One Way Ticket

by Melissa Baldwin

  I sighed. “I know you don’t, Mother. I really wish you could understand, and that’s my fault because I wasn’t honest with you, or with myself.”

  She stared at me blankly, as though I were speaking a foreign language.

  “Sabrina, I’m not the one you should be explaining things to. You need to go and patch things up with Todd. You’ve gone and had your fun, now it’s time to get your life back on track.”

  I shook my head. I fully expected this reaction from her. She didn’t want to hear what I had to say. All she cared about was the Monroe and the Blakely families being joined for the whole world to see and admire.

  Did she even care about me?

  I let out a puff of air. “Todd and I have spoken, and we’ve already moved on with our lives. There’s no going back.”

  She knitted her eyebrows together. “What does that mean?”

  I gave her the sweetest smile I could muster, considering the uncomfortable circumstances. “It means we’ve broken up, Mother. In fact, I’ve met someone, and—”

  “Oh, for heaven’s sake, Sabrina!” she interrupted, raising her voice, her hands forming fists at her sides. “You’ve met someone? How ridiculous. Were you unfaithful to Todd? Was that why you left him on your wedding day and brought so much shame to this family?”

  I shook my head. “Mother, you can relax. I was never unfaithful to Todd. Nor was he to me.” I sat up straight in my chair.

  She closed her eyes and shook her head in disgust. “This wasn’t supposed to be this way. I’ve never seen two people more in love than you and Todd. It’s a travesty that you can’t work things out.”

  I bit my lower lip. “We were in love, Mother, but that was a long time ago. We will always care about one another, but it just wasn’t meant to be. Me leaving was the best thing to happen, for both of us. I hope one day you will be able to see that.”

  She turned her chair to face the window as a sign of her continued disappointment. I had done all I could. She wasn’t going to listen to me.

  I may as well have been talking to a brick wall.

  I stood up to leave. At the doorway, I turned around one last time before walking away. “I know this isn’t the life you planned for me, Mother. But this is the life I’m choosing. And I’m happy. Happier than I think I’ve ever been.”

  I was met with her stony, cold, unmoving back.

  Undeterred, I continued. “I wish my happiness mattered more to you, but obviously, it doesn’t. I guess there’s nothing else for us to say.”

  She didn’t turn around.

  I walked out of her study and down the hall, hurt but proud. Even though I didn’t get through to her, I knew I needed to stand up for myself, once and for all. This was the first step in the closure I’d been craving.

  It was the reason I was back in San Francisco.

  I took a seat in my parents’ gracious living room and took out my phone. I called for another cab. A few minutes of sitting in silence later, it pulled into the driveway.

  I stood up and walked to the front door. My hand on the doorknob, I turned to look down the hall, half hoping my mother would appear to listen to me, to show me she cared about me and not just some silly notion of families being brought together.

  With no sign of her, I stepped through the door into the sun. The driver helped me load my bags, which hadn’t left the front porch.

  I had just sat down in the back seat, when my mother rushed out of the front door toward the car.

  Well, that was a surprise.

  “Sabrina, wait.”

  I got out of the car and faced her. I squared my shoulders, preparing myself for another onslaught. “What is it, Mother?”

  She looked at the ground as she began to speak. “Even though I’m thoroughly disappointed in your actions, I wanted you to know”—she looked up at me, her features softened—“your happiness is important to me.”

  My jaw dropped open. It wasn’t like the infamous Prickle Monroe to admit defeat so easily. Maybe I had gotten through to her after all?

  Could this be the beginning of a new understanding between us?

  I reached out and put my hand on her arm, tears welling in my eyes. “Thank you for saying that.”

  She cleared her throat. “Well, I’ll let you get to your meeting.”

  She quickly turned and headed back toward the house while I sat back down in the cab. I felt a small sense of relief wash over me.

  Our mother-daughter relationship was certainly a complicated one, but maybe this was the first step in the right direction.

