Saint Sloan (Saint Sloan #1)(38)

“Enough!” Sloan broke the stalemate. “Enough with you two and your games. This is bigger than you so get over it.” She wasn’t talking to either one in particular. “Aaron, just tell me what you learned. Who sent the flowers?” She rubbed her eyes to keep them focused on him. She really needed to eat so the fuzziness would go away, but she didn’t think her stomach would keep it down.

“Did anyone send any today?” Aaron asked.

Sloan sighed. If she knew Aaron, she knew he wouldn’t tell her his news until he was good and ready. “No. Not yet.”

“Hmm…” he said simply, driving her crazy.

“What did you learn from the flower shop?” she repeated gruffly.

Aaron picked up another twig and fiddled it between his fingers. Apparently, the piece of wood had suddenly become very interesting. “I talked to the florist. She wasn’t the one who took the call on Monday, but she looked up the information. And I talked to the delivery man.”

“You did? Good! See, I told you he was real.” Sloan felt relieved for the first time in forever. She was getting answers. Finally! She hadn’t made him up. She wasn’t crazy. The delivery man had actually come to her house and handed her flowers. Good! They’d have to believe her now. It wasn’t in her head. “What did they say?”

“The delivery man said he got an order to deliver three long-stemmed roses to your address. So he did. He thought it was strange…”

“I know. Three roses isn’t many.” She finished his sentence.

Aaron bit his lip and shook his head. He couldn’t look at her. “Not that. He was surprised by how you reacted.”

What? “How I reacted? Why?”

“Because most people would be happy to get flowers,” Ray said, leaning back on his hands with his legs stretched out and crossed. He hadn’t touched a bit of his food either. A chicken had died in vain for both of them.

“That wasn’t it.” Aaron cut his dark eyes to Sloan. “He was surprised by you.”

“Me? Why?”

Aaron sat up and poked the stick in the ground a few times. “Sloan, there isn’t any boogeyman. Boyd isn’t stalking you. No one is.”

Her heart sank. It probably shouldn’t have. Most people would be happy to know they weren’t being stalked, but not when they had physical evidence! “I don’t…” She looked at Ray and back at Aaron. “I don’t understand. I know someone is after me. They sent me the roses. I know they did. I saw them! The delivery man was real! I didn’t make him up! Stop talking in riddles and tell me!”

Aaron took a deep breath and opened his mouth to speak. He shut it again, appearing to struggle to find the right words.

“Just spit it out.” She couldn’t take it anymore. Her heart was racing a mile a minute, and she felt horrible. Her head felt funny, and she just wanted to lie down.

Aaron sighed and his jaw flinched. “Sloan,” his voice was deep. “I saw the order slip for the roses sent to your house.”

“Then stop stalling and tell me who sent them.”

Aaron looked at Ray and so did Sloan. Ray didn’t flinch. Didn’t move a muscle. Not him. Not Ray. He wouldn’t harass her. “Ray?”

“You.” Aaron said, causing her to do a double-take.

“Me? What?”

Aaron started breathing harder like he couldn’t believe what he had to say. “The order, Sloan. It had your name on it.”

“I know because it went to my house.” What was he talking about?

From the corner of her eye, she saw someone walking toward her. A woman. Her mother.

“What’s she doing here?” she asked neither boy in particular.

Her mom kneeled down beside her. “Aaron called me at work, baby. He’s worried about you.”

“Why?” She growled. Why wouldn’t anyone give her a straight answer? Or were they, and she just couldn’t get it through her sleepy, fuzzy brain?

“What’s going on, Aaron?” Ray asked. Good, another person who didn’t get it.

“Sloan sent the roses to herself,” Aaron said.

“I did not!” Sloan sat up and pushed her mom’s hand off her shoulder. “I didn’t!”

“It was on the slip, Sloan. I saw it. The delivery man was shocked that you were so surprised to be getting the flowers you’d sent. He said you were behaving strangely.”

“Because this is all strange!” She looked to her right and saw tears in her mother’s eyes. “I’m not crazy! I didn’t do this! You have to believe me.” Now it was her turn to cry. “Mama, please.”

“Why are your eyes so red, Sloan?” her mother asked.

“What?” She shook her head.

“Your eyes. They stay red now. They have all week. And you sleep all the time. You look frazzled.”

“I am frazzled!” She yelled so loud others around her looked to see what Saint Sloan was freaking out about now. “You all think I did this?”

“No.” Ray stood up with her. “No, I don’t. She didn’t do this, Aaron. She wouldn’t send flowers to herself. It’s stupid.”

“Maybe she doesn’t know it.”

Ray shook his head. “Like a split personality? You jumped to that conclusion because of one piece of paper.”