More surprises...?

Shrinking back from Cameron I steadied myself and took a few deep breaths. Hayden really didn’t have anything to be mad about, if anything I should be the one who was frustrated. He was so short with me, always irritated about one thing or another.

“Well, guess that would be your cue to go. Looks like he has been waiting for you to get home,” Cameron

remarked, echoing my thoughts and pulling back into forward position and giving Hayden a slight nod.

“Guess I better.” Reluctantly I pulled open the door and stepped outside. It was a beautiful night really, and regardless of his attitude, I wanted to tell Hayden my good news.

Looking over towards me, and yet avoiding eye contact, Hayden glanced toward Cameron returning his nod of acknowledgement, and then went inside.

Pushing forward I walked up the front steps and into his townhome. Instantly hitting me was the smell of Hayden. He smelled like cinnamon and firewood, with an earthy undertone. Being in his house, there was no way of escaping it, and the scent literally made me weak in the knees. Had I been paying better attention to my surroundings, and less time lusting after my boyfriend, I would have picked up on the trail of violet rose petals leading up the front porch.

Halting and spinning around after finally noticing I walked back and allowed myself to follow the trail. Winding past his kitchen counter and into the bedroom I noticed the familiar flickering of candles through the crack in his door. My heart kicked up a few notches, and I took off my coat and hung it up on the antique coat rack I had bought Hayden on our last anniversary, smiling at the memory of him walking in

and finding it set up.

“I really do love that coat rack” Hayden remarked, smirking as he watched me looking at it, knowing exactly which memory I was caught up in.

Startled I looked up to find Hayden leaning against his bedroom doorframe with a look on his face like the cat who ate the canary. “What are you smiling about over there? Aren’t you supposed to be mad at me,” although the last remark came out breathless as I focused on the more finer points of him. Starting from the floor up I noticed the muscles in his legs flexing slightly as he shifted on his toes, to his abs flexing back and forth as he reached toward me.

“I’m smiling because you look absolutely sexy right now babe. Did you have a good day?” He retorted, chuckling to himself.

“As a matter of fact I did, and it looks like it is about to get better,” I reasoned, waving my hands over the petals, and finishing off with a glance at the now open door.

“You better believe it is,” and with that he closed the gap between us wrapping his arms around me, sliding his fingers up my shirt.

“Mmm, sometimes there is nothing better than having a great day, and coming home to you.”

“I know babe,” Hayden murmured into my hair, “but what I really want, is to hear about his amazing day you had.”

“You won’t even believe it. It was the most amazing thing.”

“Try me Liv,” pulling me into the bedroom.

Inside was beautiful, there were candles all along the top shelves he had lining the dark gray walls, inside mason jars of different heights. Along the windowsill were three vases filled with violet, red, and white roses, each with a ribbon of the alternating colors, and a single string of crystals wrapped around. In between the vases were more candles, reflecting off the crystals casting small sparkles onto the walls. The bed was covered in even more petals, and it single handedly had to be one of the most beautiful things anyone had ever done for me.

Bashfully Hayden’s upper lip lifted into the smallest of smiles, the one that I like to think he reserved just for me, “Well, what do you think? Is this the proper setting for you to tell me about your amazing thing?”

“It is more than that, what is all this?” Laughing a slipped off my shoes and laid onto the bed.

“I knew.” A simple enough statement, and yet it caught me completely caught me off guard.

“Knew what, exactly?”

“I knew about Maggie, and Cameron, and the shop, the deal, I knew about it all.”

“Are you kidding me right now Hayden?” I couldn’t decide if I was irritated at him for fooling me, elated that he hadn’t actually been mad at me, or frustrated that I didn’t get to tell him my news myself.

“Liv, don’t get mad. I didn’t mean to spoil your fun of telling me yourself, I just don’t like keeping things from you.”

Standing up I walked over to Hayden and rested my hands up on his shoulders, “Hayden…”