“I don’t even know what to say.” She wasn’t sure what to even think. It was hard to accept help, but this was help for Emmalee’s thing, not hers, so it made it easier. And as much as she would’ve said no if Connor asked if she wanted help, she was so glad that he made the drive from Denver to Mountain Springs and showed up without asking. Shedidneed his help. And it would be so much more fun with him there. “Thank you. Really.”
“Anytime,” he said as he walked over to the table, gently pushed some cuttings away from a couple of spots, and set the bag down. He gave a little involuntary shiver. “You’re right— it does feel like a fridge in here.”
“Wait. How did you know where I live?” Her eyebrows were creased in confusion yet she couldn’t help but admire his strong face, the piercing blue eyes, the scar that ran along his jawline on the right.
“You said your roommate owned a little flower shop on Main Street, and there happens to be only one. So I went there, introduced myself, and asked for your address.”
And, of course, Emmalee recognized him, because she would recognize any hockey player, and she was probably ecstatic to know that one would be helping with her business.
“Extra points to you for being so thoughtful and resourceful.”
“Don’t forget bonus points for bringing food.”
“I never forget to award bonus points for food. How many, though, depends on what you brought.”
“Sandwiches and soup from The Cozy Cabin.”
“Are you serious?” Katie hurried to the bag, opened it, and did, indeed, smell the comforting goodness of The Cozy Cabin’s butternut squash soup. She hadn’t realized exactly how hungry she was until her stomach growled just knowing the delectable food was so close. “How did you know?”
“When we left the community center, you glanced over at the building. Your eyes widened just a bit and I heard a faint rumble from your stomach.”
She just stared at Connor. “For real?”
Connor chuckled softly. “No. I asked your roommate what you would most appreciate, and then I went there and got it.”
She smacked his shoulder playfully with the back of her hand. Then she pulled the items out of the bag. “Have you ever eaten at The Cozy Cabin before?”
He shook his head no.
“Oh, you’re in for a treat. Sit.”
As they ate lunch, Katie moaned a couple of times at just how good the food was. She might have been a little hungrier than she realized. But she was pretty sure she heard Connor moan a few times, too.
Katie told him about all that needed to be done— six more boutonnieres, eight bridesmaid bouquets, and a dozen centerpieces, and that wasn’t even counting all the pieces that Emmalee needed to do herself, like the floral swag and arches.
Once they finished eating, she taught Connor how to make a boutonniere, and they both started working on them. Katie couldn’t help sneaking peeks at Connor. This tall, muscled man normally glided across the ice in padded gear, fending off other players as he hit a puck with a stick.
Today, he sat at her kitchen table, surrounded by flowers, holding small, delicate ones in his big hands, trying to gently hold them while intently wrapping floral tape around a small stem. If she didn’t think that it would ruin the moment to pull out her video camera, she would’ve tried to capture it. Instead, she attempted to burn it into her memory because it might just be one of her favorite things she’d ever witnessed.
They had finished four of the six remaining boutonnieres when Connor said, “There is no way the two of us can do all those things you listed before we have to meet at your parents tonight. There’s a guy on my new team, Erik Henderson, that I’d like to become better friends with. Do you mind if I text him to see if he’s free to come help?”
The words “no way” sounded like a challenge. And she was always up for a challenge. The words “more help” were something her very core wanted to say “no” to.
But this wasn’t help for her; it was for Emmalee. There was only so much help that Katie could offer herself, and Emmaleewas really never going to be able to go to bed tonight if she didn’t have lots and lots of help. It might not even be possible for her to pull it off before the wedding tomorrow. Besides, she liked the idea of playing a small part in Connor making friends with a teammate. “That would be great.”
When they finished the last of the boutonnieres and got the boxes of them moved to the kitchen counters, they worked side by side to clear the table of all the debris and get everything gathered for the centerpieces. She was just about to start explaining what they needed to do when there was another knock at the door.
This time, Connor was the one to answer it. And instead of a hockey player on the other side of the door, it was four of them. The one with sandy blond hair at the front, who Katie was pretty sure they called Henderson, said, “These loafers weren’t doing anything productive, so I convinced them to come, too. Can we all help?”
Connor turned to her with an eyebrow raised in question and a grin on his face that made her suddenly wish she knew what he looked like as a ten-year-old.
“Of course! The more the merrier.”
One of the guys gave an exaggerated shiver and said, “Feels like a hockey game in here.”
A second added, “Except for the flowers.”
“Nah,” the first one said, “it just means we played well. Like when fans throw flowers on the ice after figure skaters do their thing.”
