by Elle Rush
“As a complete stranger but someone who has experience with liquidation sales, may I offer a word of advice?” Hollis asked. His eyes held hers steadily, and Ivy found herself nodding in agreement.
“If you are going to put them on sale, give yourself some leeway. If people are purchasing something else, offer them even greater discount as an incentive to add one to their order. You can pass off a lot more that way.”
It wasn’t a bad idea but she’d have to ponder the numbers. “Thanks for the tip.”
“It’s my job.” He stopped at the intersection, and Ivy took four more steps around the corner before she realized he was no longer with her. “Hollis?”
His face fell, and seeing that, hers matched it. “I thought you worked at Love in Bloom.”
“No. Teague Flowers. I’m the owner.” She should have known it was too good to be true. He was going to the enemy’s shop. And now he knew she was planning a poinsettia sale. She’d ask if things could get worse, but she already knew the answer to that question. It could, and probably would.
“It was nice to meet you.”
“You, too, Hollis.”
Once he walked through Love in Bloom’s doors, she’d likely never see him again.
Chapter Four
Hollis
Hollis was impressed with how Love in Bloom shone. Everything looked brand new, from the plant stands to the cash desk. The glass windows gleamed, and a heavy, rose-scented perfume filled the tiny storefront. Classical music was being piped in through a pair of discreet speakers on the walls. But there was nobody there to meet him.
“Hello?”
A tiny woman with big blonde hair popped through the door that lead to the closed workspace at the back of the building. “Good morning. What can I help you find today?”
“The manager, please.”
“Why, is there a problem?
It was not an auspicious start. “I’m Hollis Dash, from North Pole Unlimited. I have an appointment to see you this morning.”
“I’m Annie Findlay.” Her smile slipped for a second, but Hollis had caught it. She didn’t want him there. He didn’t blame her. Hollis could be as friendly as he liked, but when somebody like him showed up, it was because a company had done something to bring him to their door. It was like being called into the principal’s office. In this scenario, he was the principal.
Love in Bloom was struggling, with a growing number of complaints and lackluster sales. As a partner to North Pole Unlimited, they filled all of NPU’s orders in the area and, in return, received advertising on North Pole Unlimited’s website and with other affiliates, as well as other benefits. But the contract had conditions.
Annie had already received one notice from NPU’s corporate office asking if there were any problems their business specialists could assist with. The offer was made in good faith to all companies under the corporate umbrella if a flag went up, but once made, NPU expected to see improvements. Annie had turned them down and continued to let the store’s reputation slide. The situation had to be resolved to North Pole Unlimited’s satisfaction—one way or another. An in-person meeting was her last shot at redemption.
“Of course. I’ve been expecting you.” She tried to smile bigger at him. It was a little scary.
“I’m not the boogeyman, I promise. I’m here to help. Why don’t you tell me a little more about the store? You recently bought it, right?” If this was simply a matter of a new business owner being in over her head, he could be home tomorrow.
“A year ago. I worked for Mr. Iverson for a year, then bought him out when he retired. I understand why you’re here—because of Teague Flowers.” Her eyes narrowed, and her smile faded.
“Teague Flowers? The other florist in the village?” There couldn’t be two of them.
“Ivy Teague, in particular. Ever since I took over the business, she’s been out to get me. It’s been horrible.”
“What has she done?” If a food fight was involved, he’d believe it.
“Nothing I can prove. It’s all been dirty tricks, and I know how to handle those. It’s not like Ivy and her store are real competition. She’ll be gone soon enough.” Annie waved her hand dismissively. “But enough about that. You’re here to do the audit. I have all the information you requested in the back if you’d like to get started.”
Stepping into the rear half of the shop was like arriving on a different planet. Buckets of flowers sat on rickety tables, their beauty a stunning contrast to the dingy walls and scuffed floor. A dirty sink with mildewed caulking dripped in the corner. There was an office in the corner. Through the open door, Hollis saw a brand-new laptop and printer on the desktop and a television mounted on the wall. A second, empty desk mirrored it.
