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‘Perfect.I’llcome back in about half an hour?’
‘Thatwould be fine.’Forsome ridiculous reason she wanted him to linger. ‘Areyou heading over toBee’sBooksagain?’
Hepulled a face. ‘Regretfullyno.Ihave some errands to run.Butthank you for the recommendation,I’lldefinitely return.Despiteall the teapots,Ihad an excellent coffee in there.’
Daisygiggled. ‘Theteapots areBee’sthing.Shehaunts every car boot within a fifty-mile radius to find new ones.’
‘Willany more fit?’Heraised a disbelieving eyebrow.
‘Oh, she’d find a way.I’llput your flowers together for when you come back.Bythe way,’ she added, as he turned to leave, ‘if you want a specific type of arrangement, you can call ahead.Giveme a couple of days’ notice to get the stock in.’Sheplucked a business card from the little box on the counter. ‘Here’sthe number.Ifyour girlfriend likes roses and lilies, give me a ring andIcan make sureIhave some in for the next time you’re in town.’
Hescanned the card thoughtfully. ‘Thanks.That’skind.“VaVaBloom!FlowersbyDaisy”,’ he read. ‘Goodname.’Hisface bore a slightly puzzled expression as if he was trying to recollect something.
‘Well,Ican’t resist a pun.Mumsuggested something simple and classy, so we compromised and chose both.’
‘Andit’s a teensy bit more sophisticated than the shop’s previous name which wasChariotsofFlower.’Marionappeared at his side, a bunch of yellow and bronze chrysanthemumsin her hands.Shedropped them on the counter. ‘Hithere.’Holdingout a hand she said, ‘I’mMarion,Daisy’sassistant.’
‘Rick,’ he answered, taking it. ‘Niceto meet you.’
‘Rick!’ she said on a long breath, turning toDaisyand making a wow face.
‘Don’tleaveBrendaalone,Marion, please,’Daisysaid through gritted teeth. ‘I’msure she’d like some greenery to go with those chrysanths.’
Ricksmiled. ‘I’dbest go.Ican see you’re busy.Marion,Daisy,’ he said, giving a little nod to each as he did so, ‘I’llsee you later.’
Whenhe’d left and was safely out of earshot,Daisyhissed, ‘Marion, how could you!’
‘Well, darling, at leastIfound out his name!We’dhave been here tillChristmasbefore you did.’
‘Marion, why wouldIneed to know his name?He’sa customer not a marriage prospect.’
‘Shame,’ saidBrenda, coming up silently behind them. ‘He’sgot a lovely bum!’
Chapter Six
‘S
oMrSpursis calledRick?’Miaasked onSaturday.
‘Apparently.’Daisywrapped the cactus in blue tissue paper, tied it with a white bow and handed it to the nine-year-old customer. ‘Thereyou go,Claudia.I’msure your teacher will love it.’
‘Thanks,MissWiscombe.’Thechild grinned.Sheturned toMia. ‘Bye,MissLodell.Seeyou in school onMonday.’
‘Youseem to have settled into your new job quickly,’Daisysaid as they wavedClaudiaoff to where her mother was waiting on the pavement.
‘Ireally love it.MrsArnoldis being surprisingly okay,IloveHonor, the deputy, and the rest of the staff are ace.’Miablushed a little. ‘Ilove it there.I’dlike more hours.’
‘Maybe, comeSeptember, they might be able to give you some.’DaisywatchedMia’sface glow and wondered what she wasn’t telling her. ‘Theseaffordable end-of-term teachers’ presents are going down a storm.I’llhave to order in some more thank-you cards.Andsome moreMarguerites.They’vegone well this week too.’
Miawasn’t to be deflected. ‘So,Rick.Doyou think it’s short forRichard?’
‘Couldbe.’Daisyignored the way her heart skipped a beat when his name was mentioned.Itwas getting ridiculous, she really couldn’t allow herself to be attracted to a man who had a girlfriend, especially after what had happened between her andNeville.Contrarily, she let her thoughts wander and focus onRick.Shehoped his name was short forRichard.Sheloved the name.Strong.Manly.Trustworthy.Unlikethe nameNevillewhich was none of those things.Andthe owner of that name had definitely lived down to it.Shejust wished she’d found out at the start of their relationship and not after two years.Twowasted years.Howhad he hidden his marriage for so long?Orperhaps he hadn’t, and she’d been too infatuated to see the signs?
She’dbegun seeingNevilleat about the same time she’d become stressed at school.Herhead had been full of a career crisis and it hadn’t room for hunting down clues that her boyfriend was married.Especiallywhen he told her he wasn’t.Now, aRichardwouldn’t do that.Shewracked her brain trying to think of anyRichardsshe knew.Theonly one she could think of wasDickwho ownedGladwin’sthe butchers.Andwhile he was certainly strong, manly, trustworthy and bought his wife a huge bunch of carnations on a regular basis, he couldn’t be described as sexy.AndRickwas definitely sexy, with those dark eyes and chino-skimming thighs, not to mention his behind whichBrendaPearcehad quite rightly pointed out was lush.OhGod, she really needed to join a dating site.Blinking, she came to.Miahad asked her a question. ‘What?’
‘Isaid, do you know what his surname is?’
‘No.Hepaid by cash.’
