Flowers on Main

by Sherryl Woods

  Jenny’s lips quirked into a smile. “I definitely did not agree to that,” she said.

  “Oh, my mistake,” Jake said. “It was forty.”

  Connie looked from him to her daughter and back again. “This is not a joking matter.”

  “No,” he agreed, sobering at once. “And Jenny understands that, don’t you?”

  She nodded enthusiastically. “I do, Mom. I really do.”

  “Well, the opportunities are going to be few and far between for at least the next month,” his sister said, her hard gaze locked on her daughter. “No e-mails, no texting, no leaving the house except to go to school.”

  Jenny looked shocked, but then she made the huge mistake of turning belligerent. “Who’s going to enforce that?” she demanded.

  “I am,” Connie said evenly. “I will take you to school in the morning. I will pick you up after school. You can sit with me at the nursery until I get off. In fact, since you violated your uncle’s trust, instead of just sitting there, you can work for him.”

  That sparked a tiny bit of interest in Jenny’s expression. “What will I get paid?”

  “Nothing,” Connie responded, then held out her hand. “Turn over your cell phone now.”

  “But—”

  “Do you really want to argue with me right now?” Connie demanded.

  Jenny took the cell phone out of her purse and dropped it on the kitchen table. She glared at Jake. “Boy, this went well. Thanks.”

  And then she bolted from the kitchen.

  Connie sighed heavily. “I don’t believe this. She was hooking up in your office? Honestly?” She put her head down on her arms. “I’m not sure I’ll make it till she’s an adult.”

  Jake laid a hand over hers. “Yes, you will. And she’ll get there without doing anything really stupid that could ruin her life. I really believe that. She’s smart, sis. And I think I gave her a real eye-opener today about how boys think. Hopefully it will be enough to make her think twice, maybe even a half-dozen times before she ever lets another one put his hands on her.”

  “How far…?”

  “Not that far,” he reassured her. “They still had their clothes on.” He saw no point in mentioning the state of Jenny’s blouse. “You okay?”

  She lifted her head and met his gaze. “Do you really think you got through to her?”

  “I do,” he said confidently, then grinned. “But it wouldn’t hurt to keep a very close eye on her for the next, say, ten years.”

  His sister laughed, just as he’d hoped she would. “I’ll settle for getting her out of high school and through college.”

  “Let’s concentrate on high school for now,” he said. “No matter what we might prefer, the college thing might be a little unrealistic.”

  “You were the one who wanted to protect her for the next ten years,” she reminded him.

  He shrugged. “Hey, I was always the dreamer in the family.” He stood up and dropped a kiss on her forehead. “She’s going to be just fine. So are you.”

  She gave him a grateful look. “Thank you for caring what happens to her, to us.”

  “Always,” he promised.

  At least it had kept his mind off Bree and that kiss for several hours now. And, even more amazing, his sister hadn’t brought it up, either. That kind of distraction was worth just about any kind of aggravation.

  Bree was finally able to work in the little nook that was going to be her office in the shop. The construction had been completed, the coolers installed and Mick had almost finished painting everything in a rich dark blue with white accents. She had to stick her head outside every now and then to get away from the paint fumes, but she was getting more and more excited as her opening day approached. Tomorrow the bulk of her supplies were due to arrive and the paint would be dry enough that she’d be able to unpack them and slip them into their designated nooks and crannies.

  Just as she sat back, a smile on her lips as she contemplated the way everything was coming together, the front door opened and her sisters sailed in. She recognized the expressions on their faces, too. They were on a mission.

  “It’s two weeks until your opening,” Jess announced as if it might have escaped her attention.

  “I know that,” Bree responded.

  “Well, what are you going to do?” Abby asked. “I haven’t heard any plans.”

  “I’m going to hang an Open sign on the door and wait for the customers to flock in,” she said, knowing that the comment would drive Abby the organizer nuts.

  She grinned when Abby regarded her with shock. Even Jess looked a little shaken.

  “You have to advertise at least,” Jess said. “Starting now.”

  “And there should be some kind of an event,” Abby chimed in. “Something to draw attention to the business.”

  “I doubt there’s a soul in town who doesn’t know about this shop and when it’s opening,” Bree countered. “Most of them have been snooping around in here since Dad started working on the place. I’m pretty sure the grapevine has worked more effectively than any advertising ever could. Why spend the money?”

  “Because we’re O’Briens,” Jess said. “People expect some kind of big splashy event from us.”

  “I’m not throwing a party for the entire town. That made sense for the inn. It doesn’t for a flower shop. For one thing, only so many people can even fit in here.”

  Abby’s expression turned thoughtful. “Okay, you have a point,” she said. “Then we’ll make it an open house for the whole day. That should spread out the crowd. And we could serve—”

  Again, Bree held up her hand. “Not serving food. This isn’t a restaurant.”

  “Champagne, at least,” Jess said wistfully.

  “And have everyone falling-down drunk? I don’t think so.”