  ***

  I reached my apartment and paused before I turned the key to enter. The last time I was here, I was preparing for my wedding to Todd.

  So much had changed.

  I dropped my bags in the living room and looked around. Addi was obviously the perfect houseguest. She had kept my apartment neat and tidy, just as I liked it. I was just about to leave to head to The Flower Girl when something caught my eye. There was a big white box sitting on the dining room table. I couldn’t help but be curious, so I moved closer to get a better look.

  I gasped at what I found. It was my wedding dress, the one I had casually discarded at the airport the day I thought my whole life was crumbling around me.

  It had been dry-cleaned and packaged in paper, placed in a beautiful white box with embossed flowers.

  I couldn’t believe Addi would do this for me. It had to have been expensive.

  That day at the airport I didn’t care about this dress. But seeing it now, I couldn’t be more grateful to Addi for saving it.

  Although I knew I would never wear it, it would remind me of how close I’d come to living someone else’s life.

  After the quick stop at my apartment, I made my way to the Embarcadero to meet Addi. I didn’t realize how much I had missed this place until I walked into The Flower Girl. Everything looked exactly the same as I had left it.

  It almost felt like my time in Orlando was a dream. But one thing I knew for sure, I had changed since I was last here.

  I was a different person now.

  There was no sign of Addison. I heard my phone buzzing from my bag, so I dug around inside. On the screen was a message from Ethan.

  Just landed in Seattle, hope you had a good flight back. You didn’t pick up any random men, right?

  I laughed, my heart contracting.

  I had no doubt my experiences in the Dallas airport would be following me for years to come. Especially since I was now a YouTube phenomenon, according to some people.

  “Welcome to The Flower Girl,” Addi called from the back room. “I’ll only be a moment.”

  I couldn’t help but feel a little nervous at seeing her again. When we met, I wasn’t at my best: running away from your wedding could do that to you.

  When Addi came out into the shop, she let out a gasp. “Sabrina!”

  I gave her a warm smile, any nerves I had felt slipping away. “Hi, Addi.”

  She cleared her throat. “Welcome home. How was your flight?”

  “It was fine. How are things here?”

  Unlike the last time we were together, our interaction was forced and uncomfortable.

  Addi sighed. “Not great, I’m afraid. We had a bit of a mishap with the Thornhill wedding.”

  She looked like she was about to cry. Was that why she appeared so nervous? The Thornhill wedding? Sure, it was a big wedding for us, but it wasn’t worth crying over.

  “What happened?”

  Addi launched into a whole speech about the wrong flowers being ordered and how it was all her fault. In the end, Mrs. Thornhill had told her she was taking her business elsewhere.

  She was speaking so fast, I couldn’t get a word in.

  “Addi—” I said, but she continued.

  “Lucy Thornhill loved the flowers, but her mother is just a miserable human being. I’m so sorry, Sabrina. Leonardo and I worked so hard to fix everything, but it wasn’t enough.”

  My head w
as spinning at her admission. I could hardly be upset with her, given what I just went through with Mrs. Watson and Fuchsia Flowers. I was sure I could smooth things over with Mrs. Thornhill.

  Well, maybe.

  “But the great thing is that her daughter, Lucy—who I thought was like a little mouse but is not at all, actually—well, she sources all the flowers for the Wainwright Hotel and has asked if we . . . I mean, if you want their business. Isn’t that great?”

  “Addi, slow down and take a breath, okay?”

  I didn’t remember her being this manic when we’d met.

  To my surprise, she sat down on one of the stools and buried her face in her hands. She let out a long breath and then looked back up at me. “It’s not only that, Sabrina. There has been so much more happening here.”

  Poor Addi. If she would only let me speak, I was sure I could calm her nerves.

  “Addi, I—”

  “Please, Sabrina. Let me say this.” She looked like she was on the verge of bursting into tears. I nodded. “I crashed Velma.”

  Now that I wasn’t expecting.

  I raised my eyebrows. “You crashed Velma? How bad is it?”

