Page 98 of Wish I Didn't Want You Back

She swatted my shoulder. “Flattery isn’t going to get you a discount, honey.”

I snorted. “Never thought it would.”

She placed the bouquet under the counter and motioned me to follow her to the back.

“So, do you have any jitters?” she asked as we reached her office. She pulled out several photo albums filled with pictures of wedding arrangements she had created over the years for other brides.

“Not one. I can’t wait to get married,” I said as I thumbed through the pages. The arrangements were stunning and simple, but nothing was grabbing my attention.

“That’s the way it should be. If you’re not second-guessing your decision, then you know it’s the right one.”

“I couldn’t agree more.”

“All right.” She wiped her hands down on her green apron. “You said simple and elegant.” She grabbed the album and advanced about ten pages from where I was. “What do you think of this?”

“I love the white roses and green vines,” I said, my eyes trailing over to the next page that was filled with wildflowers.

Her gaze followed mine. “You like those, huh?”

“They are gorgeous.” I smiled, feeling that those were exactly what I was looking for. My fingers lightly rubbed over the picture of soft petals and the delicate stems.They reminded me of the flowers my mom would plant.

“You’ve got good taste.” She pulled a notebook out of her apron and scribbled something down. “Do you want to pick out boutonnieres for the guys?”

“Sure, I’ll check with Brooks and see what he wants.”

She looked at me over the top of her glasses. “What about your dad?”

I looked down at the floor. “He won’t be there.”

She pressed her lips together. “I probably shouldn’t say anything, because it’s probably nothing.”

That usually meant it was something.

I leaned my hip against the counter. “Whatever it is, you can tell me.”

She leaned in and lowered her voice even though we were the only people in the shop. “Are you familiar with Bob, from the hardware shop in Seneca Hills?”

Seneca Hills was the next town over. “I can’t say that I am. I’ve been finding everything I need at Hardware Haven. I haven’t had a reason to make the drive over there.”

She cleared her throat and looked over her shoulder to make sure we were still alone. “Well, he stopped by this morning, as he does every month to pick up flowers for his wife. He mentioned that an older guy from a New York City area code called him asking if he had specific things in stock. Later that night, right before closing, a younger fella came to pick up the order. He said the guy was acting strange and didn’t seem to know his way around a hardware store, but he didn’t think much of it until he saw him at the pub that night he got into a fight with Brooks.”

“Are you serious?”

She nodded. “Honey, I wouldn’t joke about this. He started connecting the dots and realized it was the same night your house was flooded.”

My stomach dropped. “Are you saying it was Baz Zimmerman?”

Mona wouldn’t say something if she didn’t think it was true.There is only one explanation as to why my ex would step foot in a hardware store.

She nodded slowly. “Afraid so. Bob said he was odd, but he likes to keep his nose out of everyone’s business, so he didn’t say anything. But he knew it wasn’t just a coincidence when he saw him at the pub.”

I suspected either Baz or my dad, but it never occurred to me that they were working together. Now, it all started to make sense, and I’m not sure which one shocked me more.

“I didn’t mean to upset you,” she said gently. “I just thought you should know.”

I blinked. “No. I’m glad you told me.”

I slumped down onto one of the benches and gave myself a minute to let that news sink in. I always assumed that deep down, my dad had a soft spot for me, no matter what. He was my father, after all, but at the end of the day, this only confirmed my place in his life.

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