Sweet Dandelion

“Sure, I’ll try one.” I shrug, sliding onto one of the barstools. I put the gift on the counter beside me. He grabs a literal cake display that houses his cookies. “You made these?” I blurt in surprise.

“Yeah.” He lifts the glass dome off, allowing me to grab one.

“You cook and bake?” I wiggle the cookie between us. “All right, Martha Stewart.”

He shakes his head at me, his lips curling in the tiniest of smiles as he waits for me to take a bite.

I do, only a nibble at first. Humming, I cover my mouth in case crumbs fall. “That’s delicious.”

He chuckles, bracing his arms on the counter in front of me. “You can have another before you go.”

“How about all of them?” I bargain.

He presses his lips together to hide a smile.

Looking around, I notice the tree put up in the corner—far nicer than Sage’s hand-me-down everything. A few presents rest beneath and that’s when I recall him telling me his family was coming to visit.

“Should I be here?” I whisper-hiss, still holding half a cookie in my hand. “Isn’t your family here?” I look around like they’re going to jump out from behind the couch or from a closet to yell, “Surprise!”

He comes around the kitchen counter, standing beside me. “No, they come in tomorrow.”

Finishing my cookie, I blow out a breath. “Why’d you ask me to come?”

His eyes drift to the present sitting on his granite countertop. “I got you something. Seems we both did.” He holds up a hand for me to wait where I am. He hurries over to the tree and grabs two small gift-wrapped packages below. He returns, holding them out to me.

I take them gently, smiling at how neatly wrapped they are. The snowmen smile cheerily up at me and little penguins dance on ice. I would’ve expected maybe something more manly, like plaid paper, but I like that this reflects his playful side.

Sliding him his present, he grabs it, holding it delicately between his big hands.

I bite my lip nervously, feeling silly now for what I bought. It was a total whim, but when I saw the advertisement for it online I knew it was the most perfect gift ever for him. I wasn’t expecting anything in return, but I’m more than a little excited to see what reminded him of me.

“One, two, three,” he counts down and we both rip into our presents.

The first of mine reveals a mini green camera that prints photos. “I saw it and it reminded me of you for some reason,” he explains with a hesitant shrug.

“I think it’s awesome.” He stares down at the plain cardboard box in his hands. “Come on, take it out,” I encourage, eager to see what he thinks.

With a grin, he does, pulling out the metal device. “Wha—” He starts to ask, then sees the sheet with it and the sticker of what exactly the metal device does.

“It’s an embosser,” I explain, though it’s probably not necessary. “I noticed you always wrote your name in your books. Now, you can use this.” I tap it, already eager to see his printed books with the round raised edges and his name neatly inlaid among it.

“This book belongs to Lachlan Matthew Taylor,” he reads what I had inscribed on it, so he can use it to press into the title pages of the books he owns. “Dani, this is … I don’t think I’ve ever been given such a thoughtful gift.”

I shrug like it’s no big deal, but inside I’m giddy that he loves it so much.

“You have one more,” he reminds me, flicking his fingers at the still wrapped box in my hands, the other lying on the counter.

“Oh, right.”

I remove the paper, revealing a brand new e-reader, also green.

“I wanted to get yellow for both,” he explains. “I know it’s your favorite color, but I couldn’t, so I hope green comes a close second.”

“How do you know yellow is my favorite?”

“You always wear it, and even if you can’t see it, I can always feel your sunshine.”

He doesn’t know it, but his words hit me hard.