Yours, With Love: A Sweet Contemporary Romance (Finding Love Book 5) Read online

  Ellen escorted Miss Shaver to the counter and went over - for the third time - the details of her order. By the time that young lady departed, even Ellen’s ample supply of patience had been sorely tried.

  Faith looked up from her position at the window. “I don’t envy you having to deal with the public. I think I’d be ripping out my hair after that session.”

  “I understand that she’s anxious, but her nervousness is beginning to rub off on me. I’m glad she didn’t bring her mother this time. That woman scares me to death.”

  Faith sat a porcelain bunny with floppy ears wearing blue overalls on the counter. “I’m gonna get this for Olivia.”

  They were joined a few minutes later by Faith’s husband. “Hey, Ellen. How’s it going?”

  “Hi, Landris. I’m doing well.”

  He picked up the bunny and looked down at his wife. “I guess I don’t need to ask who this is for.”

  “No, you don’t. How did your meeting go?”

  “Apparently it’s a good time to buy a beach house. I set up an appointment for Taryn and Clint on Saturday afternoon.”

  “Can we tag along?” Faith asked. “I love to look at houses.”

  Landris laughed as he kissed her. “I don’t see why not.”

  Ellen watched them wistfully. They were so obviously in love, but they were also best friends. She thought she was building that kind of relationship with Mark, but it had all been in her head. What was she doing wrong?

  * * * * *

  Quinn had just sat the vase of flowers on his sister’s desk when she walked through the door of her office. “You’re not supposed to see me doing this,” he told her.

  “Should I leave and come back after you’re gone?”

  “Nah. Happy birthday, sis.”

  “Thank you.”

  He pulled her close and kissed her cheek. “You’re welcome. Congratulations on reaching the big ‘3-0’.”

  “Lucas put black balloons inside my car this morning.”

  Quinn chuckled. “That man likes living on the edge.”

  “He’s going to be sleeping in a tent in the backyard if I find any more black balloons.”

  “I think he knows how far he can push you. Dinner’s at six at The Sea Room tonight, right?”

  “Yes. You better make sure Mom doesn’t tell the waitress it’s my birthday.”

  “I’ll do my best, but I don’t have much influence in this family.”

  Terry pulled out the card stuck in the middle of the flowers and studied it. “Violets are Blue. I thought they closed.”

  “The owner’s niece took it over. You remember Ellen Sterling, don’t you?”

  “She was a few years behind me in school. Didn’t you date her sister Bethany? I never cared for that girl. She was stuck on herself.”

  “I wasn’t discerning enough to pick up on that.”

  Terry made a rude sound. “You were taken in by that pretty face and how she looked in her cheerleading outfit.”

  “As was every other boy in high school. I need to get going. My patient is probably already in the examining room. I’ll see you tonight.”

  When he stepped through the side door of the clinic his father had built twenty years ago, his secretary looked up from the screen on her desk. “I never got a chance to ask about your trip to Florida.”

  “The convention was well worth putting up with the heavy traffic and spring breakers. I went to a really cool restaurant called the Rainforest Café. Your kids would love it. It had a jungle décor that included life-size animals. Every fifteen minutes they came alive. I happened to be sitting near the tiger. The first time he started moving and let out this huge roar, I almost fell out of my chair.”

  “You’re right; Chelsea and Samuel would have enjoyed that.” She sent him a coy glance that didn’t fool him at all. “Who’d you go with?”

  He laughed. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”

  She sighed loudly. “Unfortunately, I do know. It was probably a group of middle-aged married men.”

  “I fit in better with them.”

  “You’re only thirty-three.”

  “Thanks for the reminder.”

  “Jeff called from the St. Marys Youth Association. He’d like you to speak at their next meeting.”

  “I’ll get back with him after I see my afternoon patients.”

  Several hours later, he was sitting in a restaurant listening to a friendly argument between Terry and Jase. His mother touched him on the arm.

