Page 74 of Wallflower in Bloom

“I think she looks stunning.”

“Barrrrf,” Lily teased, rolling her eyes at him while primping Violet. Satisfied Violet’s lips were sufficiently pouty, she went back behind the camera. “All right, I’m also going to field you some viewer questions.”

He grabbed Violet’s hand. “I’ll be right here.”

Violet nodded, blowing out a breath. “On today’s show,” Violet started with an unsure, shaky voice.

“It’s not a show, Vi,” Lily reminded her over the running video.

“Oh, right,” Violet said, shaking her head. “Sorry.”

He cleared his throat and bumped her hip with his. She rolled her eyes and chuckled. There, that’s better.

“On”—her voice shook—“today’s… Plant Parent…” Each word was more challenging than the last.

“Hold on,” Lily said, stopping the video on her phone. “Vi, what’s the matter?”

“So many people are going to watch this. Before, I thought it would be, like, ten people from Fairwick Falls who would see it. Now it’s going to be the whole internet.”

“Pretend all of them are naked while watching it,” Lily offered.

“Oh my god!” Violet’s hands flew to her face in a comical grimace. “That’s so much worse!”

Jack burst out laughing at how adorable she was.

“Darling,” he said, turning her shoulders to him. “Come on.” He gently pulled her hands from her face. “We’ll get warmed up. Why don’t I do the first intro, and you take it from there? I’m the lovable dummy learning alongside you; it doesn’t mean I can’t intro. Would that help?”

“Yeah. I think so. What do you think, Lily?”

“Ugh, whatever works. I’ve gotta make fifty more baby shower centerpieces today. I have carnations practically coming out of my ass,” Lily said as she took a long pull from an enormous iced coffee.

He turned to Violet, her emerald eyes hitting him in the gut with their earnestness. “Remember, we’re partners.” He leaned in to whisper in her ear. “I won’t let you fall.”

“My own personal safety net.” She beamed up at him.

That’s more like it.

They went again.

“Hi, I’m Jack, and this is…”

“Violet,” she piped in.

“And we’re here today to take another Plant Parent question. What do we have today, plant mom?”

She picked up the piece of paper. “Gidget47 writes, ‘I have a Venus fly trap.’”

“Ooh, naughty.” He waggled his eyebrows at her and the camera.

She elbowed him, and he bumped her hip, biting back laughter. “Those crafty li’l buggers who eat flies and worms and housecats?”

Violet’s eyes lit up with humor. “Not cats. They evolved in swamps and ate bugs to get enough nutrients.”

He turned to the camera to liven things up. “Ah, like when I came to America and started eating fast food burritos since mushy peas were nowhere to be found.”

Violet’s eyes had a sparkle to them as she spoke with passion. She was lively and unselfconscious. “Jack, back to the plant. Gidget47 says her Venus flytrap has dropped its traps.”

“Very naughty,” Jack joked, his eyebrows furrowed in mock discipline at Violet.

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