He, however, would be working on a folding card table set up beside the back door. A box of loose receipts sat on one side; a second box of sorted, filed papers was on the other. Annie had also provided a power bar to support any electronics he’d brought along. It was almost like she was trying to rush him out the door. While he was getting organized, she brought him a cup of steaming hot coffee and asked if he wanted her extra croissant.
Hollis recognized “get lost” when he saw it, no matter how prettily it was dressed. Luckily, he didn’t scare easily. Still, he appreciated the food, so he thanked her before she ducked into her office to answer her ringing desk phone.
It took him a few minutes to get sorted, but he dove in before his coffee was cold. He debated pulling out his earbuds so he could tune out the symphony in the background, but he wanted to finish listening to Annie’s call first. She couldn’t be expecting privacy, not with her door open and her voice on full volume. She was arguing about her dire need for twenty dozen poinsettias at the last minute.
Now he knew what had happened to Ivy’s corporate order. Scooping a competitor was a time-honored tradition, but generally, the second player was certain they could fulfill the order. If they didn’t, they burned their reputation and ensured the competition they scooped would turn a better profit the next time. If Annie was scrambling now, it had been poor planning on her part. But it wasn’t his problem.
By the time Hollis’s stomach ordered him to feed it, he was thoroughly confused. He flexed his hand. His calculator finger was itchy. Maybe it was the fact everything was too perfect. The same bills showed up each month, almost identical in amount. No business was that consistent, especially one based on special occasions and holidays. Annie had switched suppliers since she’d taken over the store, but unless she was deliberately getting lower quality flowers and paying the same price for them, Hollis couldn’t see a reason for the rise in the number of complaints she’d been receiving. There had to be something to find. After lunch.
There was no shortage of places to eat in Whistler; the village had an amazing selection of restaurants that ran the gamut from tapas to pasta. He promised his stomach he’d pick one right after he scoped out the competition. He spotted Ivy through her shop window and pushed open the door.
Her head was cocked to the side as she studied a display in the corner: a multi-tiered stand with each level containing an increasing number of poinsettias than the one above it. Ivy had alternated red and white rows. The final result was a stunning candy-cane striped Christmas tree made of flowers.
While Love in Bloom was shiny and new, Teague Flowers was lived in—not dirty or worn-out, but well-loved—furnished with freshly painted, solid wood pieces. No chrome to blind customers, just a rainbow of lively colors. It smelled truly green rather than like air freshener. It was an important distinction to his nose.
The massive bird cage in the center of the store floor was a surprise, as was the green and yellow parrot, which gave the place a tropical feel. At the moment, the bird’s head was bobbing along to a song on the oldies station the two women behind the counter were listening to; it might have been Elvis, but Hollis wasn’t sure.
“Hi, I’m Maggie. Can I help you?” the one who wasn’t Ivy asked. She was
pretty, slightly older than Ivy with short black hair and black eyes.
“Hollis, hi. What are you doing here?” Ivy asked when she looked up from her phone. “I mean… Can I help you with something?”
“Yes, but first I have to know about the bird.” It made no sense to have a tropical bird in a ski resort town. When he took a closer look, he noticed one of the bird’s wings was badly misshapen, like it had been broken and poorly reset, but the bird hopped around so much it was hard to tell.
“Captain? My grandmother saved her from a pet store in the eighties. Her wing was broken, so they couldn’t sell her. They were going to euthanize her, so Grandma brought her home. Then, when my mom moved the store from Vancouver to Whistler in the nineties, we brought her with us. She’s our store mascot.”
“Captain? Like Captain Jack Sparrow?”
“No, like Captain Jackie Parrot. The other guy came later and is a pale imitation to our wondrous leader. The captain is a genius. Want me to prove it?”
He was still stuck on Captain Jackie Parrot. “Sure.”