  “You were right, Quinn.”

  “About what?”

  She leaned closer and lowered her voice. “I should have hired someone to wallpaper the bathroom.”

  “What happened?” he asked as he sent a quick glance across the table. His brother-in-law Lucas was looking a little green around the gills which meant that Quinn’s father was probably talking about some new surgical procedure he’d read about. He tended to forget that not everyone had the stomach for that stuff especially when they were eating.

  “Your father pre-cut the strips, but he forgot that the pattern had to be lined up. When we went to hang them, they were all too short. We had to go back to Home Depot to buy more rolls.”

  Quinn couldn’t help but laugh. Jerry Phillips might be the most gifted pediatrician in the state of Georgia, but when it came to doing things around the house, he was hopeless. One would think after thirty-eight years of marriage, his mother would know this. It seemed, however, that the opposite was true.

  “How far did you get?”

  “Half of one wall. Hardly what I’d call a success.”

  “Don’t worry about it. I’ll finish it for you. I can’t come tomorrow or Wednesday. How about Thursday evening?”

  “I don’t want you trying to do that after you’ve worked all day. Wait until the weekend.”

  “I was planning on going to a car show in Kingsland on Saturday.”

  “Are you taking the Chevelle?”

  He grinned. “Of course. Who knows? I might get an offer I can’t refuse.”

  “You’re not thinking of selling it, are you?”

  Quinn shook his head. “I put too much work into it.”

  There had been something therapeutic in taking something damaged and making it like new again. In a way, it was as if what he was doing outwardly to the car, he was doing inwardly to his broken spirit. During the long hours in his garage, he came to terms with the reality of his situation. He accepted, as others close to him refused to do, that short of a miracle his chances of marrying were so slim as to be nonexistent. It wasn’t wise to spend the rest of his life wishing for something he couldn’t have.

  Once the birthday dinner was over, he made his way home. As he waited for the garage door to open, his glance went to the cottage next door, noting the absence of any light. All he’d seen of his new tenant was her maroon Toyota Camry. He wondered what she did for a living. Jase, in his usual distracted fashion, hadn’t thought to ask any pertinent questions. Quinn had arrived home too late last night and left too early this morning to introduce himself. Hopefully, he could take of that omission soon.

  Chapter Three

  The following morning Ellen accidently shut off her alarm instead of hitting the snooze button. She didn’t realize her mistake until Frank called from the shop wondering where she was. Knowing he had class, she pulled her hair into a ponytail, threw on a pair of jeans and a shirt and flew out the door.

  What she didn’t remember until later was that Mark’s fiancé was coming at eleven. For pride’s sake alone, she’d wanted to look halfway decent for that meeting just in case Mark came along. A glance in the small mirror on the wall confirmed that she could hardly look worse. Her hair was a limp mess, her nail polish was chipped, and she wasn’t wearing any makeup. With Frank gone, she couldn’t leave the shop to do anything about it.

  In an act of desperation, she dumped the contents of her purse on the work table looking for anything that might help the situation. She found so
me lip gloss and an old compact. Those two items weren’t sufficient to perform the miracle she needed. As she collected her notebook, some floral catalogs and a price sheet, she chided herself for being worried about something so trivial. Knowing Mark, he’d already described Ellen in painstaking detail.

  If only she’d known who this particular bride was before she confirmed that she was available on the day they were getting married. In any case, she couldn’t afford to let her personal feelings get in the way. They were customers. That’s how she must force herself to think of them.

  At five minutes to eleven, the shop door swung open and in walked a lovely girl with dark blonde hair and large brown eyes. Her sundress showed off her model-like proportions and a tan that could only have come from a salon. Ellen felt like last night’s dinner in comparison. A step behind the young woman was Mark, a somewhat strained smile on his too-handsome face.

  “Welcome to Violets are Blue,” she said, putting her glance in the safe zone between them. “I’m Ellen.”

