A Rose in Bloom

“I can’t use turquoise ribbon. I have to have aquamarine.”

“Where are you going to get it?”

“I don’t know… I don’t know… What am I going to do?” She paced, punctuating her words with ribbon-fisted gestures. “It’s so late the shops may not even be open. I can’t wait for them to open in the morning. It’ll be too late. What am I going to do?”

“Get online and find a shop that’s open.”

She rushed to the computer and punched in a search. “Here. This shop is open. And this one, too. But they may not have the right color.”

She picked up her phone and called the first shop. Without waiting for her direction, Jaxon called the other number. Turning to the side, he said, “Yes, I’m looking for ribbon. Do you have… Elyssa, what’s that color? Do you have aquamarine? She said she needs silk, inch and a half wide. Okay. Yes. In stock? No, we need it tonight. Never mind, thanks.”

She shook her head, quickly searching for another number. She found two more prospects. He called his number, but no one answered the line.

“You have it? Are you sure it’s aquamarine? And you have three spools? Actually, I want four, just to be safe. Oh, thank you! What time do you close? Fifteen minutes? Oh my gosh! Please wait for me! I’m on my way!”

“I’ll drive you, Elyssa. I know the back way. Come on.”

*****

She blinked hard to hold back tears. They’d barely made it before the florist supply store closed, but the ribbon wasn’t the same as the ribbon she’d been using.

“The color is wrong?” asked Jaxon.

“No, it’s the right color, but this is a hand-dyed silk ribbon. It’s beautiful, but it just looks different from the ones I’ve already made. I guess I could buy enough ribbon to use this for all the bows on the pew ends. But, I’ll have to remake all the others, and I haven’t even started making the bridesmaids bouquets yet.”

“I’ll help you. Don’t give me that expression. I know I don’t know anything about flowers, but I can hold things and hand you things. Surely I can speed things up a bit. I’ll go get food and bring it back to the shop. We’ll stay up until we get it done.”

“Why would you do that? This is your big chance to see me fall flat on my face. Then you can swoop in and grab my building when my business fails.”

She regretted lashing out when his face clouded. “So that’s how little you think of me?”

What was that expression? Was he angry? He almost looked hurt. Her self-righteousness wavered. “Isn’t that your plan? Don’t you want me to lose everything so you can buy my building out from under me?”

He pressed his lips together in a tight line. “I never said anything like that. I offered to buy your building at a fair price.”

The storeowner interrupted. “I’m sorry, but it’s past time to close. Do you want the ribbon or not?”

She glanced at Jaxon, who turned his stiff back toward her.

“Yes, I’ll take ten spools.”

She paid her bill and followed him to the car. The return trip seemed to take forever. Silence hung over them, suffocating and itchy. As he pulled up to the curb in front of her shop, she reached over and touched his arm.

“I’m sorry.”

“Sorry for what?” he asked without meeting her eyes.

“For what I said back there. I’m just scared. Okay? There, I said it. I’m scared I won’t make it. I’m afraid to fail.”

He stared straight ahead, gripping the steering wheel. She saw his Adam’s apple bob up and down. His jaw flexed, and he squeezed his eyes shut.

Part 11: Mincing Words

WHAT SHOULD HE DO? No matter what he said or did, she always believed the worst about him. He was wasting his time with her. Then again, he had her off-balance right now. She seemed genuinely contrite.

“Okay?” She sucked her lower lip between her teeth. She was awfully cute when she was worried.

If he didn’t take a chance, he’d only regret it later. “Only if you promise to sign up for a trial week at the gym.”