Page 60 of Accidentally in Bloom

All their customers, all the kind words they’d had that day. It was a big love note to their father from the town he’d loved so much.

Rose felt tears run down her face, and she knew in her bones this was no accident. Her heart cracked open as she realized who would do this lovely thing without ever admitting to it. A single name rang in her head. Gray.

Lily crouched down and felt the flowers she had so lovingly prepared a few days before. Her fingers ran over a daylily bouquet like the one Nash had bought. She stood up, pulled out a single rose, lily, and violet, and placed it on the headstone.

“So we’ll be with him.” Her voice wobbled as she walked back.

Rose held out her hand to Lily. “We’re always with him when we’re in the store, bug.”

“I hope he’s proud of us,” Violet whispered. Her lips quivered and made her look like the little girl Rose remembered.

An errant strong breeze whipped their hair about them in the spring evening.

Rose squeezed them. “It’s safe to say that was a ‘yes,’” She let out a watery laugh and remembered the three letters in her purse. “I have something for you.” She turned back to the car, grabbed the letters, and held them out. “Mrs. Maroo dropped these off.” They looked down in wonder, and Lily let out a small sob.

Rose gathered them both in a hug. They’d read their letters privately when the time was right. It was all still too raw.

They took a long look at the grave. The flowers shone orange in the sunset that peeked through the trees. The bright spring florals reminded Rose of her dad’s brightly colored shirts and sunny attitude.

This was a perfect spring day he would have loved. Gray probably knew that.

They stood for what felt like an eternity as they watched the sunset on the horizon, yet it still felt too soon to leave.

As the last slip of orange disappeared from the headstone, Rose took a big breath. “Ready?” She squeezed them, and they walked back to the car.

She turned around once more before she got in. The flowers snuggly blanketed the grave, providing cheery companionship and making her smile. He never wrote this in his final wishes, but it would have made him sing with joy to see such a lovely sight.

There wasn’t a more loving tribute for the man who befriended an entire town.

Chapter

Sixteen

ROSE

Two hours later, having dropped a tipsy Violet and Lily off at home, Rose drove to Bloom to meet Gray.

She was exhausted but already filled with a mixture of happiness and nerves for the upcoming few weeks. They’d need to prove themselves so potential buyers would be interested in the business.

As Rose parked in front of the shop, she remembered Gray’s card in her pocket. She opened the small envelope and smiled at his loopy handwriting.

Rose - these pale in comparison to you, but I hope you’ll forgive me anyway. Yours, Gray

Rose tried to swallow the smile that tempted to burst onto her face. Yours, she repeated to herself. Not your partner, not your friend.

Hers.

Don’t catch feelings, Rose. She felt her heart tug as she ran a finger over the card. She stashed it safely back in her pocket.

Rose wandered through the decimated store. Most shelves were empty, and every piece of greenery was gone. As she waited for Gray, she restocked the soaps and chocolates. Finally, she jumped when a loud pounding came from the back door.

“Who’s there?” she called as she walked back.

“Who the hell else would it be?” Gray yelled, apparently tired from his day as well. Probably not the right time to ask him about her dad’s grave.

She flipped the lock and opened the solid metal door. Gray was in the back of his dark box truck, grabbing buckets of flowers. Rose walked to the end of the truck and reached out her hands to take them.

“No, these are covered in dirt. Let me handle it,” Gray said.

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