Page 6 of Fragile Hearts (Hibiscus Hearts #3)

God, I want to kiss this woman so damn bad.

There’s a part of me that wants to believe Sloane wants me to kiss her too, especially with the way she’s looking at me right now. But I also know that I have to be very careful with this girl. I’m only going to get one shot at getting this right, and I definitely don’t want to blow it.

“Get it?” I murmur, my eyes locked with hers as she wipes the dish towel on my jaw.

Sloane licks her lips, nodding as she whispers, “Uh huh.”

We’re caught in this weird kind of limbo right now, and I know I should move, that I need to be the one to stop things from going any further, because I don’t think Sloane is quite there yet.

Thankfully, my phone chimes out with a text message, stopping me from doing something stupid like kissing her before she’s ready for it.

Sloane drops her hand, and I turn to where my phone lies on the kitchen counter.

Alana: So not to guilt you into it or anything, but Mochi is really missing Sloane.

She’s attached a picture of the dog lying on the floor with his head between his paws and what could seriously be described as a sad expression on his face.

I know Alana kind of inherited Mochi from Flynn’s former employer, but I also know that it was Sloane who he really gravitated to.

She used to take him everywhere when she lived with them, and even after Alana moved in with Flynn, Mochi stayed at the house with Sloane and Daisy.

I wonder if she’s missing him just as much. Smiling, I quickly type out a response to Alana.

Me: I’ll come and grab him tomorrow. He can hang here too. It’s cool.

Me: Don’t tell Sloane though. I want it to be a surprise.

Alana: Softie! But sounds good, see u.

Laughing, I slide my phone into my pocket, looking up to find Sloane watching me. “Everything okay?” she asks.

“Yep,” I say, tipping my head toward the dough she is kneading. “Okay, what do you need me to do?”

We make the pizzas in a comfortable silence together, our only conversation to ask for an ingredient or to check that we aren’t making the same pizza. When we’re done, we head out to the deck to cook them, and I grab us a couple of beers to drink while we wait.

“So, how’d your test go today?” I ask before taking a long swig of beer.

Sloane blinks, a flash of surprise crossing her face. “Ummm, it went good, thanks. How was your day?”

I shrug. “All good, the usual really. Flynn helped out with a lesson this morning. The kids went ballistic when I told them who he was.”

Sloane laughs. “Sounds about right. I think they head to Oahu soon, right?” she asks. “I hope Daisy can look after Mochi while they’re gone.”

I really want to tell her that she can look after him because I don’t mind him being here, especially if it’s going to make her feel more comfortable and at home.

But I also want to surprise her with him tomorrow, so I keep quiet, instead replying with, “I’m sure it’ll be cool,” as I check on the pizzas.

“Alright, these look done. You ready for our pizza and movie night?”

“Have you decided what we’re watching?” Sloane asks as I slide first her pizza and then mine onto the cutting boards.

“Yep,” I reply with a nod, cutting the pizzas before carrying everything inside to the coffee table. I quickly grab two plates and some paper towels before dropping onto the couch.

“And?” she asks.

I grab the remote, scrolling through the streaming services until I find it. “We’re gonna do a Fast and Furious marathon,” I tell her, loading up the first movie.

“A car movie?” Sloane deadpans.

Laughing, I pat the couch next to me. “This is way more than just a car movie , Sloane,” I say, air quoting the words.

She raises a skeptical brow as she sits beside me. “Really? Because it kinda looks exactly like a car movie,” she says.

I grab a slice of each pizza and put them on a plate before handing it to Sloane. “Nope, it’s action, adventure, even a bit of romance,” I say, giving her a wink.

She smirks, taking the plate as she settles back into the couch. “Hmmm, we’ll see,” she murmurs, and I can tell she doesn’t believe me.

Chuckling, I grab some pizza for myself and sit back. Turning to her, I say, “Tell you what, next week, you can pick the movie.”

“Next week?”

“Uh huh,” I reply with a nod. “We can do pizza and movie night every week. Sound good?”

Sloane nods slowly, her expression unreadable as she lifts a slice of pizza and takes a bite. I watch as her eyes widen before she looks down, realizing she has eaten the one I made.

“Figured we could share them both,” I say quietly. “Is that cool?”

