Page 32 of Stealing Kisses

Layering up to ward off the predawn chill, Baylin stepped out the back door to find Teddy in the chicken coop.

“What are you doing?”

“Checking for eggs,” he answered. “None today… Despite the heat lamps, I think it’s too cold out.”

“I mean, what are you doing awake? It’s insanely early.”

“You’re up.”

“I don’t have a choice,” she argued.

“Maybe I don’t want a choice.” He tossed it out there like the mystery message meant nothing. But what was Baylin supposed to make of it? Was he saying he’d like to stay? At the farm? With her?

She’d had too little sleep, the hour was too early, and the list in her pocket was way too extensive to exert energy dissecting his cryptic statement, but it stayed with her all morning long.

As they fed and watered the horses, Baylin considered how comfortable he’d become in her domain. When he offered to hitch up the cargo trailer to the truck, she noted how nice it was to have his capable help around the farm. And when he saw her flower arrangements, his praise and admiration made her heart soar…

“We’ve got produce crates, the soap and fabric bins, the candles, the home decor tubs, the canned goods, the cookie boxes, the farm t-shirts, two round racks of all the other clothing stuff, stationary junk, and these O’Casey Farm banners and signs. Are we missing anything?” Teddy asked.

“Just one last thing,” Baylin said. “In the downstairs guest room.”

Teddy followed her back into the house and down the hall.

When she opened the door to the bedroom, Teddy looked over her head and stopped dead in his tracks.

“I can’t figure out if it’s a green room, a jungle, or a flower shop,” he exclaimed.

“A bit of all three, I suppose,” Baylin said. “I took the furniture out a few years ago, so I had a good place to put my potted plants over the winter. This room gets the best sunlight since it faces the east. It seemed like a better use of the square footage, since I have plenty of beds for guests upstairs.”

“And in the barn,” he quipped.

“Yes, for the riff-raff,” she razzed.

He responded with a dramatic display of faux indignation, but his attention stayed on the multitude of flower arrangements, some made of silk and others made of dried flowers, covering every inch of the room.

“You made these?”

Baylin’s pulse quickened. Why did sharing a secret passion — a silly hobby, really — make one feel vulnerable and small?

“Yes,” she answered, her voice faint. She’d used a plethora of containers ranging from antique tea pots to wooden bowls to metal tins to crystal cut vases. She’d poured her soul into each of them, desperate to create unique works of art that would bring beauty and joy to their new homes.

“Baylin, they’re magnificent.” He stopped to catch her eye. “Seriously, these are exquisite. When did you create them?”

“I’ve been working on them for months. I thought about taking them to the holiday festival on Christmas Eve, but I chickened out.”

“Chickened out? Whatever for? These will sell like hotcakes…and for a lot of money.”

“I hope so,” Baylin admitted, not sharing in his certainty.

They loaded the arrangements, and with all her wares loaded into the truck and trailer, they made their way to the exhibit hall in the Conrad Hotel.

The oldest, most exclusive hotel in town rolled out the red carpet for big events. Her thirty-foot by thirty-foot booth space included display shelving, large tables, lighting, and electricity. All Baylin had to do was drape the raw wood fixtures and transport inside everything from the parking lot.

It sounded easy, but it required a lot of manpower.

And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4:19 popped into Baylin’s mind. Teddy had proved to be a godsend.

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