Total pages in book: 24
Estimated words: 24266 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 121(@200wpm)___ 97(@250wpm)___ 81(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 24266 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 121(@200wpm)___ 97(@250wpm)___ 81(@300wpm)
P.S. Carmen doesn’t have any “secret lovers” because she would never cheat on me.
She isn’t you.
SEVEN
Dahlia
“She isn’t you…”
I logged out of my email, letting his last three words hit my chest.
“Hosta plants need shade to survive, Dahlia!” Aunt Gertrude stormed into my kitchen, completely uninvited. “You left them out in the sun yesterday and you know better!”
“It wasn’t on purpose,” I said. “I just left the garden early.”
“Yeah, I noticed that.” She glared at me. “Right after staring at your phone for hours, looking as lost as you seem right now. Your mother would never do such a thing. She’d be highly disappointed in you.”
I stood up from the table and walked outside.
“Don’t walk away from me, girl.” She followed me. “I’m talking to you. You didn’t soak the magnolias and you left baby cypress trees in the sun. Don’t you remember these basics?”
“No.” I turned around to face her. “No, I do not.”
I noticed tears falling down her face, too.
“I’m sorry.” She pulled me into a hug. “I’m so sorry… I will help you remember later. Take the rest of the week off, okay?”
“I can’t.” I shrugged. “I don’t have anything else to do but sit around and cry.”
“Have you read the final letter your mother left for you?”
“No.” I shook my head. “I’m not ready to read all the ins and out of gardening maintenance yet.”
She let out a soft laugh. “That’s in the ‘Dreams and Goals’ binder she left…That’s back at the store.”
I was in too much pain to laugh.
“We still have time in our contract to cancel Everett’s wedding order,” she said. “If it bothers you, we don’t have to do it.”
“Don’t we need the money?”
“Desperately.” She placed her hands on my shoulders. “But we can figure out a different way to stay afloat.”
“That’s not necessary.” I ignored the pang in my chest. “I’ll treat it like any other customer’s order.”
She looked into my eyes. “Do you still love him?”
“I never stopped.”
EIGHT
Everett
My new home in Eads River couldn’t be more different than the penthouse I’d left behind in New York. Instead of floor to ceiling windows that overlooked a bustling city, I had rustic balconies that oversaw acres of land and a sparkling lake.
For whatever reason, Carmen had pre-ordered a different bouquet of flowers to welcome us into almost every room in our eight-thousand square foot abode, but all it did was make me want to rush for a clear space outside.
Only problem with that was, the best place featured a custom-designed garden, and it had Dahlia and her mother’s fingerprints all over it.
Fuck.
I ventured down the hallway and into the kitchen.
Finally, not a damn flower in sight.
“You can place those in the kitchen!” Carmen’s voice echoed down the hall, and within seconds, a mover was carrying two large bouquets toward me.
“Here you are, sir.” He handed me the envelopes before setting them on the island.
Welcome home, Everett! May these blooms serve as a reminder that you’re always welcome here.
Can’t wait to meet your soon-to-be wife, Everett! She’s a lucky girl and you’re a lucky guy!
“The other bouquets can go in the parlor room.” Carmen stepped into the kitchen, armed with shopping bags.
“There’s a Dior store in town now?” I asked.
“Of course not.” She laughed. “I told you I had Ralph fly me to New York and back this morning for a quick shopping trip. I needed some new underwear.”
“For future reference, they sell underwear at Target and Walmart,” I said. “That’s like five miles away from here.”
“You’re funny.” She set the bags on the counter and admired the flowers. “You know, I’ve never seen such care put into flowers before ordering from Blooms and Letters.”
I arched a brow. “You’ve ordered from there?”
“Oh, no, no—” She shook her head. “I mean, I’ve noticed that everyone in town uses them and no place else.”
“There is no place else.” I plucked a lily from the vase. “They have a monopoly on this town and the next eight towns over. It wasn’t always like that, but Dahlia’s mother had a passion that couldn’t be contained.”
“I hope that’s how our farm will be after we have our first big season,” she said. “I want to start a restaurant soon after, with every meal traveling straight from the farm to the table.”
I looked at her and held back a laugh.
I’d never seen her wear anything on her feet other than stilettos and designer shoes, and she screamed whenever we saw dragonflies or mosquitos in Central Park.
“You do know that you’ll have to spend countless hours outdoors to farm, right?” I asked.
“I know that the people I hire to run it will.” She smiled. “I can’t be a mom and be outside all day. Unless you want to hold off on starting a family?”
“I don’t.” I shook my head. I’d already waited long enough…