I felt an unexpected pang of jealousy at the thought of Ethan ending up with the super cute and annoyingly bubbly Aubrey.
What the hell was happening to me?
Something twisted inside me. “Of course.”
“Good,” she said confidently, smiling at me as though it was all settled and Ethan and Aubrey could now sail off into the sunset together. “Now, let’s find something for your best friend.”
Crap. I didn’t want it to seem like I was bothered by what she’d said to me, so I grabbed a scarf for Naomi. I still felt bad for leaving her to face my family. I owed her so much more than a few small gifts.
I also wanted to get something for Addi, as a thank you for her kindness the day we met, but there was no way I was going to get her something from her competition.
After I purchased the scarf, I couldn’t get out of Fuchsia Flowers and Gifts fast enough. Jackie’s attitude definitely changed after I told her there wasn’t anything going on with Ethan and me. And I was a paying customer, so that probably helped.
* * *
On my way home, I picked up a salad and a cup of soup from Panera Bread. Isabella was right about them; their food was yummy. I finished eating and glanced around Addi’s warm and cozy townhouse. For the first time since I arrived I took a look at the photographs on the shelves and walls. There was a photo of Addi with another woman and two older people, I assumed they were her sister and parents. Addi looked so much like her mother it was scary.
The picture reminded me of my own mother, and I quickly moved on.
On the shelf were a few pictures of Addi and a stunning woman with a dark brown bob haircut. That was definitely her best friend, Tonya. She had showed me a picture of her when we were at the airport. On the wall there was a gorgeous poster-size picture of a city nestled at the base of two green mountains. It reminded me a little bit of San Francisco. I knew right away from the way she described it that this was Addi’s hometown in New Zealand. I think she said it was called Wellington. The picture was so amazing, it took my breath away.
That Jon guy must have been pretty terrific for Addi to leave that glorious city.
The sound of my phone buzzing distracted me from the picture. As soon as I found it where I’d left it in the guest room, I glanced at the screen. It was a message from Ethan.
Jackie told me she saw you today.
I groaned as I typed my response.
Yes, I stopped into her store.
I didn’t want to say anything else, especially something that could embarrass all of us.
Was she nice?
Hmmm, that was an interesting thing for him to ask me. Maybe Jackie isn’t always nice to Ethan’s friends? I typed my response.
She was okay, why do you ask?
A few seconds later my phone rang.
“It’s just so much easier to call. And I’m trying not to text while I’m driving,” he said. He had such a nice voice. I could listen to it all day.
I curled the phone in my neck and sat down on the couch, a smile spreading across my face. “I agree with you on that. You can’t be on your phone at all while driving in California. I’m used to that rule.”
“That’s right. I remember learning that when I was in California recently.”
What are we talking about? I couldn’t believe we were discussing cell phone laws in different states.
“So, why were you asking me if Jackie was being nice?” I asked, launching straight into it. I figured I should just cut to the chase at this point.
He laughed. “She has a tendency to try to scare women away. She’s been trying to set me up with Aubrey for years.”
“Yeah, she mentioned that.”
“Oh, did she?” I could detect a hint of annoyance in his voice.
“It’s fine. I told her we had just met and that there wasn’t anything . . . going on between us.”
I bit my lip. This conversation was getting awkward.
“She needs to mind her own business. I’ll call my brother.”
Crap. I certainly didn’t want to create a bunch of family drama for him. Not to mention make an enemy with someone who owned another flower shop.
“It’s really not a big deal,” I insisted. I decided to change the subject. “Anyway, how was your trip?”
Thankfully asking him about work momentarily did the trick, but he went back to my conversation with Jackie as soon as he could.
“So . . . did Jackie scare you away?”
“Scare me away?”
“Yeah. Have you changed your mind about meeting me for coffee?”
I didn’t scare away easily. There was no way I was going to let Jackie and her plans bother me. And I was in a new city with no friends.
Because that’s what Ethan was: a friend.
