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“For what it’s worth,” Stella said, “I do understand why you can’t be with him. And I’m sure he does, too. Especially now that he sees how much you give to the shop. You’d never be able to walk away from it, and you shouldn’t.”
I quirked a brow but kept my eyes focused on the bouquet I was arranging for an order. “But?”
“But, I also feel like there has to be something you can do to make it work. Can you be in a long-term, long-distance relationship or something?”
Snorting, I kept working on the bouquet. “For thirteen years? That sounds terrible. Besides, we barely know each other. Who knows if we’d last that long either way.”
“Well, you won’t if you don’t try.”
“Now you sound like Thatcher.”
“Good, that means he’s smart.”
I rolled my eyes, tying a red ribbon around the crystal vase as a finishing touch and then bringing it to the cooler to be picked up by the customer later. “He’s clearly not smart. If he were smart, he would have left well enough alone and not come in here asking for more than I can give him.”
“Well, to be fair, he settled on friendship. Which you can absolutely give him. I guess we’ll just have to wait and see if it turns to more.”
“In thirteen years.”
Stella rolled her eyes. “You’re so stubborn.”
“You’re one to talk, Ms.I have a crush on my co-worker but won’t tell him.”
“That’s way different.”
“How so? You want to make a move, but you can’t, for reasons that are very important to you. Same here.”
Blowing out a breath, she pushed off the counter. “The thing is, I have no idea how Michael Thompson feels about me, so I’m keeping my own feelings to myself. But you know exactly how Thatcher feels about you, and you still hold back.”
Hating that she was right, I held out my arms and let them fall with a smack against my thighs. “It’s only been a couple of weeks. And we’re just friends.”
“Oh, honey. If you think that man is spending his limited time off working for free in a flower shop because he’s just your friend, you’re more clueless than I thought.”
“Thanks.”
She winked. “Love you!”
“Sure you do.”
The door above the shop chimed, and we looked over to find Mrs. Reid strolling in with a swarm of middle-aged women. My face split into a smile as I lifted my hand to wave at her, but then I froze when they all bent their heads together in what almost looked like a football huddle.
“Uh, what’s happening right now?” Stella whispered, her gaze riveted on the group.
“I have no idea.”
Finally, they literally put their hands in the center of their huddled and whispered something before bouncing their stacked hands and then holding them high in the air.
Yep. Thatcher’s mother was definitely the team captain in a football huddle with some kind of play in mind. The only question was, what was it?
Mrs. Reid turned to me with a feline smile, and the group flanked her as she stalked toward the counter. “Hello, Hattie. How are you today?”
“Great, thanks,” I managed. “How can we help you, ladies?”
“Well, we were hoping to get some flowers.”
I grinned, the tight band around my chest loosening a little. “You’ve come to the right place.”
“Indeed. And rest assured, no one in this group will buy their flowers at any of the other shops in town. You’ve got full customer loyalty from the Bluffton Book Babes.”