“What letter comes after Q, Captain?”
“Arrrr.”
“Good girl.”
“Kisses!”
Ivy blew the bird a raspberry. “Isn’t she amazing? But you didn’t come here for a comedy show. What can I do for you?”
“Your biscotti choice this morning was excellent. I was hoping you’d have a recommendation for lunch.” He wanted a chance to hear about Love in Bloom from the competition’s point of view. It would be even better if he could think of a way to do it over a meal. Someplace far away from bad puns.
She checked the clock. “Wow, it’s after noon. I should get something, too. How do you feel about soup and sourdough? El Furny has knock-your-socks-off roasted red pepper soup.”
He could do that. Especially with someone who might have answers for him. “May I join you?”
Hollis didn’t miss the elbow she took to the ribs from her co-worker before she said, “Ow, yes, sure. Maggie can watch the shop.”
She snagged her coat from the hook behind the counter and stepped around to join him. This time, instead of baby’s breath, a sprig of spruce was stuck to her sleeve.
“Will you bring me back soup?” Maggie asked.
“Do you deserve soup?”
“No, but you’ll bring me some anyway because you’re a great boss.”
Hollis enjoyed the interplay. The whole tone of Teague Flowers made it a happy place to be. Love in Bloom had felt like a library or a museum.
“Fine. I’ll be back in half an hour. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”
Chapter Five
Ivy
She led them on a brisk walk to the restaurant. Although it was only around the corner, the air quickly chilled them. Ivy was used to the damp winters, but she had no idea how her lunch date was faring. “Are you doing okay, Hollis?”
He nodded, his nose buried in a navy, knit scarf. “Yep.”
“Not too cold?”
“I’m from Winnipeg,” he said like it was an explanation. To an extent, it was. Winnipeg was internationally known for its inhospitable winters. But mountain cold was different than prairie cold. The humidity penetrated to the bone, no matter how many layers a person wore.
“Welcome to the coast.”
They smelled the restaurant before they entered it. A cloud of spicy, meaty temptation hit them at the door. Hollis inhaled and grinned, and his smile was just as amazing as she remembered. She couldn’t wait till he tried the food.
They lucked out and found a tiny bar table and two stools against the window. They were silent for the first taste, enjoying the flavors of the hot soup, but they started talking as they waited for it cool a bit.
“I’m glad you stopped in. I wanted to thank you for your advice. I took it and ran with it. Five poinsettias gone. Only two-hundred and thirty-five to go.” She was working on some other ideas, but she wasn’t willing to share them with him.
“That’s a good start for four hours.”
“Does this count as you scoping out your business rival? Annie and I generally stick to peeking in each other’s windows.” Teague Flowers had been going head-to-head with Love in Bloom since the nineties, when her mother had moved her grandmother’s flower shop from Vancouver to the mountains. The business had always done well, even with the competition.
After her mother passed away two years earlier, Ivy inherited the shop she’d worked in her whole life. Annie Findlay had come up from Vancouver about the same time, working as an assistant to Love in Bloom’s owner, Mr. Iverson. The old man had retired to Victoria the previous winter, selling the business to Annie. That was when the two florists’ friendly rivalry had turned into something less fun, and Ivy’s green world had turned to black. Every time she’d thought she was catching a break, it had either gone bad or Annie had caught a bigger one. In less than a year, Teague Flowers had gone from successful and profitable to floundering and barely breaking even.
Ivy raised her chin and squared her shoulders. Shake it off. She was responsible for Teague Flowers. Nobody else. Sure, she was struggling at the moment—more so now that she had a forest of white and red poinsettias in the back room—but she could handle it. All she needed was a little bit of Christmas luck. The disastrous flukes she’d been experiencing couldn’t last forever.
Meeting Hollis was a bit of good luck. He seemed like a nice guy—was a fun lunch date, liked soup, had horrible taste in florists. But nobody was perfect.
