Page 23 of The Floral Arrangement

To my relief, Fred nodded and we headed back to the truck and drove toward the Christmas trees. The row of dark-green firs stretched for acres, at varying levels of maturity.

I slowed the truck. “These are Fraser firs. They take about seven years to reach maturity. This section will be ready this Christmas. We make about 30% margin on these trees, so it’s one of the more profitable parts of the farm and an important attraction during the holiday season.” I accelerated the truck. The sooner this was over, the sooner I could get rid of Olivia. Then Fred and I could get down to discussing business.

“Stop, Roz!” Olivia yelled.

I jumped in my seat, slamming on the brakes. Once the truck jolted to a halt, I peered through the windshield, my heart pounding. Had I hit something?Not again.

“Excuse me, babe. I’m just going to hop out for a second.” Olivia looked expectantly at me. I frowned. I didn’t like the idea of letting Olivia out without knowing her intentions first. At the rate we were going, I would be lucky if it was still light by the time I got Fred into my office. “You know what, never mind. I’ll just climb over you.”

Olivia clambered over my body, her soft hair brushing against my nose, her elbow bumping my breasts. I shut my eyes. Why did she have to smell so goddamn good? I opened them in time to see Olivia open the door and jump out. What the hell was she doing?A tic started under my eye.

She picked a sprig off the closest fir tree and handed it to Fred through his window.

“Doesn’t it smell wonderful?” Olivia beamed.

I fought the urge to roll my eyes. Really?

Fred sniffed it. “It does. Reminds me of just how magical Christmas was when I was a kid.” He inhaled again and closed his eyes.

Olivia clambered back over me and onto the bench. “Sorry, Roz, but I couldn’t have Fred visit and not experience our amazing Fraser firs up close. We’ll have to get you one for Christmas, Fred.”

Fred beamed. “I haven’t had a real Christmas tree for years. That would be lovely.”

I made a mental note to send Fred a Fraser fir for Christmas if he agreed to invest in the farm.

“We’ll head back past the orchards and strawberry fields now,” I said, turning on the engine.

As we drove past budding cherry trees, Olivia turned to look at them. “I’ve always thought not having a cherry blossom festival at the farm was a missed opportunity. Perhaps we could do it next year, hon?”

I glanced sideways to see Olivia smiling innocently at me, before focusing my attention back on the road.

A cherry blossom festival was a decent idea. It could be a good way to show the locals that Red Tractor Farm was still in safe hands, as well as bring in some more revenue. Even if the cherry blossom season was over, a spring festival might have a similar outcome. We could hold it sometime in late May or early June, which would give me at least five or six weeks to pull it together.

“Yes, that’s definitely something to consider,” I said.

“You’ll also have to try the delicious cherry and strawberry jams that we sell in the café.” Olivia wriggled in her seat. “We’ll give you a jar of each to take home.”

Fred rubbed his stomach. “You’re making me hungry with all this talk of food. Perhaps we could drop by the café after this?”

Stopping at the café wasn’t a terrible thought. There was a study that showed that judges were more likely to grant parole after a meal break… and I wanted Fred in the best possible mindset when deciding whether or not to invest in my vision.

I guided the truck over a rough section of road, chewing on my lip. Apart from putting me in a difficult position regarding my plans to lease the flower fields, Olivia had been surprisingly helpful. But I didn’t want her around when I put forward my proposal to Fred. She’d been willing to pretend to be my girlfriend to protect the flowers, so who knows what else she might do if she saw the updated section about the future of the flower fields.

I pulled up at the parking lot and jumped out of the truck before Olivia’s impatience had her climbing over me again. “Here we are.I know you’ll be needing to get back to work.” I gave Olivia a look intended to convey that her presence at the café was not welcome.

Olivia held my gaze coolly for a moment then stared at the silver watch around her slender wrist. Her forehead creased, and I suspected she was having an internal struggle between wanting to stay here and needing to go and open her shop.

“Yes, you’re right. I better be off.” Olivia stretched out her arm. “Well, lovely to meet you, Fred, and please feel free to reach out to me if you have any questions about the greenhouse or the flowers. As you can see, we’re very passionate about them, so we’d really appreciate your help to ensure they continue to flourish. And if you’re interested, I’d love for you to visit Sapphire Blooms if you’ve got time.”

My eyes narrowed. Olivia and Fred meeting without me present would be less than ideal.

“I might take you up on that offer,” Fred said, shaking her hand. “It was great to meet you too, Olivia. I’ll see you tomorrow for lunch.”

Confusion flickered across Olivia’s face for a split second. “Yes, of course.” She turned to me, leaning in and brushing her cheek across mine, leaving my face tingling. “Bye, babe, see you later.”

When she pulled back, her mouth curved up, her eyes sparkling, and my heart jumped.She’s putting it all on for show. Don’t get sucked in by her beautiful smile.

“Bye,” I choked out.

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