Somebody to Love(119)

Parker sat down at her desk, smiling at Nicky’s kindergarten photo. He’d worn a bow tie, at his own insistence, “so Colette will see me as husband material,” he’d announced the night before when they’d all been eating at Mirabelli’s, and Ethan had laughed so hard he’d cried. Her son looked cheesy and adorable in the photo, all his baby teeth still present and accounted for.

This was what her life was now—a business to run, bills to pay, a son to raise. A new home, her friends, sweet little Beauty curled at her feet and now her mom staying with her for a while, trying on some independence for size.

A nice life. A full life.

She did some bookkeeping for the next hour, the quiet of the fragrant little shop as soothing as a cup of cocoa. She had to order more roses; the wholesaler was short on them this week. She’d work late on Friday for a Saturday wedding, but the thought gave her a tingle of excitement. Maggie Beaumont—well, Maggie Malone now—had emailed her pictures of the arrangements so Parker could put them on Blossom’s website, and the bride had loved the look.

Maybe, if she could swing it, she and Nicky could go up to Gideon’s Cove for a week this summer. See Vin and the rest of the people she’d met. Eat at Joe’s, see how the babies had grown.

The phone rang, and Parker glanced at the clock. Five minutes till closing. She could let the machine get it; if it was an order, she wouldn’t have time to fill it until tomorrow. Then again, she’d be a fool to turn away business.

“Blossom, can I help you?”

“Hi,” said the female voice on the other end. “I need to place an order for my boss? It’s his twenty-fifth wedding anniversary.”

“I’m just about to close. Are these for today?”

“Afraid so.”

Parker paused. “Well, for twenty-five years, I guess I can stay open a little longer. What’s he looking for?”

“He said something gorgeous. And expensive.”

Oh, goody. Hopefully, he’d remember that she stayed open for him on his special day and use her again. She took out her pen “And the card?”

“Yeah, let me read that—he wrote it out for me. Ready?”

“Yep.”

“‘I’ve loved you since the first moment I saw you, and I haven’t stopped since. Thank you for our beautiful children, thank you for our life together, and thank you for being my wife. Hope we can fool around later.’”

Parker laughed. “Okay, got it. It’ll be ready in about half an hour. Do you have a credit-card number?”

“Can he pay cash when he comes by?”

“Sure. Thanks for choosing Blossom.”

Twenty-five years, and the guy was still cheeky, Parker thought, reading the card once more. Poetic, too.

Well. He’d get a beautiful bouquet to bring home to his wife, that was for sure. Not because he was spending a lot, but because he sounded like a good husband. “And let’s face it,” she said to Beauty, “I’m a sucker for love.”

She pulled a dozen yellow roses, some brilliant purple lisianthus, a few deep orange lilies. Four branches of pink phalaenopsis orchid. Some heather and fern. This couple was fun. No mere roses and baby’s breath for them. Something extravagant and vivid and memorable.

She pictured the husband as she worked—somewhere in his fifties, probably, an insurance executive or doctor, maybe. The wife would’ve gotten home a little early, knowing her hubby was not the type to forget their anniversary. The kids were off at college, so the place would be all theirs. He’d come through the door, the beautiful arrangement in one hand, a bottle of bubbly in the other, and she’d be wearing nothing but a smile.

And because he loved her, it wouldn’t matter that she wasn’t twenty-two or thirty or forty anymore. In his eyes, she was truly the most beautiful woman in the world. The thought brought tears to Parker’s eyes. A sucker for love indeed.

“What do you think?” she asked Beauty when she was finished. The dog wagged her tail appreciatively. The bouquet was wildly beautiful, filled with intense colors and odd combinations. She wrapped it in purple tissue paper and tied it with lots of red ribbon.

Then the door to her shop opened, and she looked up, expecting to see her customer.

Instead, it was James.

Her mouth fell open. The rest of her froze.

Beauty, however, had no compunction. She ran over to James, whimpering happily, putting her front paws on his knee. “Hey, girl,” he said, bending to pet her, and oh, that smile, it was even better than she remembered. Beauty began crooning in joy, her tail swishing wildly.

Then he straightened up and looked at her. “Hi.”

“Hi,” she breathed.

“So. Mickey the Fire Engine. I’m starting to wonder if it’s about more than trucks.”

Her heart was jackhammering so hard she’d bet he could see it, fluttering under her shirt. “It’s an, um, a metaphor.”

“For what?”

Damn if her mind wasn’t completely blank. “Second chances?”

“I see.”

“How are you?” she managed to ask.

“Good. And you?”

“Good.” Crikey. “How’s New York?”

“I don’t know. I live in Providence.”

“You do?”