He held them out to me, and I stared at him in surprise. "Mike...they're beautiful!"

A variety of colors decorated the stems--pink, yellow, purple, and the smell they gave off was sweet and strong. I never knew wildflowers could be so appealing. I put them in the vase and stood back, admiring them from a distance.

"Why...?"

"Well, I just thought you could use some cheering up. I know things have been hard for you lately."

"Thanks, Mike. That was very sweet of you." I gave him a hug and a kiss on the cheek.

"So...uhh...I was thinking...maybe we could umm..."

I looked at him, saw that familiar look in his eyes. Ut oh...

"Mike?"

He just stared at me, his eyes darkening.

"Oh, Mike, I--sit down."

I patted the couch, and he sat next to me, watching me with curiosity.

"Are these flowers for what I think they're for?"

"Well..." He sighed. "I was gonna ask you out, yeah."

Dear God, why me?

"Mike, that's really sweet. It really is, and I really care about you..."

"There's a 'but' in there, isn't there?"

I took a deep breath. "Yeah...yeah, there is."

He nodded. "It's okay, I understand."

"It's not you." I said quickly. "You're great. But I'm...I'm sort of seeing someone else."

"So you have a boyfriend back home, huh?"

I hesitated. "Something like that..."

"Hey, it's okay." He smiled. "No harm in asking, eh?"

"Nope. No harm in asking."

"Well..." He patted my hand and stood. "We'll always be friends right?"

"Always. The best of friends."

"Great." He grinned. "Oh, and Holly?"

"Yeah?"

"Enjoy the flowers."