”Oh! Well, that’s even better. Yer doin’ yer job well if yer gettin’ the right guys.” She wasn’t one to judge people based on their appearance, but he seemed like such a gentleman that she couldn’t see him catching a criminal — then again, he said he was a detective. That required intellect, and he certainly sounded smart.
’Ornamental horticulture.’
She’d never heard another address it that way, her eyebrows lifting in awe. Goodness, if more people praised her line of work like that, she wouldn’t have felt so ashamed of admitting it.
”Go right ahead.”
Hakuba studied her for a few seconds, then nodded, shuffling his feet to get back a little warmth in his legs. “I’ve always been curious about this, and you’ll have to forgive me if it seems too forward or odd or anything like that, but…” The detective pursed his lips, brows raising as he gave her a very, very studious look, exaggerating just a little to make it clear that he was analyzing her.
“Just what, as a professional ornamental horticulturist, is your favorite flower?” A brief pause. “And would you consider it one that you particularly enjoy working with?”