“No, not at all. I don’t actually work for Love in Bloom. They’re an affiliate to my company, North Pole Unlimited. We like to check on all our contractors, so here I am. In the clouds. High, high above sea level. Where you can die by falling off a mountain.” The last bit was said with a grumble.
“Does that mean you won’t be going up the mountain to check out the view? Maybe take a ride up the Sea-to-Sky gondola down in Squamish?” The popular tourist attraction transported people up the side of the mountain and offered them a breathtaking look at Howe Sound. Of course, it also nearly vertical in places, which would probably not appeal to someone who was afraid of heights.
“Do I look like I have a death wish? No.” He laughed, but his grip on his spoon was white-knuckled.
“You are really from Winnipeg.”
“Yes, I’m totally a prairie boy—where everything is flat and not trying to kill you.”
She laughed. It wasn’t an uncommon reaction for a visitor, but Ivy didn’t understand it at all. How could anyone not fall in love with the mountains?
“Does your company send you out to a lot of businesses?”
“Not so far, but I’m applying for a new position where I’ll be doing it a lot. I don’t mind. I like travelling.” He wiped his bread crust around the bowl, sopping up the last of his soup, and popped it into his mouth. “I liked your poinsettia tree. It reminded me of my niece’s school fundraiser. They had a similar one last year for”—Hollis scratched his head—“band, maybe. She always has something going on.”
A lightbulb went off over Ivy’s head. He’d just given her a fantastic idea. She had a sneaking suspicion he’d done it on purpose. Hollis had gone silent for a full minute after he said it, as if giving her brain time to formulate the plan it had. She didn’t care; if it had been on purpose, it was the second time he’d helped her that day, and she’d be forever grateful. If it had been an innocent comment, and she’d been inspired all on her own, it was still a good idea.
“You said an order was cancelled,” Hollis said, keeping his eyes on his bowl.
“Yes. Love in Bloom picked it up. But you already knew that.” The goodwill she’d felt began to evaporate.
“Are they serious competition?”
“In a town this big, anything is serious competition.” She wasn’t going to admit to a stranger how much she was hurting.
“I suppose that’s true enough.” He leaned back and let a waitress clear their dishes. “Excellent soup s
uggestion, Ivy. Thanks for coming with me. I enjoy travelling but eating alone gets old.”
“I can imagine.”
They went their separate ways, but her good mood grew when Maggie greeted her with a thumbs-up. “One more poinsettia down.” Ivy didn’t know what she’d do without Maggie.
Her friend was the oldest daughter of Hong Kong immigrants who had come to Vancouver in the late nineties. Maggie liked to say she’d come to Whistler to ski for the weekend after her final university exams and had forgotten to go home. She began working part-time at the flower shop to supplement her waitressing income during the slow season while Ivy’s mother, Lily, was still running the store. After Ivy’s mom had passed away, Maggie stopped waitressing and started at Teague Flowers full-time. She’d been a godsend, and all Ivy had to do to keep her happy was look the other way on mornings when there was fresh powder on the slopes.
“Excellent! I have a plan to get rid of some of them in bulk. Can you mind the front of the store while I make some calls from the office?” Ivy wanted to get started immediately. She didn’t know if her sales pitch was viable. All she knew was she had a very small window in which to move a large number of plants.
Two hours later, the soup had worn off, her throat was parched, and she’d sold two dozen poinsettias to a daycare center at a discount for them to resell at full price. The daycare director loved the idea; she’d said it was better than chocolates sale they’d been thinking of doing in the new year.
Ivy’s good mood grew when her phone rang again. The call display showed Villa Montague, and she knew exactly who was calling and why.
“What do you mean, you’re keeping my deposit?” Ellen Franks shouted through the phone.
“It was in your contract. If you cancel within two weeks of the delivery date—which you confirmed with me in numerous emails—I am authorized to keep your deposit. I’ve already taken receipt of the flowers. If you’d like to reinstate your order, I’d be happy to discuss that.”
