“No.”
Paris’ frown deepened. “Did Joseph know you wouldn’t have accepted his money?”
Shona knew where her friend was going with her logical argument, but it didn’t make it any easier to accept. “He knew.”
“So what’s the problem? If I had a spare twenty thousand dollars, I would’ve done the same thing.”
Jackie cleared her throat. “I haven’t known you for long, Shona, but I admire what you’ve done. For what it’s worth, I agree with Paris and Andrea. Sometimes, you have to accept help from other people. Otherwise, nothing changes. We can’t do everything on our own all the time.”
Paris rubbed Jackie’s arm. “And sometimes it’s easier accepting help from strangers than from the people who care about you. I imagine Joseph thought he was doing the right thing.”
Shona’s eyes filled with tears. “How do I trust someone who lied to me?”
“He didn’t exactly lie.” Andrea handed her a tissue. “He just didn’t tell you the whole truth. It’s obvious he cares deeply about you. Adele thinks you’re incredible, and you miss them. I don’t see what the problem is.”
Paris leaned forward. “If the same thing happened to me, and Richard was the person who loaned me the money to open The Flower Cottage, what advice would you give me?”
Shona wiped her eyes and smiled. “I’d tell you to thank him very much and give him a big discount on any flowers he buys.”
Andrea leaned sideways and nudged her arm. “See. It isn’t hard when it’s someone else’s life.”
“I guess not.”
“You could give him a discount on any quilts he purchases,” Jackie said. “He might become your best customer.”
Shona had to do something. She wasn’t sleeping and her diet consisted of as many varieties of takeout as she could consume. At the rate she was going, she’d be fifteen pounds heavier by Christmas.
Paris handed her the bowl of chicken wings. “What are you going to do?”
Dipping her hand into the bowl she pulled out a juicy wing. “I’m going to enjoy a wonderful evening with my friends, eat chicken wings and pizza, and call Joseph tomorrow.”
“Good for you,” Andrea said. “If you need something to sweeten whatever you’re telling him, he loves my chocolate chip muffins. I’ll whip up a batch in the morning and you can take some with you.”
“What would I do without you?”
“Wallow in self-pity while the man of your dreams rides off into the sunset.”
Paris raised her glass in the air. “Here’s to Shona’s bravery and Andrea’s muffins. If Joseph doesn’t listen to what she has to say, he’s not half the man we think he is.”
The three friends clinked their glasses. “To Shona,” they said in unison.
Shona sighed. Her friends had high expectations about what would happen. Unfortunately, she didn’t share their enthusiasm.
* * *
Joseph wasn'tthe type of person to panic. He’d worked with some of the most ruthless people in the finance sector and he knew how to make the most of any situation. But Shona’s phone call had thrown his entire day into chaos.
The first person he called after he'd spoken to her was John. “Shona’s coming to see me. We’ll have to bring forward what's happening on Wednesday to tonight.”
“We can't,” John whispered. “Shelley’s working at The Welcome Center tonight. If she even thinks I'm breaking any rules, she’ll throw us out.”
“We're not part of the FBI,” Joseph told him. “And it’s not like we're broadcasting who receives Christmas wishes over the Internet. You have a small church in a small town in Montana. Apart from Shona and your team of helpers, no one will know what we tell her.”
“If I thought your idea was foolproof, I wouldn’t be worried. But there are more holes in your plan than in a block of Swiss cheese.”
“Are you saying you won’t help me?”
John didn't reply for a few seconds. “I'm saying we have to triple-check everything before we make any moves. Shelley won't forgive me if someone gets upset.”
