“Oh!” Lilibeth clapped. “What kind of tea should I serve?”

  Moreen and I both looked at her in surprise.

  “Babe, these aren’t the type of men who want to drink tea,” my friend answered.

  “Or wine,” I added.

  Lilibeth looked thoughtful for a moment. “Whiskey?”

  Moreen pointed to her. “Bingo.” Turning back to me, she said, “Now what’s this about Caroline cheating on Levi?”

  I closed my eyes and internally bitch-slapped myself. Focusing back on Moreen, I said, “You cannot repeat that. Please, please don’t repeat that. Not even to your mother.”

  She drew back like I’d offended her. “My mother? Do you honestly think I have that type of relationship with my mom?”

  Tilting my head, I stared at her. “You have exactly that type of relationship with your mom. You told her when I lost my virginity.”

  Lilibeth laughed. “Oh my gosh, what?”

  Moreen shrugged. “In Mom’s defense, she did tell me that I don’t have to share quite so much with her, after that.”

  Lilibeth looked at me and laughed. “Oh my God, I love this town.”

  I grabbed my friend’s hands. “Moreen.”

  She gave me a reassuring smile. “I swear to you, I won’t tell anyone.”

  The bell above the door rang, and we all turned. My jaw nearly dropped when I saw my brother Caden with Levi.

  “Oh God, why does your hot brother have to be here?” Moreen whispered.

  “Got a crush?” Lilibeth asked.

  Moreen shook her head. “I’m not his type, but man, what I wouldn’t give to fu—”

  “Okay, Moreen!” I quickly said, cutting off where that sentence was going.

  Lilibeth laughed, then lowered her voice. “I’ve never met him. He is cute, though.”

  “Warning, he’s a grump,” I said as I slid off the stool. “Caden, what did Levi do to talk you into this?”

  My brother rolled his eyes. “Promised me we’d go out after this.”

  “We’re going out after this, too,” I said, leaning up and kissing my brother on the cheek. Stepping back, I smiled at Levi. “Glad you made it.”

  He grinned, and I ignored the way it made my heart speed up.

  “Caden, you know Moreen, of course,” I said, as I motioned to my friend.

  “How’s it going, Moreen?”

  She smiled. “Going good. I’m just headed out. I’ll lock up, Lilibeth. You kids have fun!” she called out as she headed toward the register.

  “Thanks, Moreen,” Lilibeth called out after her. Looking at me, she added, “I decided to close a little early tonight.”

  “Caden, this is Lilibeth Asher. She owns the store.”

  I watched as my brother took in Lilibeth. His gaze moved quickly over her body before landing back on her face. Before he could say anything, Lilibeth came around the counter and stuck out her hand, smiling from ear to ear.

  “It’s nice to meet you, Caden. Emeline has told me a lot about you.”

  He looked at her hand, then slowly reached out and shook it.

  “I hope you’re ready for a fun night of mixing and finding your special scent,” she said with a wink.

  Caden looked at Levi with an expression that could only mean one thing—he hated his best friend in that moment. Then his gaze moved to me, and I grinned.

  Caden sighed, then focused on Lilibeth. “You can turn off the sales pitch, sweetheart. I’m already in the door.”

  Frowning, she slowly shook her head. “Sales pitch? And I’m sorry, but did you seriously just call me sweetheart?”

  It was the first time I’d ever heard Lilibeth have a bit of an attitude, and I wasn’t surprised it was Caden who’d brought it out in her.

  “I did.”

  She plastered on a smile once again, this one with a sharp edge. “Like your sister said, it’s Lilibeth, and I would appreciate it if you called me by my name. Not sweetheart.”

  The corners of my brother’s mouth twitched with a hidden smile. His gaze moved past her to the bottle of whiskey she’d placed on the counter at some point. “Thank fuck. Whiskey.”

  “Please, help yourself,” Lilibeth said before looking at Levi. “Thanks for coming, Levi.”

  “I’m looking forward to this.”

  She grinned. “Then let’s get going! You can pick up to five notes.”

  “Notes?” Caden asked.

  “The scents for the perfume.”

