Page 40 of Just Let Go

He turned the car around and sped off, leaving the squad car without a prayer of catching up, and his mind without a prayer of shaking the old man’s question.

What is it you’re running away from?

Quinn had always loved working late at the flower shop. She’d never minded being alone, which was probably why she’d gone so long without a date. Valentine’s Day would be here before she knew it, and thatshouldbring her down, since her only plans always included cookie dough ice cream and chick flicks. But there was far too much to do this year.

Now that she owned a local business, she saw the value of bringing tourists to town in the off-season even more clearly than she had before.

But even she knew her bottom line was not her motivator to knock this design out of the park. The opening ceremonies of the Winter Carnival included the ball in the large outdoor pavilion. There, locals and tourists could enjoy the spectacular winter garden, a mixture of snow and ice sculptures and floral designs meant to highlight the work of the artists.

Last year’s theme had been Alice in Wonderland. Throughout the pavilion were the most beautiful sculptures of scenes from theclassic tale. She’d been so inspired by the quirky, whimsical story, it was almost as if the design poured out of her.

She’d chosen large, less-often-used blooms—red and orange dianthus, bright-orange chrysanthemums, and pops of bright-pink orchids. The combination of her flowers and the sculptures had been the highlight of the whole Winter Carnival.

If only she could’ve entered her design in the competition last year.

“It’s not quite right,” Mimi had said, which had bothered her at the time. After all, Quinn might be a creature of habit, but she still had a creative side.

Mimi did not.

And the Alice in Wonderland display had been the talk of the carnival last year.

Could she make it happen again?

This year, she’d work with the sculptors again, but she had also agreed to take on the main display behind the stage where the opening ceremonies would take place, along with the ice princess contest on the second day of festivities. That competition brought in a number of visitors in its own right, and while Quinn didn’t hope to understand pageant culture, she could appreciate that they needed lots of flowers.

She’d create something truly unique—remarkable, even—and they wouldn’t be able to ignore her.

Shewouldn’t be able to ignore her.

Quinn had met with the sculptors, and they’d settled on the theme Secret Garden. The ball would be a masquerade, playing on the “secret” part of the theme. It all catered perfectly to her unique talents. Why, then, was her brain so blocked? It was like her creativity had just given up and gone home, leaving her staring at page after mocking blank page.

She sat on the floor of the shop, only a few lights on, sketching the pavilion, strategically placing the twelve ice sculptures in the ideal pattern from the entrance all the way to the pavilion stage.

The stage. It had to be an explosion of color—something to complement the rest of the display, but still its own unique design.

She glanced up at the shelves she’d brought in from The Rustic Farmgirl, a vintage shop with the perfect look for her new and soon-to-be improved version of the Forget-Me-Not Flower Shop. A mix of distressed white and barn wood and vintage pieces with stories of their own to tell would fill her space... as soon as she could find time to put it all together.

She lay back on the floor and stared up at the ceiling. Old light fixtures stared back. She’d been eyeing a set of perfect galvanized metal barn lights, but she was holding off on purchasing them until she was certain she could afford them.

Never mind that she had no idea how to install the lights. One problem at a time, right?

And yet her grand reopening was only one week away. If she didn’t hurry up, she was going to end up with a not-so-grand reopening where everything looked exactly like it did when Mimi owned the flower shop.

Someone pounded on the glass door and Quinn shot straight up, adrenaline rushing. Her dad had always told her to pull the shades if she was going to work late at night—but this was Harbor Pointe, where nothing ever happened.

Until now.

She glanced out the window, knowing she was fully exposed, under the cover of absolutely nothing.

Outside, she saw the shadow of a man standing on the sidewalk. Her heart kicked up a notch.

She stood and peered outside, trying not to look obvious. She reminded herself she knew everyone in town, and this was very likely just someone checking on her; after all, it was past ten, and she was practically inviting strangers to meddle in her business.

She approached the door cautiously, her hand on her cell phone, as the figure outside turned around. Was that...?

Grady Benson stood on the sidewalk outsideherflower shop. Shestared at him through the glass as the seconds ticked by. Somehow she could see, even under the faint light of the lampposts, that his skin was ruddy and tan, his five o’clock shadow was looking a little more like an actual beard, and his piercing blue eyes were leveled squarely on her.

He leaned an arm on the doorjamb and knocked again, even though there was literally only a double pane of glass between them. “Can I come in?”

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