“Not at all,” I said firmly, ignoring the rush of excitement at the thought of seeing him.
“Awesome.”
I gripped my phone as my heart pounded in my chest. I pushed my feelings of guilt away.
I was really going through with this.
Chapter 11
Addison
Pay close attention to the details of the Thornhill wedding. Mrs. Thornhill’s requests are very specific!
“This wedding is in less than two weeks, Sabrina!” Mrs. Thornhill exclaimed, tapping the table with her index finger for emphasis.
I was sitting with Mrs. Thornhill and her daughter, Lucy, at one of the cafés in the Ferry Building, putting the final touches to the flower order for the wedding. Mrs. Thornhill was being the usual, bossy person I’d gotten to know over the past week of working at The Flower Girl, making demands and expecting almost slave-like fealty, all the while insisting on calling me “Sabrina.” I don’t think she had any clue what my actual name was at all—and nor did I think she cared.
Really, she was such a joy to work with.
Lucy, on the other hand, was like a timid little mouse, agreeing with every choice her mother made, not once offering an opinion that was anything but echoing her mother’s. I wanted to shake her, to tell her this was her and her fiancé’s day, not anyone else’s.
If Sabrina’s failed wedding could do anything, it would be to show girls like Lucy not to get pushed into a corner.
“Lucy wants the white roses as we both feel the flowers shouldn’t stand out against the dress. They should complement it instead.”
I glanced at Lucy. Was that really what she wanted? I’d noticed her face light up when I’d suggested peach-colored tulips teamed with a ring of baby’s breath for her bouquet. White roses, although stunning, did not elicit the same response from her.
Lucy nodded at me and shot me a timid smile, as she’d been doing this entire meeting.
“Are you sure, Lucy? Only, I thought you quite liked this bouquet.” I pointed at a photo of the tulips on the table.
“She wants the white roses, don’t you, Lucy darling?” Mrs. Thornhill said, glaring at her daughter.
I watched as Lucy looked from the picture to her mother, then back at me. “Mother is right. The white roses would look best.”
I let out a puff of air and smiled at her. “Well, as long as you’re sure. The white roses will be stunning with this greenery, tied up with a simple white ribbon.” I held up the picture of the design.
“Excellent. Now, the centerpieces. The other Sabrina and I had thought these would look the best.”
The other Sabrina? Geez.
And so the conversation went, Lucy acquiescing to whatever her mother wanted, me going along with it all, feeling bad for the poor bride. As I half listened to Mrs. Thornhill carry on about how lower class gerberas were—Who knew there could be such a thing as “lower class” flowers?—I wondered whether Lucy’s fiancé was equally timid and dominated by his mother.
If he was, they stood no chance.
The meeting done, my notes on what constituted the “right” sort of flowers over their lesser companions safely tucked into a folder entitled “Thornhill Wedding,�
�� I took the short stroll to The Flower Girl where Leonardo, Sabrina’s trusty assistant, had been holding down the fort.
“Hi, Leonardo,” I said as I breezed through the open doors.
No matter how many times I called him that, I couldn’t get the image of him dressed up as a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle out of my head. Only, he wouldn’t tote a weapon. Oh, no. He’d be the flower ninja, able to create an exquisite floral arrangement at twenty paces.
“Hi, babe,” he replied, looking up at me and smiling.
I smiled back, feeling a touch giddy.
Had I mentioned Leonardo was utterly gorgeous? As in totally drop-dead, angels wept, it wasn’t fair he was gay kind of gorgeous? He was tanned and toned, with thick blond hair swept up into a man bun. Ordinarily, I wasn’t a fan of the man bun, but on Leonardo it made him look like some kind of Medieval warrior.
Only toting flowers, not swords.
However he looked, he was a godsend when it came to The Flower Girl. He only worked part time, usually when Sabrina had some big projects on, but he’d agreed to come in every day over the last week, making my task of getting to know the business considerably easier.