  I quickly made my way around the counter and started smelling different oils. “How in the world am I going to pick?”

  Glancing to my right, I saw Levi totally getting into it.

  He picked up a bottle. “Leather…okay. Fresh Dirt?” Taking a smell, he pulled back. “Very…earthy.”

  Lilibeth and I both laughed.

  I pulled down the Jasmine, Lemon, and Rose. Then I grabbed the Magnolia, Cinnamon, and Cedarwood.

  Lilibeth walked up and smiled. “These are great combinations, Emeline.”

  Peeking at my brother’s picks, I saw he had White Musk, Amber, and Sandalwood. He’d also grouped Bergamot, Birch, and Oakmoss. Looking to my other side, Levi had pulled down Cedarwood, Sandalwood, Orange Blossom, Bergamot, Tonka Bean, and Patchouli.

  Lilibeth stood in front of us with a wide smile. She placed small, thin round cotton pieces in front of us, along with a small jar of strips, as well as jars of coffee beans.

  “You can do this two different ways. Dip the strips into your oil, then smell them as you build your scent. Or you can put one drop on the cotton pad, then smell that, as you add your additional scents. As you go, you can add more of something if you like. Play around with the different scents you have and the amounts you use. Be sure to write down what you do, though, using the notepads next to you. That way, you won’t forget what combinations you used.”

  As we began, she observed, stepping in when we had questions.

  “Levi, looks like you’re more of a woodsy kind of guy,” she observed. “And, Caden, you’re clearly into musky smells.”

  “Musky?” he asked, a smirk on his face.

  “Yes,” she replied. “You picked deep, sultry blends that will give you intriguing, bold pairings.”

  My brother stared at Lilibeth for a long moment before he cleared his throat and got back to mixing his scents.

  “What do my scents say?” I asked.

  Lilibeth grinned. “You’re a fan of sweet scents and florals that are romantic.”

  “Totally see that from her,” Caden mumbled.

  I glared at him. “Says the man who went with deep and sultry.”

  Caden shot me a dirty look.

  “Levi,” Lilibeth continued, “went with earthy, nature-loving choices. Very nice, rich scents you picked there.”

  Levi winked at Lilibeth, and a surge of jealousy ripped through my body. I snapped my head back to my little cotton circle. Of course, why wouldn’t he be attracted to her. She was beautiful, close to his age, and her personality was infectious. Everyone loved being around Lilibeth.

  I knew she wouldn’t flirt with Levi, not after I’d shared my feelings for him. That didn’t mean Levi wouldn’t flirt with her.

  I suddenly felt like a teenage girl, jealous of the head cheerleader who had the star quarterback’s attention.

  “I can’t believe I’m doing this,” my brother grumbled as he put two drops of the White Musk on his circle.

  Okay, so not everyone loved being around Lilibeth.

  As Levi and Lilibeth worked on his scents, I felt my mood grow sour. If I didn’t watch out, I was going to become just as grumpy as Caden.

  When I looked at him, he was smelling one of his circles and frowning. “Too much Amber.”

  “Let me smell,” I said, sniffing the coffee beans, then his sample. My brows rose. “I like that.”

  He shook his head. “Smell this one,” he said, practically shoving another sample up my nose.

  I held up my hand. “Wait, Caden. Let me clear my nose!”

  After taking a few deep breaths of the beans, I smelled the other sample. Smiling, I exclaimed, “That’s amazing!”

  He grinned. “I think so too. Almost smells like the cologne I currently wear.”

  “Your cologne is Musky Oakmoss, by Dossier.”

  My brother snapped his head around to look at Lilibeth. “How did you know that?”

  It was her turn to wink, and I was glad it was at my brother, not Levi. “I know my scents, Mr. Wilde.”

  She glanced back to Levi, and I felt myself stiffen. “I’m sorry, Levi. I can’t get a clear scent from you, other than the soap you use.”

  He laughed. “I don’t normally wear cologne.”

  “What perfume do I like?” I asked her.

  She waved me off. “That’s so easy. You wear Marc Jacobs’s Daisy.”

  My mouth fell open. “I can’t believe you know that.”

  She giggled. “So many women wear it.”

