“I don’t spend enough time in flower shops.” She inhaled, filling her lungs as full as possible. “Heaven. This is what heaven smells like. Well, this and your cakes.”
She grinned at him, and he offered the flick of a smile in return as a tall, dark-haired woman came around the counter to greet them.
“Erik! I was surprised to hear from you this weekend.”
“Lil.”
Ah, yes, there was her new partner in crime. Embarrassingly effusive in his greetings. This Lil must know him pretty well though, because his abruptness didn’t faze her. She extended her hand to Josie. “I’m Lily Castillo Franklin. What can I do for you today?”
The woman’s strong, callused fingers completely enveloped Josie’s, and she did her best to return the enthusiastic shake.
“Hi, I’m Josie Ryan. We’re here to talk about flowers for a June wedding.”
Lily’s thin, tan face broke into a smile, and she moved to the cooler and plucked a long-stemmed pink rose from a container. “Congratulations! Erik, I had no idea.”
Josie, who’d reached out on autopilot to accept the flower, immediately realized the woman’s mistake and rushed to clarify. “Oh no. No, no,we’renot engaged.” She shot a glance at Erik, afraid she’d find horror painted on his face, but he was as stoic as ever. Still, she pointed between herself and the mountain man. “It’s for friends of mine who are out of town. I offered to get things going for them. Erik suggested I talk to you.”
“Ah, I see.” Lily’s surprised expression cleared, and Josie had to agree. She and Erik were as mismatched as two people could be.
Lily gestured for Josie to keep the rose, which she brought to her nose for a grateful sniff as the woman rounded the counter to snag a battered notebook. “Okay, hit me with the details. When, where, all of it. Let’s see what we can come up with.”
An hour later, thanks to Lily’s no-nonsense approach, Josie had recorded a handful of possible budgets, flower choices, color stories, and arrangements to share with the grooms-to-be, and she’d secured Lily’s promise that the wedding date would work with her schedule. As Josie was jotting down the last of her notes, Lily and Erik’s conversation drifted to industry talk.
“How are things at the Cake Shoppe?”
Erik shifted in his seat. “I’m not there anymore.”
Lily’s mouth dropped, but she recovered quickly, her brown eyes narrowed in thought. “Let me guess. Dora showed you her true colors?”
Josie leaned forward. “Oh, so he was the only clueless one?”
Lily tossed her long brown ponytail over her shoulder and turned her back to Erik for a little girl talk. “Honestly, I wondered how he stayed with her as long as he did. Then again, as little as he actually interacts with people, is it any surprise he had no idea?”
“I’m not an idiot,” Erik interjected, exasperation coloring his voice. “I knew she was bad, just nothowbad. And I did quit when I figured it out.”
“A shame.” Lily closed one of the binders of arrangement options. “You do such beautiful wedding cakes.”
Erik inclined his head but said nothing, and Josie rolled her eyes. “Oh, for God’s sake. He’s going to open his own bakery.” She turned to him. “You’ve got to get better at this.”
“Really?” Lily clapped her hands. “That’s fantastic! In fact, I’ve got a couple who just hired me but haven’t found their baker yet. Can I give them your card?”
Erik shot Josie a glare. “No, because I’m not opening my own bakery.”
Ohhellno. She wasn’t losing a second opportunity to launch a damn business. Getting him to agree to her plan had been the only bright spot in her weekend after the loss of the boutique account. “We agreed on this! What, you decided you want to be perpetually unemployed? Just hanging around Chicago being sad and broke?”
His jaw worked, but no words escaped his lips.
Josie turned back to Lily, whose interested eyes bounced between the two of them. “IthoughtI’d convinced him to build a website and social media following while we’re looking for a storefront for him.”
“Smart. And if you need a place to meet prospective clients until then, you can always do it here.” Lily gestured around her colorful, sunny shop. “Oh, let me grab the information for that couple I told you about. Be right back.” She disappeared through a door behind the counter.
“See? People want to help you.” She elbowed Erik’s side, digging into the warm, solid muscle and bone that made up the infuriating man.
“I’m not opening a bakery. It’s ridiculous.” Every part of his body looked carved from stone, but he couldn’t hide a there-and-gone flicker that doused her irritation at his change of mind.
He was scared. She should’ve realized. Of course this quiet, contained man was reluctant to push his name and his face and his work out in front of the public. She’d worked with people in the past who weren’t shameless self-promoters, and it always required extra hand-holding.
Thankfully, she was cool with shameless self-promotion. She swiveled on her stool so her knees brushed his, and once again she was reminded of how muchmanwas sitting next to her. “Well, bad news. I already got you your first job.”
