Page 92 of Just Let Go

So much for apologizing for her behavior.

She sighed. She knew it didn’t work that way. His decisions didn’t give her the right to treat him badly.

She’d be smart to remember that.

She got out of the car and walked toward the back door. She hadn’t even seen her refinished floor, and she had shelves to move and displays to finish. She’d spend the next two days painting her new logo behind the front counter, hanging the hand-lettered chalkboards on the walls, and setting up the new displays.

Her big flower delivery would come Wednesday morning and then she’d be open for business. Her plan was to stay open late on Wednesday and host a daylong open house with refreshments and door prizes. Lucy had interviewed her for a story that had run in the Sunday morning edition of theHarbor Pointe Gazette, encouraging people to come out and support the new endeavor.

Her father had three copies of the paper at brunch.

There was a lot to finish before Wednesday, and she did not have time to waste thinking about Grady and Ashley. Once she got through this week, she’d focus all of her attention on the Winter Carnival. She’d been dreaming about her Secret Garden designs, and she practically had the entire pavilion decorated already in her mind.

If she couldn’t win first place at the Floral Expo with what she had planned, then she may never have any hope of winning anything at all. She was convinced it was her very best work.

Inspired by Grady.

She knocked the thought aside. He might’ve said a few things that helped her out of her creative slump, but the work was hers.

She unlocked the back door and let herself in, the scent of fresh paint filling her nostrils. It smelled clean, which was exactly what she wanted—a new start for her and for Forget-Me-Not. She hung her bag on the hook by the back door.

With the natural light pouring in from all the windows, she didn’t even need to turn on the lights to see how gorgeous her floors were. They were original to the building, and they hadn’t been refinished the entire time Mimi owned the shop. Now, looking at the thin boards, freshly sanded and polished, Quinn would’ve thought they were just installed yesterday.

Before she could forget, she took out her phone and texted Ryan Brooks.

You did an amazing job on my floors—thank you!And she knew his invoice wasn’t his full price—he called it the “friends and family discount.” When he and Lane Kelley got married, she’d extend the same discount on their flowers as a thank-you.

She flipped the lights on and walked to the center of the space. This washershop now. She could do whatever she wanted with it. The creamy white walls practically begged for her attention, the perfect neutral palette for whatever she wanted to put on them. She had all kinds of new inventory to add to the shop—it had been arriving almost daily even before she was the official owner.

In all the craziness, she’d almost forgotten to stop and take in these small moments. She pulled out the photo of her, Carly, and their mother and stared at it as the clock ticked off the seconds. “I did it, Mom,” she said aloud. “All by myself.”

She heard the defiance in her own voice, even though she knew the words weren’t completely true. She’d had so much help along the way. She had Carly and her father and, of course, Beverly and Judge. Even Calvin, in his own way, had been a help to her. She had good friends in Lucy and Hailey, and while she didn’t have her own kids, she had Jaden. God had given her so many wonderful people to love and be loved by—why didn’t it ever seem like it wasenough?

Was it because she was still single? Or was Carly right? Was she holding on to a false image of a mother who never really existed?

She shook the thoughts away and set the photo down. This was supposed to be a time for soaking up an accomplishment. She was a business owner, and that was a big deal.

So why did everything feel so hollow?

Outside, a lone car on the road caught her attention.

“Oh no.”

Grady’s black Jeep parked in front of the flower shop. What was he doing here? It wasn’t like he owed her an explanation. Besides, she didn’t want to see him. At all.

She made a mental note to have blinds installed so she could at least pretend she wasn’t there when she wanted to be alone. She watched as he got out of the car. He’d showered and changed, which was great for him, but not so great for her. A gray hoodie and warm-up pants somehow made him even more attractive.

“Get it together, Q,” she said, hoping the self-scolding would be enough to get her brain back on track.

He spotted her through the window and raised a hand in a subtle wave. She held his gaze for several long seconds, then finally walked over to the door, drew in a deep breath, and pulled it open.

“Hey.”

Well, that was just great. Not only did he look like this, he also smelledreallygood. The unfairness of it all didn’t escape her. “Hey.”

Play it cool, Collins. He’s just a guy.A very, very good-looking guy. Who, for all the aforementioned reasons, was a terrible fit for her. She chose safe guys. Guys whose pasts were as boring and mundane as hers. She had never in her life dated “the bad boy.” It wasn’t in her nature.

“I thought you might need some help.”

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