by Candace Shaw
“What you do in your private time is none of my business.” Even though she was now slightly curious. “You don’t have to explain anything to me. I’ll get started on your plans tonight."
"Okay and feel free to call if you need to."
Traci pivoted back to the door and opened it. She glanced over her shoulder. “Nah ... you’ll be tied up for a while. Literally. Have a great evening.”
She walked down the steps of his porch while taking the keys to her car out of her tote bag as quickly as possible. Luckily his company hadn’t blocked in her Volkswagen Beetle with the Range Rover that was parked next to it. The last thing Traci wanted to do was to walk back inside and interrupt a sex session on the kitchen island. And how on Earth did Ms. Thang walk up Sean’s sidewalk with that outfit? Opening her door, she slid into her car and quickly started the engine. As she backed out of the driveway, Traci noticed the front door open and Ms. Thang sashayed down the sidewalk as if it was a catwalk. Her facial expression was set on pissed off as she walked toward her SUV.
Traci found the scene quite funny even though she wondered why Sean had kicked the woman out.
Chapter Three
Traci pulled into the driveway of her childhood home in the Frazier area of Memphis after leaving Sean’s house. She’d vowed never to move back to Memphis after graduating from high school and attending college at Vanderbilt for all of her degrees. After her father died her senior year of college and her brother, Larry, was stationed across the world on an Army base in exotic Hawaii of all places, she didn’t want to leave her mother alone. Traci had tried to convince her mother to move with her to Atlanta when she was offered a job at the Atlanta Botanical Gardens after college, but her mother didn’t want to move. So Traci applied for a job in Memphis. She’d really hoped Atlanta would be a new start for both of them considering her mom’s sister lived there and was a widow as well. The sisters could’ve been roommates, but Traci’s mother, Mildred, refused to leave the home she’d shared with her husband for almost thirty years. She wasn’t physically ill; just a little arthritis and she took medication to keep her cholesterol down. Those issues didn’t worry Traci. Instead, Mildred’s addiction to gambling was the issue.
Traci hated discussing it with anyone except her brother, but sometimes she didn’t want to worry him because he was so far away. Besides, she was the oldest and felt it was her responsibility to take care of her mother. It had started out harmless. Mildred decided to take her out of town friends across the bridge to a casino in Arkansas. She’d won one thousand dollars after having only spent one hundred and was convinced she was a pro. That was over three years ago and she hadn’t stopped except for a few times, but she’d fallen off the wagon a couple of months ago. Traci didn’t mind her mother playing the slots or Black Jack every once and a while. However, all of the time until the point of not being able to pay her bills because she’d spent all of her pension check for the month was ridiculous. Of course, Traci bailed her out each time. It frustrated her, but her mother and father had sacrificed and penny pinched in order to take care of her and Larry. She wasn’t going to let her mother go without food and electricity even though Larry had suggested it just to scare their mother straight. Traci knew there were times when her mother didn’t want to tell her that she’d spent the pension money gambling and had lost all of it. She’d finally convinced Mildred last summer to have her check direct deposited into Traci’s bank account. That way she could pay the bills and give her mother an allowance. Traci hated doing that, but it was the only way. However, by Christmas, her mother had convinced her she could handle it. Traci switched the direct deposit back to her mother’s checking account. Unfortunately, last month she had found out Mildred was gambling again. Traci just hoped she could try to convince her to go back to counseling for her addiction and hopefully move to Atlanta where there weren’t any casinos.
“Hi Mom,” Traci said, entering the small living room that was decked out in the brand new leather couch and loveseat that her mother had purchased after a big win playing poker last month, which was how she found out her mother was gambling once more.
Mildred ran her fingers through her gray curls. “Hey, babygirl … I didn’t know you were stopping by,” her mother said uneasily, stepping back to let her daughter in but avoiding full eye contact.