Plus, with his good looks, I was certain he was attracting more clientele. They may have come in to ogle him, but they left with their wallets lighter, a large bouquet in their hands.
I was more than happy with the arrangement—florist pun intended.
Personally, I had stepped up to the plate and was now dressing in shirts and skirts and dresses with heels every day. I fitted in nicely, even next to the Norse god, Leonardo.
“You left your phone on the counter,” he said, holding it aloft. “Somebody named ‘Cute guy on the cable car’ called. Cute guy, huh?”
I grabbed for it, but Leonardo snatched it away. Being significantly taller than me, he had more than an unfair advantage in this game.
“Uh-ah. Not until you tell me who this cute guy is.”
I chuckled, giving up the fight. “All right. You win. His name is Asher, and I met him last week when I was being a tourist on the Powell-Hyde cable car.”
I didn’t let my mind wander to why I was on that cable car in the first place.
I didn’t want to go there.
“And?” Leonardo prompted, still holding my phone out of my reach.
“He wants me to go out with him.”
Satisfied with my response, Leonardo lowered his hand and I took the phone from him. “Thank you.”
“How cute is he?”
I thought of Asher. There was no denying he was attractive.
He just wasn’t Todd.
Todd, the guy I needed to forget—but was having a very tricky time doing so.
“He’s very cute. Now, get back to work.”
He gave me a mock salute, his iridescent blue eyes dancing. “Yes, ma’am.”
I dialed my voicemail and listened to Asher’s message. As I had suspected, he was asking me out. I hit delete.
I hadn’t dated anyone since Jon had dumped me eighteen months ago. I knew I needed to break this drought, but my heart wasn’t in it.
Typical. Why couldn’t I be into single, not-left-at-the-altar-by-Sabrina Asher? Life would be so much less complicated.
I typed out a text.
Thank you so much, but I think I’ll pass. It was great meeting you!
I pressed send. I hoped Asher wouldn’t be too bothered, although I suspected a guy like him would cope just fine with the rejection from the random Kiwi girl on the cable car.
Leonardo and I worked hard for the rest of the day, filling online and telephone orders, dealing with walk-ins, and arranging deliveries. The Flower Girl was a fun and busy place, and I could see why Sabrina was so passionate about it.
At the end of the day I locked up, and Leonardo and I walked out of the Ferry Building and into the evening sun.
“Thanks again for coming in for a full day today, Leonardo,” I said, giving him a quick hug. Leonardo was the kind of guy you couldn’t help but like, and I’d warmed to him straight away.
“Of course! Anything for Sabrina Number Two.”
I shook my head in good humor. “Where are you off to?”
“I’m meeting the girls for a cocktail or three in the Castro. You should come! They’d totes adore you.”
“The girls?” I questioned.
“Well, they’re all boys, of course, but they’re very pretty.”
I chuckled. “Well, have a great time. I’m actually meeting Naomi for a drink.”
He air-kissed me and declared, “Naomi is fabulous in an uptight, Russian Hill kind of way.”
“What does that mean?” I asked with a laugh.
“It means she was born with a drawer of silver spoons in her mouth and has the attitude to match.”
“Meow! A saucer of milk, Leonardo?” I joked.
“Babe, they don’t call me Leonardo Dicatrio for nothing. I am queen of catty comments. Ask anyone in the bay area.”
I hopped on the F-line back to Marina and the sanctity of Sabrina’s apartment. Despite the unsettling intrusion by her mother in my first days here, I had really grown to love Sabrina’s place. I felt more at home here than I ever had in Orlando.
Maybe it was fate we’d met, after all?
I sat in the window seat in Sabrina’s living room, soaking up the early evening sun as I sipped a cup of tea. I scrolled through my phone, reading my messages, liking friends’ posts, and adding the odd comment. I got to a message from Tonya, telling me how she’d seen Geoff at a party and told him I might be moving back to New Zealand soon. Apparently, he was, and I quote, “beyond ecstatic.” Or, at least, he was according to Tonya.