  “One glass of champagne isn’t going to have people crashing into the gutter,” Abby said. “If you really object to it, how about punch instead? That can be festive. We could set up the counter with a really pretty fountain with pink punch splashing down. I think there’s a whole set of antique punch cups at the house. It could be beautiful.”

  “And how am I supposed to conduct business if there’s punch splashing all over the counter?”

  “Your first day isn’t about conducting business,” Jess said. “It’s about getting people excited about your shop.”

  “She’s right,” Abby said.

  “So I shouldn’t expect to sell flowers that day?” Bree asked dubiously. “What am I supposed to do with the flowers I was planning to order? It won’t look like much of a flower shop if they’re not on display and in the cooler.”

  “Another good point,” Jess said.

  Bree gave her a wry look. “I’m delighted you all think I have at least a slim idea of what I’m doing.”

  “You’re looking at this all wrong,” Abby said. “This is public relations. The punch, the flowers, all of it, that’s selling the business you’re going to have. It’s the launch party, the spin, the sizzle. You’ll get down to the nitty-gritty of selling flowers later.”

  Bree remained skeptical. “I’m not sure I should blow off the biggest day of a holiday weekend.”

  “Friday,” Jess said at once. “We’ll have the party on Friday afternoon and evening. Then you can open your doors officially on Saturday morning and you’ll have a line down the block.”

  “I suppose that could work,” Bree admitted.

  “When is your first order of flowers being delivered?” Abby asked.

  “I told Jake Friday morning.”

  “Make it Thursday. That will give us all day Thursday and Friday morning to turn this place into a showcase. You’ll have your open house Friday afternoon, say, from four o’clock to eight, so people coming into town for the Labor Day weekend will hear the music and stop by to see what’s going on.”

  Bree stared at her. “Music? Aren’t you getting a little carried away?”

  “Absolutely not. I convinced Dad that the
town should move the concert right up here to the green that night, instead of having the band play in the gazebo by the water. He’s already spoken to the mayor. That’s just one of the advantages of having a dad who wields a lot of influence around here. Things tend to happen just the way we want them to. So, the concert is a done deal. And they’ll start at six, instead of eight, which will be just perfect, don’t you think so?”

  “Perfect,” Bree said, her head spinning. She focused on her older sister, her suspicions aroused. “So, did the two of you have this all worked out before you even walked in the door just now? Was this whole discussion just your way of coaxing me to go along with what you already had planned?”

  Jess was the one who looked guilty. Abby merely shrugged. “You tend to like to think things are your own idea.”

  “But none of this was my idea,” Bree said.

  “But you’re excited about it now, aren’t you?” Abby said confidently. “How could you not be? It’s going to be fabulous.”

  “Bulldozers,” Bree muttered under her breath.

  “What was that?” Abby inquired, her lips twitching.

  “I said you’re a couple of bulldozers.”

  Jess grinned. “Yes, but we love you, so you’ll forgive us.”

  “And be duly grateful when your business is a smash hit,” Abby added.

  “How much is this little event of yours going to cost me?” Bree asked.

  “Not a thing,” Abby said. “It’s our gift to you, Jess’s and mine. Mom’s chipping in, too. She told me she wanted to do something special for the occasion. She’ll be down that weekend. I’ll make sure she knows she needs to get here Thursday so she can help us get everything set up.”

  Bree’s eyes stung with tears. “I can’t let you pay for this. Jess is still trying to get the inn on its feet and—”

  “Of course you can,” Jess interrupted. “Heck, Abby invested a fortune in the inn for me and bought rugs on top of it. We can at least throw a party for you.”

  Bree swiped at her tears and tried to smile. “In that case, let’s talk about that champagne and those hors d’oeuvres again.”

  Abby gave her a hug. “Not to worry. It’s all on order already.”

  “You were that confident I’d cave?”

  “Hey, you’re an O’Brien,” Abby said. “If there’s one thing we love, it’s a good party.”

  Except for me, Bree thought, but kept it to herself. They were so excited by their plans, it almost didn’t matter that they’d swept her along against her will. She was the O’Brien who’d always sat alone at the top of the steps looking on, never one of the revelers.

  What the heck, she told herself bracingly. Maybe it was time that changed. After all, this was meant to be a fresh start. She might as well go for broke.

  Jake happened to be in his office when he heard Connie on the phone with Bree. She was saying something about moving up the date for the first flower delivery and a party, jotting the dates on her desk calendar. He could have waited until she got off the phone to find out what was going on, but curiosity got the better of him. Even though he knew he’d hear about it later, he held out his hand.

  “Let me speak to her,” he said.

  Connie stared at him, incredulous. “Really?”

  “Just give me the phone,” he ordered. “And go do something.”

  “What?”

  “Anything. Water the plants in the greenhouse or whatever else will get you out of here.”

  Her eyes sparkled with amusement. “Interesting. You want privacy to have a business conversation with one of our clients. Some people might wonder how Bree rates that special attention.”

  He merely scowled at her until she got up and left the office. When he put the phone up to his ear, he heard Bree asking, “Connie, what’s going on? Connie!”

  “It’s me,” he said.

  “Jake,” she said, her voice filled with surprise and maybe a touch of dismay. “Where’d Connie go?”