  She shook her head. “No, just a fender bender situation, nothing major. I got her fixed. She’s as good as new. I’m so sorry. I should have told you.”

  “Addi, really. That’s not a big deal. Why are you so upset?”

  I was certain she wasn’t like this when we’d met.

  “Well, you see, when I crashed Velma, a man helped me out of the hedge I landed in. He was attractive and kind . . . and I didn’t know who he was. We got to talking, and then he showed up here at the shop and that’s when I learned . . .” She paused, watching me. “It was Todd.” She looked at me from behind her lashes, searching my face for my reaction.

  I pressed my lips together before opening my mouth to speak, but she kept going.

  “And then, out of the blue, my ex-boyfriend, Geoff, from New Zealand showed up and told me he wanted me back.”

  Whoa! I watched as Addi’s face twisted with worry. That poor girl!

  “Geoff?” This was new information. I’d not heard about a guy named Geoff.

  Addi nodded, her face grim. “He asked me to return home with him, to New Zealand.”

  “And?”

  Again, she looked like she might cry and my heart went out to her. “I told him I would do it, but. . . I don’t know. I’m so confused.”

  “Is it because you have feelings for Todd?” I asked softly.

  Her jaw dropped open, and she stared at me in disbelief. “You know about that?”

  “He called me last night before I left Orlando and told me about you and him.”

  A tear rolled down her cheek. She put her hands over her heart. “Sabrina, I promise I would never purposely do something like that. You were set to marry him only a few weeks ago.”

  I reached over and placed my hand on her arm. “Please don’t cry, Addi. I admit, it was surprising when I heard about you two, but if you have feelings for him, then who am I to stand in your way?”

  She blinked at me, her mouth still gaping. “You’re giving us your blessing?”

  As weird as it would have felt only weeks ago, I was happy that Todd was moving on, and Addi deserved a great guy.

  I smiled. “I guess I am.”

  Addi let out a little sound as she put her hand over her mouth, her eyes huge.

  “You and Todd together kind of makes sense.” I shrugged. “All of this does.”

  She wiped the corners of her eyes with the back of her hand. “What do you mean?”

  I took a deep breath. “That day was supposed to be the happiest day of my life, but it started out as one of the worst. When you helped me, do you remember I told you that I thought you were my guardian angel and that our meeting was fate?”

  She nodded. “I remember.”

  “Now, I’m sure it was.”

  She furrowed her brow, clearly not comprehending my meaning.

  I had so much to tell her, and I knew it was best to start at the beginning, with my plane ride to Orlando.

  “After we said goodbye at the gate, I met someone on the plane. At first, he was just the poor soul who got stuck sitting next to a crazy runaway bride. I totally unloaded everything on him during our flight and that was it . . . or so I thought. Then, I ran into him again in Orlando and it seemed like fate was stepping in again.” A smile crept across my face. “Addi, he’s . . . amazing.”

  Addi’s eyes were the size of saucers. “Wow. You met someone on the plane?”

  I nodded as my smile spread across my face.

  “Sabrina, that’s incredible! What’s his name? Does he live in Orlando?”

  I nodded. “His name is Ethan, and yes, he lives in Orlando. Well, sort of. He was just transferred to Seattle with his job and he was still commuting to Orlando and now . . . well, San Francisco is a much shorter commute.” A smile spread across my face.

  Addi raised her eyebrows.

  “I know. This is all so crazy. I fought our connection, hard. You know, after Todd and the wedding and everything. But I couldn’t do it anymore.”

  She bounced out of her chair and pulled me in for a hug. “Sabrina, I’m so happy for you! You deserve it, you totally do.”

  “Thank you. For everything.”

  As we stood smiling at one another, Addi wiped away fresh tears and I could feel tears welling in my own eyes.

  I was home, and I was the new me.

  And it felt amazing.

  Chapter 25

  Addison

  “There’s one more thing. I actually asked someone to meet us here. I’ll be right back,” Sabrina said as I wiped away the tears that didn’t seem to want to stop today.