Traci glanced around the room and spotted her mother’s purse and car keys on the coffee table. She was wearing a burgundy velour jogging suit and her late husband’s wedding ring dangled around her neck on a gold chain. Looking at Mildred was truly like looking in a mirror except she was an inch shorter and ten pounds heavier.
“I was on my way home from a client’s house. Just wanted to drop by to say hello.”
“Come and sit down. Do you want something to eat or drink?”
Traci sat on the couch and moved one of the toss pillows to the side. “No, I’m fine. Not staying long.”
“So who’s the new client?”
“One of Dr. Arrington’s sons. Sean, he’s a psychiatrist. He came with his mother yesterday to the repotting workshop and afterwards asked if I could landscape his backyard.”
Her mother sat in the recliner that had belonged to her deceased husband. It was old, but she refused to throw it out. “Is it three acres like his mother’s?”
“Oh, goodness no. It’s small and shouldn’t take too long. He wants to experience peace and tranquility so I have some ideas running around my head. I’ll start working on a design plan tonight.
“That’s good,” Mildred said, glancing at the clock on the fireplace mantle.
“Are you late for something?”
“Um … not late, but I was on my way out.”
“I see. Can I tag along?” Traci really didn’t want to, but she had a sneaky suspicion where her mother was going considering she always wore her husband’s wedding band around her neck as a good luck charm when playing poker.
“Tray …”
“Mom, are you on your way to a casino?”
“Not exactly.”
“A private poker party?”
“Yes.”
“It’s the beginning of the month. Did you pay your bills and at least stock the fridge?”
“Yes and yes. Are you forgetting who the child is and who the parent is?” her mother questioned sternly.
Bolting to the kitchen, Traci opened the refrigerator and freezer, both of which were fully stocked. She checked the pantry. It was full as well. At one point, her mother’s gambling addiction had gotten so bad she barely had food and didn’t tell Traci until she’d gone to the fridge to grab something to drink.
When she returned from the kitchen, her mother was holding out her checkbook.
“You want to see my cancelled checks as well?”
“No, Mother. I just want you get your priorities straight.”
“I’ve told you this time is different. I’m not just throwing my money away. When was the last time I asked you for any money?”
“In January when your transmission went out.”
“That had nothing to do with gambling.”
“Whatever.” Traci snatched her tote bag from the couch and headed toward the door. “Just be careful, Mom. Larry Jr. and I worry about you, especially Larry since he’s so far away. Once you have a nice amount just quit. You don’t have to try to double or triple it. Take your winnings and leave.”
“Anything else?”
“I love you very much, Mother. I just don’t want you to get caught up again.”
Her mother kissed her on the cheek. “I promise you this time is different. Trust me.”
Traci sighed. Mildred had told her the exact same thing before and now here they were once again. True, she wasn’t spending all of her time at the casinos, but poker was still gambling.
“Okay, Mom. Call me when you get home. I don’t care how late it is, call me.”
“Yes, Tray. Drive safely.”
“You, too.” She gave her mother a warm hug an
d a kiss on the cheek.
As Traci backed out of the driveway, she said a little prayer that her mother would be able to control her gambling habit this go around.
*****
Sean glanced at the crystal clock on his cherry wood desk. It was almost three o’clock and his last patient of the day had just left after an hour and a half session. He was exhausted and famished since he’d miss lunch to squeeze in one of his veteran patients who was having panic attacks again and needed some reassurance.
Opening the folder on top of a deep stack, he decided to peruse once more over the plans Traci had emailed him that morning. She’d designed four different garden layouts. He loved them all, especially the one that included the fire pit. For some reason the vision of them cuddling and making s’mores while sipping hot chocolate clouded his mind. He couldn’t believe his thought process, but ever since she’d mentioned the pit, he imagined her wearing one of his sweaters that of course would be too big for her and giggling as she made the tasty treats. She seemed the type to like s’mores and other fun things.