  “I sent her on an errand.”

  “I see.”

  “So, what do you need? I heard Connie say something about a delivery-date change and a party.”

  Bree explained that her sisters had talked her into holding an open house. “So I’ll need the flowers here on Thursday instead of Friday.”

  He considered making things difficult for her by claiming that he couldn’t make a delivery on a different day on such short notice, but what would be the point of making her beg, when they both knew he’d do it.

  “Is it a problem?” she asked when he remained silent. “Connie didn’t seem to think it would be.”

  “You’ll have your flowers,” he responded tersely.

  “Will it still be okay to get the order form to you on Monday or will you need it sooner?”

  “The sooner you get it in, the better your chances for getting everything you want,” he told her. “In fact, if you can have it ready today, I can stop by and pick it up before I meet Will and Mack at Sally’s.”

  “Really? You’ll come here?”

  “It’s not as if it would take me out of my way,” he said, annoyed that she seemed to be making some kind of a big deal out of it. “Sally’s is practically next door.”

  “Of course. I’ll have it ready for you by eleven-thirty. You meet them at noon, right?”

  “Have you been keeping tabs on me?” For some ridiculous reason, the idea pleased him.

  “No, of course not,” she said at once. “Sally mentioned that when she warned me to stay away around noon, so I wouldn’t chase the three of you off.”

  “Oh, right,” he said, deflated. “I’ll see you later, then.”

  “Yeah, see you later. If for any reason I have to go out, I’ll put the order form in an envelope and tape it to the door.”

  Irritated that he’d put himself in the position to cross paths with her, only to have her suggest she might not be around after all, he snapped, “You’ll have to be there.”

  “Why?”

  “So we can go over the order,” he said reasonably, relieved that he actually did have a logical excuse. “I’ve been doing this a long time. I might have a better idea of the quantities you’ll need than you do. You don’t want to spend a fortune on flowers that’ll wilt before you can sell them, do you?”

  “Right, fine,” she said, sounding testy herself now. “Then I’ll make it a point to be here. And Jake, do me a favor, okay?”

  He hesitated, then asked, “What?”

  “Try to be in a better mood when you get here. If you’re going to get all surly and impossible every time we have to deal with each other, I might have to look for another wholesaler, after all.”

  Before he could summon up a response to that, he heard her phone click off. In turn, he slammed his back into its cradle.

  “Blasted woman!” he muttered.

  Connie immediately poked her head into his office, which suggested she hadn’t gone nearly as far away as he’d ordered her to.

  “Something wrong?” she inquired, her expression innocent.

  “Not a damn thing,” he said, stalking past her and straight out the door, which he slammed behind him.

  He was pretty sure he could hear her hoot of laughter all the way to his truck. Now there were two women on his bad side. And sadly, he couldn’t think of a single way to avoid dealing with either one of them.

  10

  B ree was so flustered by the prospect of seeing Jake that she almost called Jess or her father to come over to the shop to run interference. To be honest, she didn’t trust herself alone with him. There was no telling what impulse might suddenly hit her. And after what had happened the other day at the sidewalk café, his mood was clearly unpredictable, as well.

  She hadn’t seen him since that totally unexpected, totally mind-blowing kiss. Though she hadn’t been able to get it out of her mind, she still had absolutely no idea why it had happened or what it meant. Judging from his tone on the phone, which was cautious one minute and exa
sperated the next, he was probably as confused as she was. It also seemed entirely likely that he was regretting it. She wished she did. Instead, the whole incident was burned into her brain and her libido was screaming for more.

  Since this meeting was inevitable and she had to learn how to deal with Jake without coming unglued, she dug the current order form Connie had faxed over earlier out of her desk and tried to focus on that. Jake had been right, it was a little intimidating trying to decide what to order and the right quantities.

  As she glanced over the page, she wanted every flower listed, but her artistic instinct cautioned her against going overboard. The shop needed to look simple, classy and elegant. It would help, too, if it didn’t have the overpowering floral scent of a funeral parlor. She also liked the idea of surprising combinations, rare or exotic blooms with something as common as gerbera daisies, for instance.

  Afraid that she’d change her mind half a dozen times, she made several copies of the form, then marked her first choices on one and guessed at the quantities. She mixed colors that would blend well together in arrangements, flowers that could be mixed in bright, less expensive bouquets. It helped when she sat back and envisioned the sort of arrangements she wanted to have on display for the party. Pale, splashy hydrangeas with dark greenery and stems of pink and white roses in a glass vase, for instance. Or maybe a tall, cobalt-blue vase filled with sunflowers.

  She sketched her ideas out on a pad of paper and completely lost track of time. When the front door opened promptly at eleven-thirty, she looked up in surprise to find Jake there, standing hesitantly just inside the door, a scowl on his face.

  “Still in a bad mood, I see,” she said, her own tone deliberately cheerful.

  He blinked at the accusation, then managed a forced smile. It wasn’t the easy, crooked smile she’d once loved, but at least he made an effort. And smile or no smile, she instantly responded to the sight of him, her blood humming with anticipation.