Page 21 of Sunsets at the Beach House

Roxie had been wondering how they could get those colors into a single flower. “Could you send me a picture of all three roses so we can see them for ourselves? I’m ready to make this happen today, I just need to be sure my mom is happy with the selection.”

“Sure. Do you want me to email them or text them?”

“Email them. You know what? Email them and text them, just to be sure.” Roxie gave the woman Trina’s email.

“I’ll get those right to you. A decision today would give us the best chance at getting this done in your timeframe.”

“I totally understand. Kim, right?”

“Right. And you are?”

“Roxie Thompson. Kim, I’ll be in touch as soon as I can. Thank you for your help.”

“You’re welcome. I look forward to hearing from you.”

Roxie hung up and went inside to refill her coffee. If Willie wasn’t up, Roxie was going to wake her. She felt like she had to get these flowers ordered as soon as possible to make sure they could be done.

Thankfully, Willie was already at the coffeemaker. Still in her robe, but awake was all that mattered.

“I’m glad you’re up, Ma. We have flowers to look at.”

Willie turned, cup in hand. “Already? You work fast.”

Roxie nodded. “That’s the only way we’re going to get this wedding done. The woman from the flower shop is going to send me pictures. I had her email them to Trina and text them to me. I haven’t seen them yet, but she described them to me on the phone.”

Willie took her cup to her chair and sat. “I’m ready when you are.”

“Let me just grab a second cup of coffee, then I’ll see if they’ve come in.” Roxie filled her cup, fixed the brew the way she liked it, and went to sit by her mom. She put her cup on the coffee table, then looked at her phone. The text had arrived.

Kim had shared a link with her. Roxie clicked it and gave the photos a second to load. As the one of the cotton clouds came in, she almost laughed. The rose was about as perfect as could be. The soft white base of the flower melted into a pastel lavender and a soft, sky blue at the ends of the petals. “Oh, Ma. You are going to love these. They look like they were made for you. Which, technically, they will be, because as the woman explained to me, they’re a hand-tinted rose.”

Roxie tapped on the picture, then made it bigger so the single bloom filled the screen. She held it out to her mom. “What do you think?”

Willie leaned in, squinting. “Is that a real rose?”

“It is. It’s a white rose that they hand-color somehow.”

Willie put her hand to her mouth. “I’ve never seen anything like it. They match my dress perfectly. I don’t care what they cost. I want those.”

Roxie grinned. “I thought you would. Bridal bouquet, boutonniere for Miguel, and three centerpieces, right? That’s what I plan on getting.”

“That sounds right,” Willie said. “Plus the arch.”

Roxie frowned. “What arch?”

“I want an arch of them for Miguel and me to stand in front of when we say our vows. It’ll look nice in the pictures.”

Roxie nodded. “I agree with that. But we don’t have an arch.”

“Maybe the florist does.” Willie shrugged. “If not, we can buy one. I bet Amazon sells them. Amazon sells everything.”

“Any other flowers you’re going to want before I call the shop back?”

Willie drank her coffee and seemed to think about that. “How about some petals to throw around on the ground? To make it look pretty.”

“Petals. I can ask.”

“Great.”

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