Tapping his finger on his desk, he reached out to grab his phone to dial her number. The Botanical Gardens were closed on Mondays, but she’d mentioned in her email that she would be there for a private tour for a celebrity until three in the afternoon. It was a few minutes after the hour, and he’d wanted to call her since yesterday after she’d abruptly left. Teresa showing up unannounced had messed up his plans to get to know Traci better. He’d been intrigued with her since he’d heard her infectious laugh. However, thanks to Teresa, Traci had hightailed it out of his home so fast as if it was on fire. He’d noticed her eyes had glanced toward the handcuffs and the whip on the island. He hoped she didn’t think he was some sort of Dom or into S&M because he wasn’t. However, sex wasn’t vanilla to him, either. Sean didn’t mind mixing in a little kink every now and then to spice the moment up, or give into any fantasies or role playing a woman may want … within reason.
He scrolled through his cell phone until he found her name and pushed the call button. Grabbing the plans he wanted to discuss, he leaned back in his black leather swivel chair and was elated to hear her thick, sweet voice in his ear.
“Hello?” she asked in an upbeat tempo.
“Hey, this is Sean Arrington.”
“Hi. Did you have a moment to look over my ideas?”
“I did. I really love the one with the fire pit and the outdoor daybed under the pergola. Not sure how I feel with all floral vines, though. May be a bit too girlie for me.”
“That can be changed. There’s other vines that don’t have flowers or very minimal ones. Anything else?”
He closed the folder and slid it into his briefcase. “Nope. I’m excited to see the finished project.”
“Cool. I was on my way to the nursery that I usually use for projects outside of work even though I’m buying all of your roses from the Botanical Gardens. We’re having a sale this weekend, and I receive an employee’s discount.”
“That’s good. I’m all about saving money.” He paused, glancing at his computer screen, which showed a picture of her on the Botanical Gardens website next to her bio. He’d learned a lot about her and her responsibilities at the gardens. Plus, he’d enjoyed staring at her picture.
“I can tag along if you don’t mind.” He couldn’t believe he’d just said that. He wasn’t that interested in shopping for flowers, but he wanted to see her again.
“Um … okay … sure. What time do you get off?”
“I’m off now. I can meet you there in an hour.”
“Okay. I’ll text you the address.”
After they said their good-byes, he jumped up and grabbed his suit jacket that was draped across the back of his chair. He slid his notes from his last session into a folder and proceeded to lock it in the file cabinet. Heading out of the office door, he was met with a radiant smile from Raven, his oldest sister. Her natural, thick curls were swept up into a bushy ponytail on top of her head while a few tendrils rested on her forehead, causing her to look younger than forty-one years old.
“Hey, you’re out of here?” she asked, readjusting the stethoscope that rested on her white coat.
“Yep, I have an appointment with Traci Reed. She’s landscaping my backyard.”
“Right, Mother told me. It’s about time. All that green grass is just plain boring. I was delighted when Traci and Mother gave my front yard some curb appeal.”
“Are you on call tonight?”
“Nope. I switched with another Ob-Gyn. Armand and I are taking the twins to a pottery class for children and then pizza.”
Raven’s face beamed with true happiness as she discussed her plans with her husband and children. Sean had been overjoyed when his sister found love again with Dr. Armand Phillips over a year ago in Brazil. Having lost her first husband in the line of duty as a police officer and miscarrying twins soon after, Raven had thrown herself into her work. While she’d appeared strong on the outside, on the inside she was a wreck. However, now with Armand and the six-year old twins, Isabella and Israel that they’d adopted last year, she finally had the family she’d always dreamed of.
“I’m sure they’ll enjoy it. Tell the twins Uncle Sean said what’s up.”
“Will do. Tell Traci hello for me as well. She’s such a sweet girl.”
“Yeah … she is.” He nodded, with a wide smile that he couldn’t seem to turn off.
Raven’s brow wrinkled as a puzzled expression washed over her face. “Uh huh. I know that smile and look. Are you trying to mack her?”
