~SCARLETT.

I blinked at him.

Once.

Twice.

"You like me?" I echoed, like he'd just spoken in Morse code.

And then I burst into a full-blown, body-shaking laugh that echoed across the yard and made him flinch.

"Good one," I said, wiping a tear from the corner of my eye. "You really had me there for a second."

But he didn't laugh. Just stood there, clutching that awkward little bouquet, amber eyes painfully sincere, like he'd just confessed something sacred.

Oh God.

He was serious.

The laughter died on my lips. "Wait... you're not joking?"

He shook his head slowly, and I stared at him, stunned. "How do you even...