  “Hi, Ellen. I’m Nicole. I’m here for a consultation. I didn’t realize when I spoke to you on the phone that you and Mark know each other.” She laughed slightly and the sound of it made Ellen grit her teeth. “He told me you probably wouldn’t want to do our wedding, but I hope you’re going to prove him wrong.”

  Ellen’s glance instinctively shifted to Mark. He was studying the carpet as if he was searching for an escape hatch. Why was she surprised by that? He’d already proven he was a moral coward. “I never turn away customers. If you’ll both have a seat at the counter, we can get started.”

  The next hour wasn’t enjoyable, but she got through it. Her sense of humor helped tremendously as did the discovery that Mark was clearly as uncomfortable as she and not nearly as good at hiding it. This was further confirmed when Nicole excused herself to answer a phone call. As soon as the glass door closed behind her, Mark spoke to Ellen directly for the first time.

  “I tried to talk her out of this.”

  She looked into the face of the man who’d once held such a special place in her heart and wondered what she ever saw in him. “Don’t you have any say at all? You’re getting married, too.”

  His mouth turned down. “Grooms have very little say in weddings. One of Nicole’s friends used this place last year and recommended it. Personally, I just want the whole thing to be over. Between her mom and mine, this is turning into the wedding of the century. The guest list has swelled to four hundred people. That’s not a wedding; it’s a town meeting.” He crossed his arms, looking like a sulky ten-year-old. “You’ve moved things around since I was last in here.”

  “I bought another refrigerated case and had to make room for it.”

  “So business is booming?”

  “It’s improving every month.”

  “No matter what happens with the economy, people still get married.”

  This somewhat uncomfortable conversation was interrupted by the reappearance of Nicole. “Sorry that took so long, but I’m sure you two found something to talk about.”

  This was the moment when Ellen decided she didn’t like Nicole very much. For obvious reasons, she kept that opinion to herself.

  Mark glanced at his watch impatiently. “Are we finished? I need to be at the courthouse in an hour, and I’d like to have lunch first.”

  Nicole dropped a hand on his shoulder, the fake nails on the tips of her fingers looking blood red against the dark material of his suit. “Yes, darling. Your suffering is over.” She looked at Ellen. “I’ll get back with you when I’ve made a decision.”

  “That’s fine,” Ellen assured her politely even as she wished Mark would be a man and put a stop to this foolishness. He certainly hadn’t minded telling her what he thought.

  If nothing else, today’s meeting had proven that what she felt for him was infatuation and nothing more. He was all glitter with no substance underneath. His lack of character was obvious now that she wasn’t blinded by his charm. Losing him had been the best thing that could have happened. They would never have made each other happy.

  * * * * *

  Quinn finished his morning patients just before noon. A flurry of last-minute walk-ins had put him behind schedule. Telling his secretary not to worry about ordering him any lunch, he left the clinic and made his way across the street to the hospital. There were several newborns he needed to see. This was the part of his job he enjoyed the most. Babies were the complete paradox; seemingly so fragile and yet so tough and resilient. They emerged from the trauma of birth with a sleepy acceptance of their new world and an innate faith in their fellow man. If only adults could be persuaded to do the same.

  Once he finished there, he stopped by the dry cleaners to pick up the white lab coats he wore in the office. Kelly always offered to do it, but Quinn didn’t like the idea of having his secretary do his personal errands. It sent the wrong message; like he thought he was better than everyone else and that his time was more valuable.

  His slate of afternoon patients wasn’t nearly as heavy. He was able to finish his notes and return some phone calls before leaving to meet Ellen at the restaurant. Since he was early, he went ahead and got a table. That had the advantage of saving her from the unwelcome attention he inevitably drew wherever he went. It hadn’t been easy, but Quinn had grown accustomed to the rude stares and whispered comments. He’d gone from being admired for his looks to being pitied.

