Page 41 of Finding Love at Roseford Blooms
Simon was getting used to Lizzie’s ability to cut straight to the heart of an issue, but it still irked him somewhat. Not everything was as black and white as she made it sound. ‘It’s not only about one night,’ he said softly. ‘There are people who are going to be there who made my life a sheer bloody hell for seven years. And it isn’t about facing demons; it is about trying to survive. You told me that Sarah and her friends did the same to you, but at least you had an ally in your sister. I had no one. There was no one I could talk to – no one I could go to and tell what was happening. Jago McAvoy and his bastard friends saw to it that every single line of escape I had was cut off and now you expect me to go back there, smile and make polite conversation with the very people who made all that happen?’ He could feel his throat constricting; he could feel the onset of the panic he’d felt as a teenager almost every single day when he’d woken up in his bed at Cross Dean threatening to engulf him once more and he hated every last moment of it.
Lizzie kept looking at him. ‘My sister was there in body, rather than spirit,’ she said quietly. ‘I’m not sure she ever really had a clue what was going on, and, if she did, she didn’t make it any better for me.’ She leaned forward and pushed back a lock of blond hair that had fallen over Simon’s forehead, then Simon felt her lips against the same space. His breath hitched once again at the contact.
‘But isn’t there a tiny part of you that wants to show them that, despite everything they put you through, you came out of it, lived your life, made a success of things and won?’
‘Did I though?’ Simon laughed humourlessly. ‘I mean, did I really, Lizzie?’ He raised a hand to her face as she pulled back to look at him again. ‘Is this winning? I handed over my birthright to the nation. Couldn’t even get that right.’
‘Oh, for god’s sake!’ Lizzie’s frustration was evident in her tone. ‘I’m so sick of this pity party, Simon. You have so many chances to really make your mark here. Everything you helped to do for this wedding shows that. What if you walked into Cross Dean and used it as an opportunity to get some backers for RoseFest? There are plenty of people who’d jump at the chance to be associated with something like that. Use the reunion to your advantage. Do some networking and make it work for you. Don’t walk in there with some victim mentality, like you’re still the same boy they bullied. You’re not. Just now, when we were talking about RoseFest, I felt like you really had something, and it could become your legacy for this place. But legacies don’t just fall into your lap. You of all people should know that. You need to decide if RoseFest is what you really, really want. And if it is, then go to Cross Dean and spread the word.’
‘And if it is?’ Simon replied. ‘What then?’ He was hugely aware of the pressure and warmth of Lizzie’s hand, now resting on his arm, and he could see the flush on her cheeks. Their eyes locked and he let her move a little closer to him, rather than bridging the gap himself. She put her other hand on his shoulder, and he felt the softness of her touch as she slid her palm up to the back of his neck.
‘Then,’ she breathed, ‘you take chances, seize opportunities. Make things happen the way you want them to.’ He could see her eyes widening and feel the way she breathed in as they moved together, and when she pressed her lips gently to his own, the softness of the kiss ignited his senses.
The kiss deepened, became more intense as Lizzie slipped back onto his lap again. Simon felt Lizzie’s hand slide up through his hair, and he brought his own fingertips to her cheek, delicately brushing her flushed face. It felt like a moment of magic that he didn’t want to end. Eventually, though, they broke apart and Simon suddenly knew what he had to do.
‘Come with me?’ he said softly. ‘I can take a plus one to the reunion. Come with me and hold my hand?’
Lizzie laughed rather nervously. ‘Well, when you put it like that…’
‘If you want to come, I would really like you to be there.’ He paused. ‘For networking purposes, of course.’
Lizzie smiled up at him. ‘I’d like that.’ She leaned forward and kissed him again. ‘Now, I’d better leave you to it. This was only meant to be a flying visit, and I said I’d help Aunt Bee out in the shop today, since she’s a bit behind with the orders after the wedding.’
‘Of course.’ Simon released her and she clambered off his lap. ‘Will I see you later?’
‘I hope so,’ Lizzie replied. ‘Shall I text you? We could meet for a drink?’
‘Sounds good.’
As she kissed him goodbye, his eyes fell on the Cross Dean invitation. Perhaps hecoulddo it, he thought. And it would be a good opportunity to put the word out about a potential RoseFest. Turning back to the document once more, he reread it, and a plan began to form in his mind. Maybe it wasn’t such a pipe dream, after all.
35
Lizzie headed back to Roseford Blooms with a spring in her step. The tingle of excitement she felt about her growing relationship with Simon was garnished with something a little more cerebral. Simon’s notes, though they contained a fair few gaps, had the outline of what could, potentially, be a brilliant idea, not only for him, but for Roseford, too. After a month or so when she’d hadn’t thought about work, she suddenly found herself bursting with ideas that she could share with him, if he wanted her input, that was. Between that and her thoughts about Roseford Blooms, she could feel the part of her brain dedicated to her career really firing again.
Lizzie jumped when her phone beeped with a message. She was expecting it to be from Simon, but her smile abruptly faded when she saw the name that flashed up on screen.
Hi, sis! Am at Bee’s house with Mum and Dad. Are you coming back soon? X
Lizzie’s heart sank to her shoes. So they’d finally come to see her, had they? And the three of them, at that. She glanced at Roseford Blooms as she neared the shop, wishing she could just rush in and close the door behind her, hide from the rest of her family behind the banks of flowers, but, she figured, it was best to face them head-on.
As she passed the front door of the flower shop, Bee popped out of it.
‘I gather you’ve heard,’ she said dryly, looking at Lizzie’s face.
Lizzie smiled grimly. ‘Yup.’
‘I’m sorry, darling. Your mother phoned me half an hour ago and asked me where the spare key was. I had to let them in. I tried to phone you but it went straight to voicemail and I’ve never been good with phones.’
‘It’s all right,’ Lizzie replied. She warmed up her smile a little in response to Bee’s worried expression. ‘I had to face them sometime. Might as well be now.’
‘Do you want me to come with you?’
Lizzie shook her head. ‘No. You’ve got enough to do here. I was going to help you, but under the circumstances…’
‘You go on,’ Bee replied. ‘But let me know if you do want me to come back to the house.’
‘I will.’ Impulsively, Lizzie reached out and gave Bee a hug. ‘Thank you.’