She swallows, blinking at me as she says, “Yeah, that’s cool.”

When the credits on the movie roll, I turn to Sloane, who’s curled into the corner of the couch, her eyes glued to the screen. “Okay, verdict?”

She lets out a laugh, stretching her legs out so they rest on the coffee table. “That was totally a car movie, Owen,” she says, grinning at me.

“But not just a car movie, am I right?”

Her grin turns to a smirk as she shakes her head a little. “Maybe not just ,” she says, glancing at the screen again. “So like, how many of them are there?”

“Oh, there are twelve of them if you count the spin-off.”

“Twelve?” Sloane repeats, her eyes wide.

“Yep, twelve. It’s legit got a cult following, you know. The early ones are kinda old now, obviously, but my cousin got me onto them, and now I’m hooked.”

Sloane laughs, shaking her head a little as she says, “Okay, guess I better watch all of them then.”

“So that’s your pick for next week?”

“Guess you’ll just have to wait and see, won’t you?” she teases, and I swear, I think I fall even harder for this girl every day.

The next day, Sloane and I both wake early, having coffee and breakfast on the deck again before Sloane leaves for class and I leave for work. When I walk into the shop, both Flynn and Alana are already there, and she greets me with a smile as she says, “So, Mochi’s moving in too, huh?”

I roll my eyes as Flynn laughs, leaning back against the counter with his arms crossed over his chest. “You said it yourself, Alana, he misses Sloane. Letting him move in is the right thing to do,” I tell her.

“Riiiiiight,” she says, walking over to stand beside Flynn, who immediately throws an arm around her shoulders and pulls her close. “Pretty sure you’re also trying to score brownie points with your new roommate,” she adds.

I smirk at her, my gaze flicking to Flynn, who’s grinning at me. “Just trying to make her feel at home,” I say. “Anyway, aren’t you two heading to Oahu soon for Pipe Masters? Who was gonna look after Mochi then?”

Alana snorts out a laugh. “Yep, keep telling yourself that’s why you’re doing this, Owen.”

Flynn rolls her into him, pressing a kiss to her temple as he says, “Don’t be too mean, babe. Owen here has been pining for his girl for ages. He’s just trying to up his game now.”

I scoff, shaking my head at them both. “Whatever,” I reply.

Flynn laughs. “You know it’s true, dude. You said it yourself; you’re just waiting for the right time, and I think now that Sloane is living with you, it’s totally the right time.”

“Jesus,” I reply, shaking my head at both of them. “Just because you two are surfing world’s new power couple, don’t think you can just start doling out relationship advice,” I say, teasing them a little.

Alana smiles, looking up at Flynn as she says, “Are we surfing world’s new power couple?” There’s a playful tone to her voice, and I know she’s loving every second of this.

“Fuck yeah we are,” Flynn replies, just as Nate and Sage come in through the back door to the shop.

“You are what?” Nate asks, looking from Flynn to me.

“Surfing world’s new power couple,” Alana says.

Nate snorts out a laugh, rolling his eyes as he says, “Oh my god, I see placing at Pipe has gone straight to your head.”

Alana reaches over, punching Nate in the arm as Flynn laughs, pulling her back to him. “You know it’s true, Petersen,” he says with a grin. “But looks like you won’t need to look after Mochi next month because Owen here is upping his game and letting the fluffball move in with him and Sloane.”

I groan as Sage lets out an excited yelp, clapping her hands as she turns to me and asks, “How’s it all going? Has Sloane settled in? Don’t forget her favorite food is from that dive place at the other end of Turtle Beach.”

I slow-blink, my gaze moving around my circle of friends, who are all standing there grinning at me as I wonder when this suddenly turned into a relationship advice session.

I don’t need their advice when it comes to Sloane.

I know exactly what I’m doing, even if the fact she’s turned me down for more dinners than I can count suggests otherwise.

“He misses her,” I blurt out, and they all burst out laughing.

“Yep, you keep telling yourself that,” Nate says, giving me a thumbs-up, before he turns to Alana. “Now, are we working this morning or are we gossiping?”

She rolls her eyes at him. “Since when did you turn into such a hardass?”

“Since I became your boss,” Nate fires back, pointing a finger at her.

Alana crosses her arms over her chest. “Sage is also my boss.”

