Page 29 of If Tomorrow Never Comes

“Carly said you’re interested in redoing the website and maybe working on some general brand support?”

“Yes, exactly. I know how important building a brand is, and I want people to see a pink box”—she pointed to the pile of boxes behind the counter—“or a pastry or even an Instagram ad and immediately think of us. I want to be first on their mind when they want to cater a baby shower or birthday or just grab something sweet on the way home from work. It’s just that my artistic skills don’t go beyond the kitchen, so I’m hopeless when it comes to this kind of stuff. I know how important social media is in theory, but I struggle to have the energy for it.”

“It’s a lot of work, and always on top of actually running your business. Plus, it’s constantly changing, which doesn’t help.”

Blythe gave an exaggerated, exasperated nod.

“But that’s what I’m here for.” Elliott spun the computer around so they could both see the screen. “I checked out your website last night, and I have a few ideas.”

“Girl, I’m all ears.”

They spent the next forty minutes talking through Blythe’s thoughts and Elliott’s ideas. They went off on a few tangents, laughing about some of Blythe’s disastrous baked-goods ideas (black bean brownies when she was on a “fiber kick”) and a typo on a batch of business cards that readMelt My Fartin large, bold lettering.

“I’m still not sure that was an accident.” Blythe had laughed.

“I’d blame the intern,” Elliott had agreed. Blythe was an absolute delight, which was inconvenient. There was no way Elliott wouldn’t help her now.

They’d finally arrived at the last few logistical questions Elliott had before she was finished. “Are the hours on your website up to date? You close at six except on Friday and Saturday, when you stay open later?”

“Yeah. At first I wasn’t sure about the late nights, but my brother suggested it. Thought it might pick up the late-night crowd down here on the weekends.”

“Your brother?” The question just came out, and Elliott could have smacked herself. Bringing Jamie up was a mistake.

“Well, my younger brother. I have two, but only one I like. Jamie, Carly’s boyfriend. You’ve met him, right?”

Oh.

“Um, yeah. Last weekend, actually.” Elliott paused, then added, “He seems nice.”

That sounded natural, right? That’s what someone who hadn’t had her tongue in his mouth would say. Someone who’d never felt his hard body grinding against hers would definitely refer to him asnice. Full stop.

Her cheeks flushed anyway, and she hoped like hell Blythe wouldn’t notice. She didn’t seem to.

“He’s the best person I know.”

From what Elliott knew of him, he did seem pretty great. Great andtaken.

It was definitely time to get out of here. Elliott closed her laptop and stood. “I’ll get to work on this right away. If you approve of the concepts I send and we agree on a brand direction, I can start building some back-end web pages for review. Let me know if you have any additional thoughts in the meantime.”

“Sounds perfect.” Blythe walked her to the door and unlocked it. “This was great. I think we’ll work well together.”

Elliott smiled. She agreed, even if she was a little hesitant to remain so connected to Jamie through his family. “I think so, too.”

Chapter Ten

Jamie

When Jamie stepped out of his apartment to let Hank out, he considered just taking him for a walk around their building to avoid the possibility of running into Elliott. Yeah, he’d felt good about everything after their talk last week, but then he’d dreamed about her. Nothing R-rated, but didn’t they say you dream about whatever you think about right before falling asleep? He didn’t remember doing that on purpose and didn’t like knowing his brain had gone rogue.

But then he decided he was being ridiculous and took Hank to the dog park like usual. It seemed a little overboard to allow Elliott’s presence to alter his routine.

On Mondays, Jamie usually hung around in the office at McCormick’s Garden Center, finishing paperwork and taking calls from clients. He didn’t mind residential jobs—a good thing since that’s where he spent most of his time—but his favorite projects were the major commercial developments. He worked with the landscape designers and architects at the Garden Center, and their team was one of the more sought after in the city for simple but eye-catching landscapes: the entrance to Henry Doorly Zoo, the gardens just to the east of Old Market next to the Missouri River, and the trees that lined much ofthe downtown nightlife area. Not long after he’d met Elliott, he’d done some work at the hotel where she’d stayed.

It was where they’d kissed and fallen asleep under the stars, and in those first few days after she disappeared, he’d watched for her constantly. He’d wanted to see her again so badly it hurt. One day he was so distracted watching the hotel doors he almost lost a finger to his favorite pruners.

As the weeks passed, he’d thought about her less, gave up on finding her, and had finally started to move on. And the day he’d started dating Carly again, he had told himself to stop thinking about that night and about Elliott for good. It worked 99 percent of the time, that stupid 1 percent flaring when he was back in Old Market. Memories from that night would flash through his mind, there and gone, unbidden and without forethought.

Something about Elliott lingered in his subconscious for the longest time, maybe because there’d been no closure. She hadn’t slapped him or left him with harsh words. He’d walked away from that moment still wanting her and confident she felt the same. And despite the way she’d left him on the dark sidewalk, part of him had thought he’d find her again. Like ... like it had been fate that brought them together. He’d had the most ridiculous fantasies, like he’d turn the corner at the grocery store and there she’d be, one hand on her hip as she considered the whole-bean coffee selection.

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