  I frowned. “Well, that doesn’t make me feel so good.”

  “That’s why you’re here, to make your own signature perfume,” Levi said. When I looked at him, his smile nearly blinded me. For a moment, I forgot how to speak.

  “Stop flirting with my sister,” Caden warned as he lifted the cotton to his nose. He smiled widely, which was rare to see lately. “This is it.”

  Lilibeth smelled it and raised her brows. “Very nice. Did you write down the recipe?”

  He scoffed. “Of course I did.”

  “While Emeline and Levi keep working on their notes, we’ll get this mixed.”

  Caden asked, “Do you use a base of some sort?”

  She nodded. “I do.”

  “What perfume do you wear?” Caden asked, surprising all of us.

  “Just something I make here at the shop.”

  Caden leaned forward when Lilibeth leaned over the table. “You smell like…the sea and lilies.”

  Her eyes sparkled. “My perfume has notes of sea salt and lily. You have an excellent nose, cowboy.”

  If I knew my brother, he was about to make some sort of sexual joke. “Don’t even, Caden!”

  Levi laughed. Caden slammed his brows down, and Lilibeth looked confused.

  “Damn, your sister knows you.”

  “For your information, I wasn’t going to say anything.”

  With one brow raised, I stared at my brother.

  The corner of his mouth rose into a smirk. “Fine. I was.”

  Lilibeth looked between the three of us. “What am I missing?”

  I shot her a smile. “Nothing. Just ignore us.”

  “Um, okay, well, we’re going to start by adding fractionated coconut oil, then the right proportions for the notes.”

  Caden got lost in the process of helping Lilibeth make his signature cologne.

  “They make a cute couple,” Levi whispered.

  Focusing back on my brother and Lilibeth, I nearly snorted. “Beauty and the Beast.”

  Levi chuckled. “You hit that nail right on the head. But I think your brother needs someone like Lilibeth.”

  I didn’t want to admit how relieved I was to hear him say that, but that stupid teenage girl came out before I could stop her.

  I picked up my sample, which I finally thought had the best balance of notes. “What about you?” I asked without looking at him.

  “What about me?”

  “You don’t think you and Lilibeth would make a nice couple?”

  That time I did look at him. He glanced over to Lilibeth and studied her for a few moments. I was internally kicking myself.

  Right before I looked away, he caught my eye. “Not at all.”

  Blinking a few times, I asked, “Why not?”

  He gave a one-shoulder shrug. “I’m not interested in getting involved with anyone right now. I’m not even divorced yet. But…I mean, I guess if the right person came along, I could see myself dating again.”

  “I would imagine Caroline will be signing the divorce papers soon?”

  He placed a few drops onto his cotton swatch. “I wish she’d just sign them and let us both get on with our lives. Honestly, though, right now I’m just focusing on helping Rhett heal.”

  “What about you? Don’t you have to heal, as well?”

  He looked at me, and our eyes met. I swore something passed between us, I just couldn’t tell what it was. A soft smile appeared on his handsome face. “I guess I do. Life doesn’t seem to be very…beautiful lately.”

  “That reminds me of that Bryan Adams song.”

  “What song is that?”

  “I think it’s called ‘Life is Beautiful’. I like it, it’s a good song.”

  He held up his swatch and smelled it before he said, “I’ll have to listen to it. What do you think about this?”

  I picked up the coffee beans and took a deep breath through my nose, then smelled his sample. I closed my eyes and sighed. “That smells like my kind of Heaven.”

  When I realized what I’d said, I snapped my eyes open to see him staring at my mouth.

  His eyes lifted to mine. “Really?” he asked in a teasing tone.

  “I just…I meant, it reminds me of riding. Horses! Riding horses.”

  He grinned.

  “You know, the leather from the saddle, and the…just…that smell.”

  The way he was looking at me, with such an intensity, caused me to nearly sigh like a teenage schoolgirl. “It smells like something you would wear.”

  Levi’s brows rose. “Does it?”

  I swallowed and nodded. “Yeah, it does.”

  He reached over, lifted my sample to his nose, and took a deep breath. “Sweet-smelling with a hint of spice. Cinnamon?”

