Whispers in the Wisteria
Rose Thorne
A romance blooms between a florist and a mysterious stranger who visits her shop every day at dusk, but he carries a secret that could tear them apart.
The bell above the door chimed, and Lily looked up from arranging peonies.
He was there again. The same time as yesterday. And the day before. And the day before that.
He was tall, with dark hair that fell across his forehead and eyes that seemed to hold entire galaxies. He wore a simple grey coat, always the same one, and he always went straight to the wisteria.
"Back again?" Lily asked, wiping her hands on her apron.
He smiled, a small, almost sad thing. "They remind me of someone."
"Someone you lost?"
The silence stretched. She thought he wouldn't answer.
"My wife," he finally said. "She loved wisteria. We had a trellis of it in our garden, back when..."
"When?"
"When we had a home. Before the fire."
Lily's breath caught. She knew that story. Everyone in town knew the story. The Henderson house, burned to the ground five years ago. The wife had died in the blaze. The husband had vanished.
"Ethan?" she whispered.
He looked at her, and for the first time, his eyes were fully present.
"You remembered."
He was there again. The same time as yesterday. And the day before. And the day before that.
He was tall, with dark hair that fell across his forehead and eyes that seemed to hold entire galaxies. He wore a simple grey coat, always the same one, and he always went straight to the wisteria.
"Back again?" Lily asked, wiping her hands on her apron.
He smiled, a small, almost sad thing. "They remind me of someone."
"Someone you lost?"
The silence stretched. She thought he wouldn't answer.
"My wife," he finally said. "She loved wisteria. We had a trellis of it in our garden, back when..."
"When?"
"When we had a home. Before the fire."
Lily's breath caught. She knew that story. Everyone in town knew the story. The Henderson house, burned to the ground five years ago. The wife had died in the blaze. The husband had vanished.
"Ethan?" she whispered.
He looked at her, and for the first time, his eyes were fully present.
"You remembered."
Chapter 1