“Then you make sure to enjoy every moment of the next four days.” She squealed, gave Katie a hands-free hug where she just squeezed with her arms since her hands each held half a bagel, and then said, “I’ve got to run. Call me with any questions, okay?”
And then she was out the door,nottaking the cold with her, sadly.
Normally, Emmalee’s advice to enjoy the next four days would be speaking Katie’s language, because she was always up for dating someone who was going to make life more fun. But she wasn’t sure she could be so casual with Connor. She’d been waiting for someone to come along who would just kind of grab her by the heart, and Connor felt like that someone. And when someone had your heart and just left, that leaving wasn’t painless.
It took nearly an hour just to get everything organized and to figure out which flowers went with which arrangements, which bases to use, what ribbon, and to get it arranged in an accessible location. It took another thirty minutes to figure out how many flowers went in each centerpiece, boutonniere, corsage, and bridesmaid bouquet, and which ones to put aside for the floral swags.
It didn’t help that the place was so crowded that she could barely move through the forest of flowers, or that she waswearing a coat, gloves, sweat pants, and a knit hat like she was outside in the winter. Which she practically was.
She was sitting at the table, working on one of the mothers’ corsages when she got a text on her phone and leaned over to look at it.
Connor: What should I wear tonight?
She smiled and picked up her phone.
Katie: Well, we’ll be outside, so I would probably suggest wearing something warm over, say, flip-flops and swim trunks.
Connor: Bummer, because I have new flip-flop socks I was hoping to show off. So, an outfit like this would be more appropriate?
Then he texted a selfie at an angle where it got most of his body, and she could see that he was wearing the hockey gear he must practice in, with the edge of the rink in the background.
Katie: That’s perfect. I’m a little unsure about the skates, though. Can you go up porch steps with those? I’d hate to see Glacier’s prized new player break an ankle.
Connor: True. We’re going to be on actual hay, right? Maybe I’ll ditch the skates and wear my farmer boots instead. I think they’ll go pretty well with these padded pants and shin guards.
She sent the laughing emoji in response.
Katie: So are you starting practice right now or just finishing?
Connor: Finishing, and about to head in to work out. Maybe get a massage.
Katie: Ahh. The life of a famous hockey star.
Connor: Yep. Nothing but massages, treatments, and food. Lots of food. What are you up to today?
Instead of responding with words, she sent a picture of the floral tornado surrounding her, making sure to get as much of it as possible in the picture.
Connor: Is that your apartment or the backstage of a flower show?
Katie: My apartment. Does it look cold? It’s a giant fridge in here. My roommate owns a little flower shop on Main Street, and a floral emergency landed in her lap. I had plans to edit footage today, but until the hay ride tonight, I think this is all I’ll be doing. She needs all the help I can give her.
Connor: Oof. Best of luck to you both.
A little over an hour later, as she was working on one of twenty— yes, twenty!— boutonnieres, a knock sounded at her door. She extricated herself from the mess of buds, greenery, floral tape, and ribbon that was on the table and her lap andwent over to the door. She opened it to see Connor, holding a paper bag, smiling. She just blinked a few times, not registering how and why Connor was there, at her apartment.
“Hungry?” he asked, holding up the bag. “I brought lunch.”
eleven
KATIE
Katie definitely was hungry—she had meant to get breakfast at some point but had been too focused on working. “What are you doing here?”
He stepped inside, closing the door behind him. His eyes widened as they scanned all the flowers in the room before they met hers again. “Well, after your stories about not wanting to accept help even when you need it, I figured that if I asked if you needed help with the flowers, you would say no.”
She scratched her forehead. “Yeah, I totally would’ve said no.”
“And you clearly could use help. I mean, I’m no expert, but this feels like a lot of flowers. So I figured I should just show up ready and willing to help.”
