“What!” Shock and outrage crossed her face. “Why? What happened?”
I took a deep breath, breathing in the calming scents of nature. “I may havemildlybroken the law. Minuscule, really. But someone had taken a picture of it and sent it to the captain. Oh God, they probably sent it to Chief Williams, and he passed it off to Captain to handle.”
“What was it? Was it bad?”
“I went skinny-dipping in the ocean.” I cringed.
“That’s not a fireable offense,” she huffed.
“With Luke,” I added.
Her eyes sparkled, a small smirk pulling at her lips. “Well, that just sounds fun.”
“Oh, it was better than fun… We, um…” I trailed off. I didn’t need to get into details. She clearly understood what I was getting at based on the elated expression on her face.
“Is that what was happening in the picture?” she whispered, faux-scandalized.
I nodded before rushing to add, “You couldn’t really see anything because we were in the water, but my top half was clearly visible, including my face.”
“Well, that’s both amazing—get it, girl—and ridiculous that they would fire you for that.”
I shrugged like it was no big deal, and now that a few dayshad passed, I was feeling better. “It was reckless of us. And public nudity is against the law. I guess I should be happy I wasn’t fined.”
The peonies that I had selected were too light for the arrangement I was creating. I replaced them with carnations in a terracotta-orange color while Daisy was busy making an arrangement of her own.
She peeked over my shoulder at what I was working on, her shoulder bumping into mine with approval.
“That looks great, Scarlett. You should come work for me now that you’re out of a job.”
She was so sweet. I laughed, thanking her for the compliment on my flower choices. “It’s because I’ve had such a great teacher.”
“You’re a quick learner. I’m serious though. Would you want to pick up a couple of days here? I can’t offer a lot of hours, but I definitely need some extra help. I have to shut my doors early on Tuesdays and Thursdays to make deliveries because I don’t have anyone here to run the shop. We could hang for the day, work on some displays together, and then when I have to run out, you can work the counter.” Her tone held a plea to it, like she really wanted to take me on as an employee.
“Are you serious? You don’t have to hire me just to be nice. I was going to start looking for a new job this week.”
“Completely serious. Please say yes, Scarlett. Pretty please?” She drew out the last word, her hands folded together, an over-the-top grin spread across her cheeks.
It wouldn’t be enough hours to make a living, but I could always fill in the other days with another part-time gig, at least for now.
It might be nice. It would definitely be less stressful. Even in a small town, dealing with crises all day could be exhausting. And spending my time here, at Daisy Days Flower Shop, was bound to lift my spirit.
“Okay. Yeah. If you’re serious, then yes, I would love to work for you!”
Daisy excitedly filled me in on what to expect and when I could start. And just like that, I was no longer unemployed. Despite whatever was happening within the police department, Calla Bay was the type of community that helped each other and truly cared for each other as more than just neighbors but as friends.
* * *
“Bye, Daisy. Drive safe.”
We had just finished loading up her beat-up truck with her deliveries for this afternoon. She proudly drove through town in her ’98 Ford Ranger with more gray paint peeled off than was left remaining. The bright white Daisy Days decal with colorful floral designs that was attached to the door was comically mismatched to the state of the truck.
“Thanks, Scarlett. Call me if you need anything, but I’m sure you’ll be fine.”
My first shift had been super fun so far. I thought I knew what I was getting into, having spent a decent amount of time here with Daisy, but as it turned out, there was a lot more to running a business than just putting pretty floral arrangements together.
After basically rotting on the couch for a week, standing on my feet all day was exhausting. I sat on the small stool behind the counter and stretched my back and shoulder muscles. My whole body sighed with instant relief.
I made my first sale when Debbie from Pine Street Market came in to purchase one of the premade bouquets.