“Mack her?” Sean tried to muffle a loud laugh. “Rave, I believe that term went out with mullets and stone-washed jeans. I’m not trying to do anything but have my yard landscaped. However, she’s cool to be around.”
“Uh huh. Well, I have a patient waiting in the exam room. See you later.”
Afterwards, Sean jetted to his car, the conversation with Raven still in his head. He definitely knew he liked Traci, and had since the second he’d laid eyes on her. He couldn’t stop thinking about her, which was totally out of his norm. Women never interrupted his thoughts or sleep the way Traci had. He couldn’t believe he was on his way to a freakin’ plant nursery to pick out flowers, but he had to see her again. And those damn, sexy dimples. Talk about mesmerizing. They lit up like a rainbow after a rain shower in the sun. They were serene along with her innocent eyes that had saddened for him. She didn’t even know him and yet felt an emotion for him. Kind of how he was feeling for her. She stirred something in the pit of his stomach that he couldn’t explain. He was a psychiatrist but couldn’t figure out what the hell was wrong with him when it came to Traci. He knew he was attracted to her; that was a given. She was adorable, funny, and intelligent. A great combination despite the fact she wasn’t his type. However, there were exceptions to every rule, and she could just be the woman to break his. He really wanted to know why she seemed to work overtime, though. According to her bio, she had a lot of responsibilities at the gardens, including teaching classes, maintaining the rose gardens and the orchid conservatory, as well as giving private tours. He figured she made enough to support herself even though she was young—just turning thirty—so perhaps her student loans were eating up her paycheck. Maybe that’s why she had a side hustle of doing residential gardens.
Something caused her to work only, and he needed to know why. A man didn’t seem to be a reason. So what was it?
Following the directions of his car’s navigation system, Sean made it to the Memphis Nursery on time. He shook off his tie—tossing it in the passenger seat—and unfastened the top two buttons of his dress shirt. He’d noticed the day before that Traci drove a lime green Volkswagen Bug. Odd car in his opinion, but then again it sort of went with her quirky personality. He glanced in the rearview mirror and spotted a flash of lime green pull into the lot and park next to his Porsche. She waved and fiddled around with her cell phone while he hurried out of the car and made his way to her driver�
�s door. After opening it, she glanced up at him with a weak smile and back to her cell phone screen which had a series of text messages he couldn’t make out. She shut it off and grabbed her purse from the passenger’s seat.
“Hi,” she said softly, placing her tennis shoe clad feet on the pavement.
Taking her hand, he helped her out and closed the car door. She was dressed casually in jeans and a yellow T-shirt that pulled against her cleavage. He was suddenly aroused, but remembered she wasn’t happy about something.
“Hey. Everything all right?”
“Yeah … just some family stuff. Ready to go flower shopping?” she asked in a more upbeat tone.
“Lead the way.”
For the next thirty minutes, they browsed a variety of flowers and plants for his tranquility hummingbird garden she was creating in the right corner of the yard. Traci informed him that a landscape company would arrive the next day to pull up the grass. The day after, another company would lay the pavers for the walking trails, along with a patio for the pergola and fire pit area.
“So if all goes well this week, I’ll be able to begin planting the hummingbird garden on Friday around two o’clock,” she said, glancing over the work order for the flowers that were scheduled for pick up on Friday.
“All these plants can’t fit in your little beetle.”
She stooped down to look at the leaves of a ground cover plant he’d noticed was also in his mother’s garden but couldn’t remember the name.
“I have a truck with a trailer. I do it all the time.” She stood and they continued walking along the trail of plants.
“Cool, and I’ll be home by that time to help you unload and plant. I only do half days on Fridays unless it’s an emergency.”
“Thank you. It shouldn’t take too long. I’m sure we’ll be done in time so you can hit the streets on Friday night.”
“I don’t have any plans for this weekend.”
“Mmm … I’m sure someone will pop up.” Traci winked and sat on a bench in the middle of a slew of potted crepe myrtles.