Now it’s Nate rolling his eyes at Alana, and I swear these two might not be related, but holy fuck, do they act like they are. It’s all for fun though, because even though they might like to give each other a ton of shit, deep down, it’s obvious they really care for each other.

I glance at Flynn, who is chuckling at this whole interaction. He might be relatively new to our group, but he’s seen enough to know what Alana and Nate are like.

“Who exactly is working here today?” I ask, glancing around.

“You two,” Nate says, pointing a finger at me and Alana. “Flynn, you ready to check out some of the sketches I’ve done for your board?” he asks, turning to Flynn.

Flynn rubs his hands together, a huge smile on his face as he says, “Hell yes, let’s do it.” He kisses Alana goodbye in a way that is borderline obscene before he, Nate and Sage head back upstairs, leaving me and Alana alone in the shop.

“It’s good, you know,” she says when they’ve all gone.

“What’s good?”

Alana smiles, all teasing gone as she says, “What you’re doing for Sloane. Letting her stay with you, taking Mochi. It’s good.”

I huff out a laugh, shaking my head a little as I say, “Yeah, well, I think we all know how I feel about Sloane, don’t we?”

Alana laughs, walking over and wrapping her arm around my waist. “Yeah, we do,” she says. “And so does Sloane.”

“Does she?” I ask, wondering if that’s really true.

I mean, yeah, I’ve asked her out a million times, but it’s always been casual, just a dinner or lunch or something that maybe she thinks is no big deal.

I’ve done other stuff for her too, but then again, I do stuff for all my friends, so maybe that’s all she thinks we are.

Maybe she has no idea how I really feel about her.

“She does, Owen, seriously,” Alana confirms. “She just needs time. It’s not that she doesn’t trust you or whatever.

It’s just hard for her to open up. Even harder for her to let people in.

It took months before she finally admitted to me that she was in the system, and that’s after she knew I was friends with that douche,” she says, pointing to the ceiling where Nate and Sage’s apartment is.

I blow out a breath, nodding because if anyone is going to know how Sloane really feels, it’s Alana. “Yeah, I get that,” I say. “And look, I’m not going anywhere.”

Alana smirks, squeezing my waist once more before letting go. “Good, that’s literally the one thing you can do for her that she will really appreciate.”

Chuckling, I say, “That and bring her dog home, right?”

After I finish up work, I head over to Flynn and Alana’s place to pick up Mochi and his things. Alana hands over about a million toys and beds and shit, while Flynn packs up all the leftover food in a bag.

“Bye, baby,” Alana croons, cradling his face in her hands.

Flynn laughs, gently tugging on his tail as he says, “Laters, fluffball. Be good.”

“You know you guys can come visit, don’t you?” I tease.

“Yeah, yeah,” Alana responds, holding the dog out for me. “Quick, take him and go make Sloane happy.”

Laughing, I lift Mochi’s paw and wave it goodbye to them before heading over to my car. On the drive home, Mochi sits quietly in the passenger seat, the window half open and the breeze blowing all his fluff back from his face.

He actually looks excited too, his mouth open like he’s smiling and his tongue hanging out the side.

When I pull into the driveway, I see Sloane’s car, and I smile, knowing she’s already home and I’m about to hopefully make her day. Beside me, Mochi lets out an excited yelp, as though he too recognizes her car and knows he’s about to see her.

“Alright, bud, you ready?” I ask, scooping him up. Mochi licks my face, and I laugh, getting out of the car. “Yeah, I know you’re excited to see her too,” I say to him as I unlock the front door and walk inside. “Sloane?” I call out, making my way through the living room to the kitchen.

“Out here!” she calls, and the second Mochi hears her, he starts going berserk, jumping about in my arms and letting out all these excited yelps.

Sloane obviously hears it because in two seconds she’s standing in front of me, a shocked look on her face as she takes in me and the dog. “Oh my god, what is he doing here?” she asks, coming over to take him from my arms.

Chuckling, I hand him over, smiling as she hugs him to her chest, Mochi clearly loving the attention she is giving him. When I don’t answer, she looks up at me, her eyes wide and a huge smile on her face as she says, “Owen?”

Grinning, I step closer, running my hand over the little dog as I say, “Apparently, he was missing you. Thought maybe he should move in too.”