  But who could blame me? It’d been a big day.

  “Who is it?” I asked.

  It could be her mother, or Naomi. It could be . . . no, I didn’t want to think about him. The last time I’d seen him I’d chosen another man.

  There was no way Todd would be interested in me after that.

  “Just you wait here,” Sabrina replied with a smile.

  She stepped out of the shop, and I was left standing alone, my head spinning. Sabrina was back. Here, in San Francisco. And she looked happy! No longer the lost, desperate person I’d met at the airport that day, running through the departures hall, anxious to get away.

  I let out a long puff of air. I needed to get ahold of myself. I’d come clean with her about crashing Velma, about losing Mrs. Thornhill’s business.

  And about Todd.

  I rubbed at my temples.

  “Excuse me?”

  I was pulled out of my reflections by a young woman, dressed in a pantsuit, looking at me expectantly as she stood by the potted plants.

  I pasted on a smile, trying to concentrate on this potential customer, rather than on everything that had just happened—and who the mystery person was Sabrina had gone to get.

  “Welcome to The Flower Girl. How can I help you?”

  “I want to get one of these orchids for my friend at work, but I need some help deciding.”

  “Sure.”

  As I helped her choose between a pale pink and dramatic white and burgundy potted orchid, I noticed Sabrina walk back into the shop, trailed by someone. I looked directly at him, and my eyes met his. I almost dropped the plant, ceramic pot and all.

  It was Todd.

  I sucked in air as I looked at him. He was watching me closely, his expression nervous and . . . and something else I couldn’t identify.

  My mind reeled. Sabrina had brought Todd here? To see me? I mean, I knew she’d told me about this new guy called Ethan, but this was her ex, the man she once wanted to marry.

  Was it just me or was this getting beyond weird?

  “. . . water it?”

  I shook my head, turning my attention to the customer. “I’m sorry, what did you say?”

  “I wanted to know if it needs watering.”

>   “Oh, yes. Sorry.” I swallowed. Focus, Addi, focus! “Yes, it needs ample water, but tell your friend to let it dry out sometimes. If she puts her finger about half an inch under the soil and it’s dry, she’ll need to give it some water.”

  “Sure. I’ll tell her. I’ll take that one, please.” She pointed at the pale pink orchid in my hand—the one I’d nearly dropped when my eyes clapped on the one person I was not expecting to see again.

  Ever.

  “Of course. Come with me to the counter and I’ll wrap it up for you.”

  Much fumbling with ribbons and avoiding looking in Todd’s direction later, the woman left the shop, orchid in tow.

  It was just the three of us: Sabrina, me, and Todd.

  I closed my eyes for a moment before turning to face them both. “Sorry about that,” I said, my voice breathless.

  “It’s totally fine, of course. She was a paying customer,” Sabrina said. She paused, looking at Todd, then back to me. “How about you two go and talk somewhere? I’ll take over here for now.”

  “Are you sure?” I squeaked. “I mean, you probably need me here to help. It’s quite busy. . .” I trailed off as I looked around the now-empty shop.

  She smiled at me. “I’ll be fine. It’s great to be back.”

  I glanced at Sabrina as I pulled off my apron and collected my purse from under the counter. She shot me an encouraging smile.

  I had yet to look Todd in the eye. What was I going to say to him? The last time we were together, at the Wainwright Hotel coffee shop, he told me he wanted to be with me. And I had responded by choosing another man.

  He must hate me.

  Neither of us uttering a word, Todd and I walked out of the shop, into the Ferry Building. It was a quiet time of day, with only a few people milling around, doing their shopping, and visiting the cafés and restaurants.

  I stole a glance at him. His jaw was locked, and he was looking straight ahead.

  “Shall we go outside?” I asked, my voice cracking. I cleared my throat.

  “Sure.”

  We walked through the large glass doors, onto the wharf. Memories of both Geoff and Todd flooded my mind.

  Maybe this wasn’t the best place to talk, after all.