I chewed the inside of my lip. Sure, Geoff was a great guy. We’d dated for years and we had fitted together like a glove. We knew one another so well, we could finish one another’s sentences. And then good-looking, charming, exciting Jon had turned up on the scene and I had been dazzled by him.
And look how that had turned out.
I decided to file it away for future thought. Right now, I had an evening to look forward to with Naomi.
A quick shower and change and I walked the few blocks to the bar Naomi said served the best mojitos in town. I also hoped they served food, because after a long day at The Flower Girl, I was famished.
I walked into the bar with its seventies-inspired décor, complete with kitsch-but-cool wooden wall paneling and tan-colored vinyl seats. I spotted Naomi at the bar, playing with the straw to her drink and chatting to the barman.
She greeted me with a kiss to the cheek, which she instantly wiped away with her fingers. “Lipstick, sorry.”
I hopped up onto the free bar stool next to her. “No worries.”
This time she was wearing a Barbie-pink jacket over a black sequined tank top and a pair of shorts, her long, slim legs tucked under the stool. I felt better next to her in my skinny jeans, heels, and white open-necked shirt combo, despite the fact that she looked cutting edge and I looked . . . well, like me.
“Tim, this is Addi,” she said to the barman. He had a full beard but was completely bald up top, kind of like he had his head on upside down.
“Hey, Addi. What can I get you?”
“Oh, she’ll have one of your famous mojitos. How does that sound, Addi?” Naomi replied, looking at me.
I shrugged. “Sure, why not? And something to eat?”
Tim pushed the bar food menu over toward me and I scanned the options, settling on a bowl of meatballs with some garlic bread on the side.
“You’re clearly not planning on kissing anyone tonight,” Naomi commented after I’d placed my order.
I chuckled. “The garlic bread? No, it’s not likely I’ll be kissing anyone, although, I did meet a cute guy recently.”
“Oh, give me the details.”
I told Naomi how I’d met Asher and how he seemed like a nice guy.
“So, are you going to go out with him?”
I shrugged. “No” was
the real answer, but Naomi seemed to like the idea of me going out with him, so I said, “Maybe. He wants to take me to a place called Fish Tank, or Puddle or something?”
“Pond?”
“That’s the one.”
“Wow, that’s impressive. Pond is the hot place right now.”
I was reminded of the “he’s so hot right now” line from Zoolander and smiled to myself.
“So, do you like him?” she asked, taking my smile to be about Asher.
“He seems nice.”
Right on cue, Todd came to mind.
With Naomi’s seal of approval, we moved on to our common ground: Sabrina.
“I know you can’t tell me where she is, and that’s fine. We’ve been talking. She asked me to help Todd sort out all the wedding gifts. They need to be returned.”
That sounded like a grisly business to me: returning presents from the Wedding That Wasn’t.
“Won’t that be really upsetting for Todd?” I tried not to blush as I mentioned his name.
“Actually, he’s doing surprisingly well for a guy left at the altar. But then, he might just be hiding his pain. You know how men are.”
An image of that fleeting sadness on his handsome face entered my mind, and I had to push it away.
I thought of how Naomi and Todd were meeting for lunch that day he took me by surprise at The Flower Girl. I was finding it hard to resist the urge to talk about him, despite my best efforts to push him from my mind all week. Not that I’d been successful in doing so, exactly.
But still, a girl needed to at least try, right?
You just couldn’t go lusting after your friend’s ex, even if you couldn’t for the life of you work out why she broke up with him in the first place.
I stirred my drink with my straw, watching the ice cubes swirl around. “You know him pretty well, do you?”
“You could say that. Years ago, there was this TV show here called Beverly Hills, 90210.”
The show’s theme song sprang instantly into my head. “I loved that show. Brandon and Brenda and all the gang.”
Naomi looked surprised.
“We have televisions in New Zealand, you know. Of course, they were all wind ups back then. We had this big lever, and it would take all the villagers to get it working.”
One Way Ticket Page 12
