"Agreed," Carol nodded, her eyes lighting up.
"Perfect." Beth gave a thumbs up.
"Carrot's next," Deva said, a hint of pride in her voice.
The carrot cake was dense, moist, and the cream cheese frosting was just the right amount of sweet. We all knew without saying a word; this was the one.
"Deva, you've outdone yourself," I said, reaching for another bite despite being almost too full.
"Absolutely," Carol agreed, her smile genuine.
"Hands down, the winner," Beth concluded, and we all nodded in agreement.
"Let's wrap this up," I said, wiping my fingers on a napkin. "Henry and Alice won't mind as long as it isn't chocolate."
"Carrot cake it is, then?" Deva asked, already covering the remaining samples.
"Yep, carrot cake. They'll love it," I confirmed, standing up from the table.
"Flowers next door?" Beth suggested, checking her watch.
"Sure thing. Henry only asked for some pink and white in the mix," I said as we headed out. "Alice said she didn’t care.”
"Typical." Carol chuckled, holding the door open for us.
"Hey, at least they're easy to please." I shrugged, stepping into the cool evening air.
We all waited together as Deva locked up the place, and then we almost immediately went back inside to the flower shop.
The place was quiet this late in the evening, the scent of blooms greeting us like a fragrant wave. We wandered through aisles of roses, lilies, and daisies, trying to really look at everything, to figure out what would suit Alice and Henry the best. There were lots of big, fancy flowers. There were really colorful ones too, but I passed all those by.
"Something simple, right?" Beth picked up a white rose, inspecting it closely.
"Exactly. Pink and white, nothing too fancy," I replied, eyeing a bunch of pale pink tulips.
"White daisies would be cute, too," Carol added, touching a petal gently. "Look at this one." Carol laughed, holding up a sample bouquet with neon-dyed flowers with a flourish. "Can you imagine Henry's face?"
"Too much," Beth agreed, grinning.
I couldn't help but join in. The joy of our little adventure was infectious. Outside, the first of the streetlights flickered to life, casting a warm glow on the sidewalk.
Together, we gathered a variety of pink and white flowers together, adding some, taking away others. Carol and Deva had the best eyes for colors and the arrangement. I mostly threw in my two cents and let them work until we had different ones picked out… flowers to go on the tables, flowers for the bride, the bridesmaids, etc.
"Have you girls picked your poison yet?" The flower shop lady, Sam, approached us, wringing her hands.
"Maybe all of them?" I said, still chuckling.
"Hard to choose when they're all beautiful," Deva chimed in, but her smile faded as she caught the worried look on the lady's face.
"Something on your mind?" Deva's voice softened, concern edging in.
Sam glanced outside, then back at us. "It's getting late, and we've been closing early these past few days. With the robberies happening only at night, it's not safe."
A chill settled over us, the laughter dying on our lips.
"Has it gotten that bad?" My voice sounded small, out of place in the suddenly tense air.
"Almost every evening now." Sam’s eyes darted toward the door. "Are you nearly done here?" Her voice held an urgency that pulled us from our mirth.