  When he caught sight of Ellen walking behind the waiter, he felt the sensation of light-headedness he used to get when riding one of those spinning cars at the state fair. She was perfect, and he was so not. He wasn’t sure why this mattered. She wasn’t interested in him in that way, and she already knew what he looked like. He didn’t have to spend the evening worrying that he was going to ruin her appetite or trying to hide one side of his face.

  “Good evening,” he said, rising to pull out her chair.

  She smiled her thanks. “Hey, Quinn.”

  After the waiter took their orders, he asked, “How was your day?”

  “It’s the calm before the storm. I’ve got Easter, prom season, Mother’s Day, and then all the summer weddings.”

  “Do you work alone?”

  She shook her head. “I couldn’t run the shop by myself. I’ve got a college student who works about thirty hours a week. Frank is a natural when it comes to floral design. When I first took over the business, I had the help of the older woman who’d been my aunt’s assistant. She still comes in occasionally, but she’s got grandchildren now and doesn’t want to be tied down to regular hours.”

  The arrival of their drinks and pulled pork sandwiches temporarily halted the conversation. Once they were alone again, he said, “I’m still trying to get used to the adult version of the teenage girl I remember. Although you’ve been nice enough not to mention it, I’m sure you’ve noticed the change in my appearance. I’ll save you the awkwardness of asking what happened. I was in Africa with Doctors without Borders. The hospital where I was working got hit by several terrorist bombs. About half of us survived. I was one of the more fortunate ones in that I only sustained a broken arm, cuts, bruises, and burns. I was able to come home and return to a somewhat normal life doing the job I love.”

  “I’m so sorry, Quinn. It must have been awful.”

  She reached across the table and laid her hand over his. Warmth radiated up his arm to his shoulders and chest. A woman’s touch; he hadn’t felt it in a long time.

  “The one thing I came away with from that experience is that life is precious. Every day is a blessing that I shouldn’t take for granted.”

  “That’s something we should all remember,” she said, taking her hand away which was good because he’d almost ran out of breath and bad because it was unlikely to happen again.

  “How’s your sister doing?”

  “Bethany is married with two kids. Her husband Miles is an engineer. They live in Dothan, Alabama.”

  “It’s strange how you can
look back and laugh about something that seemed so disastrous at the time it was happening. I thought my world had come to an end when I found out about Bethany and Dalton. Within a few months of leaving St. Marys to go to college, I met someone else.”

  “I was so mad at her for doing that to you.”

  “Why were you upset?”

  “Because you were nice to me, and you didn’t deserve to be treated that way.”

  “You were easy to be nice to. That brings me to my next question. Why is there no wedding ring on your finger?”

  Ellen laughed. “Because no one’s asked me to marry them. I’ll borrow a phrase my assistant used recently. I’m like a practice round. Guys date me so they can work out all the kinks before they move on to the woman they want to marry. Speaking of which, my last boyfriend came into the shop today with his fiancé. I can’t tell you how much fun that was.”

  Quinn shook his head. “Talk about a bad move.”

  “She seemed to think it was funny, but you know what? Their money is as good as anyone else’s. I’ll do the flowers for their wedding and move on to the next one.”

  “You’ve got the right attitude. Show them that you don’t care.”

  “I’m gonna try. I was feminine enough to be bothered by the fact that she was prettier than me. She looked like a model, and I looked like this.” She waved a hand at herself.

  He toyed with the straw in his soda. “I’m not sure what to do here. If I tell you that you look lovely, you’ll think I’m just saying it to make you feel better. If I don’t say anything, you’ll think I agree with your ridiculous comment. What I will say is this: I’m not the only one turning heads in here. This is probably as close to a real life Beauty and the Beast moment as most of these people will ever get.”

  “Your example is way off. I’m no beauty, and you’re very far from being a beast.”

  “I guess we’ll have to agree to disagree. Where are you living?”

  “Until a few days ago, I was staying in my aunt’s house. Now I’m renting a place in the Sea Breezes subdivision.”