and making some kind of arrangement.

"Yes," she says. She pauses her work. "She's not here. And today I'm not even lying about it." Her lips twitch in a grin.

"She told you I found her afterwards?"

Maggie gives me a tight nod. "She did."

"So when will she be back in?"

"Not until Monday, actually."

I blow out a breath. "She's running from me."

"Are you planning to chase her?" Maggie asks.

"To the ends of the Earth."

Again, her lips twitch and this time she sets down her clippers and the flower stems.

"Are you going to tell me what her secret is?" I plant my hands on the counter. "Because I know she has one. Something that she thinks is going to make me not want her."

"Is it?" she asks.

"Going to make me not want her? Not even a little bit."

Maggie shakes her head. "I can't tell her secret. She'll tell you if she wants to. But I might be persuaded to help you." She plants firsts on her hips. "I have some questions though."

I nod.

"If this is just about you getting laid, there are easier women to seduce," Maggie says, her eyes narrowed.

"No. That's not what it's about. I'm in love with her," I tell Maggie. "No holds barred, all-in, ready to drop to one knee in love with her."

This gets me a full Maggie smile. "That's what I was hoping you'd say. Then here's what you need to do. First, and foremost you must be patient with her. Her ex did a number on her. So she's not just gun shy, she's given up."

"Given up?"

"On love, romance." Maggie waves her hands around. "Whatever you want to call it. She just made a decision that it's not for her. So her heart is completely locked up."

I shake my head. "She might think she has her heart locked up. But she loves me. I know she does."

"I know she does too. But you're going to have to fight for her."

"Well, then it's a damn good thing I'm trained in battle."

Maggie explains that Bethany called her last night and begged to take the job that Maggie had booked for the weekend. A flower show at a big resort called The Montgomery in Corpus Christi. It's an overnight thing and Bethany is already there. Then Maggie calls the hotel and works some kind of magic securing me a key to Bethany's room, while also managing to convince the hotel staff to keep it a secret from Bethany herself.

Evidently, I'm her boyfriend home from the service and I'm here to surprise her. It's not even a lie. At least not completely.

Maggie uses her lunch break to drop me off at the car rental place and threatens me within an inch of my life if I hurt Bethany. I like that she's as protective of my girl as she is.

Once I have the car, I run some errands getting the supplies I need. By three, I'm using the keycard to enter Bethany's room. It's dark and empty, but I can see her things dropped on the bed. So now I just have to get things ready and hope I can finish before she gets here. I sit down at the table with a Sharpie and a stack of Post-it notes and start writing.