  I was lost in his light brown eyes. Why was this man so damn handsome? He was making it very difficult not to want him.

  “Perfectly describes the woman who will be wearing it.”

  My cheeks heated, and I tried like hell to look away, but I was mesmerized by him. I swore Levi leaned slightly toward me.

  “You two look cozy,” Caden crooned suddenly.

  I jumped back, and my brother laughed.

  “You okay there, Emeline?”

  “Yes, you just scared me, that’s all. Are you done?”

  He held up his bottle. “Of all the people I thought would be finished first, I’m not him.”

  I giggled. “I’ve got my notes down, Lilibeth.”

  Levi held up his swatch. “I do as well.”

  After we mixed and bottled up our new scents, I pulled out my phone and frowned.

  “What’s wrong?” Lilibeth asked.

  “I tried to get Ensley to go out with us, but she’s declined. I asked where she was, and she told me.”

  Sadness filled his eyes. “What day is it?”

  “It’s the tenth,” Lilibeth answered.

  Caden and Levi exchanged equally concerned looks.

  “What’s with the tenth?” Lilibeth asked.

  I drew in a breath and let it out. “Ensley’s best friend from high school, Grady, passed away on this date ten years ago.”

  Lilibeth put her hands on her chest. “Oh my gosh, that’s so sad. What happened?”

  Caden walked away. He and Grady had also been close, even though they were a few years apart.

  I cleared my throat. “He, um, he took his own life.”

  Now Lilibeth’s hand covered her mouth. “I’m so sorry. I never should have asked.”

  “You didn’t know,” Levi said. “Everyone actually thought they’d end up together, even though they were just friends back then.”

  “Ensley didn’t want them to ruin their friendship by dating. She’s never really gotten over his death.”

  Lilibeth slowly shook her head, then looked toward Caden. “They were friends?”

  “We all used to hang out together. Me, Caden, Ensley, and Grady. Ensley blames herself because she started dating someone, and Grady wasn’t happy about it. But neither would ever cross that line. Of course, no one really knows why Grady did what he did. He was always the one in the group trying to make everyone laugh. It came as a complete shock.”

  “Again, I’m so sorry.”

  Levi glanced back at Caden. “I guess it’s time to go.” Levi bent and kissed me on the cheek, totally catching me off guard. All I could do was smile and nod. He looked at Lilibeth. “I had more fun than I thought I would. You two have a good evening.”

  Lilibeth walked toward the front door where Caden was standing, wearing a brooding expression. “I’m so glad you both came, and I hope you had fun, too, Caden.”

  “It was…different.”

  Laughing, Lilibeth unlocked the door. “God forbid you admit you had a good time, cowboy.”

  Caden smirked, then opened the door. “See you around, sweetheart.”

  Before Lilibeth could reply, Caden was out the door. She did however mumble asshole, which almost made me laugh.

  Levi tipped his cowboy hat to both of us and called out, “See you around, Em. Thank you, Lilibeth.”

  “Sure thing. You guys behave tonight!”

  I watched as Levi walked out the door, and Lilibeth shut it. I let out a breath and closed my eyes for a moment. I had to fight not to lift my hand and touch where he’d kissed.

  Quickly turning, I started gathering the bottles of scents to put them back.

  “Okay, the way you look at that cowboy makes even me get hot.”

  My mouth fell open. “I do not!”

  Laughing, she replied, “The hell you don’t. Even your brother told me you’ve had a crush on Levi since you were little.”

  “What?” I spun around and looked at her. “When did he tell you that?”

  She tried not to smile. “When you were both smelling one another’s scents and staring into each other’s eyes.”

  “He did not!”

  “Oh, yes, he did.”

  After taking a minute to gather my thoughts, I slowly shook my head. “My brother knew I liked Levi?”

  She gave a small shrug. “Apparently.”

  “Was he mad?”

  Frowning, she asked, “Why would he be mad?”

  I threw my hands up in the air. “I don’t know! I don’t know anything anymore. Sometimes the way Levi looks at me, it makes me think he feels something between us. But then he’ll go and say he’s not ready to date. I’m so confused, Lilibeth.”