Page 10 of Crazy In Love
“When you can show me that she isn’t writing this bullshit about our family, I’ll let it go.” I shrugged. “Until then, the vendetta lives on.”
He shook his head and chuckled. “Thanks for spoiling my girl.”
“Always.” I clapped him on the shoulder before holding my hand in a wave over my head and heading out the door.
Back home for some peace and quiet.
Just the way I liked it.
four
. . .
Emilia
“Cheers to you,Em! What a day you’ve had,” Henley said with a big smile on her face.
“I’m just glad I could come back to celebrate with you,” Eloise said, holding up her glass of wine.
Lulu raised her glass. “It’s not every day a girl gets her business license and takes a lie detector test.”
Laughter erupted around the table as we all clinked our glasses. Jazzy set some appetizers down in the middle of the table for us, telling us to let her know if we needed anything else. We’d come to Booze and Brews to celebrate.
It had been a big day.
“Yeah, never thought I’d be at a police station taking a polygraph, but here we are.” I smirked as I reached for a chicken finger and set it on my plate.
“And I’d just made the trip here to celebrate you getting Vintage Interiors opened, and I get the bonus of being here for a polygraph, too,” Eloise said, leaning her shoulder against mine. “I think you’ve gone above and beyond to prove you’re not the author of ‘The Taylor Tea.’”
“Girl, it’s impressive. Taking things this far to prove your point. I’m here for it,” Lulu said with a laugh. “I can’t wait to see Bridger’s face when you hand him the results.”
“I mean, his face is sort of unwavering,” Henley said. “It shows very little emotion at all times, so I wouldn’t have high expectations for a big expressive display of gratitude. But I think an apology is in order. And I love the big grump, but he owes you that.”
“He really is misunderstood,” Lulu said, her gaze locking with mine, like she was hoping to convince me that he wasn’t as bad as he seemed. “He has a big heart under all that broody grumpiness.”
“Hey, I’m not the one who has the problem. It’s all him. I’ve tried being nice, up until he made a public scene and got my store egged and affected my business.” I sighed. “We don’t have to be friends, but I just want all the anger and accusations to stop.”
“That’s fair. I think you’ll get it,” Eloise said. “He’s a businessman, and you took the steps to prove your innocence, so at the very least, you are due an apology.” She paused and added, “So let’s talk about the new business. I am so proud of you for taking this step and chasing your dreams.”
I’d gone to school to be an interior designer. My grandmother had gotten sick during my last year of college, and my parents urged me to come back to Rosewood River after I graduated so I could take over the Vintage Rose. But I was ready for something more. I could start this side business slowly, and once I got a client or two, I could hire more staff to help me at the floral shop; then I could shift over to my design business full-time once it was able to support me.
This had been a long time coming, and my girls had given me the push to do it. So, I’d applied for a business license, and today it had been approved. I was the official owner of VintageInteriors. I loved that I’d tied the name to the floral shop. My goal was to give my clients their dream homes, and restore the old while maintaining the charm and character that already existed there. It was my thing. And I couldn’t wait to find my first client and get started.
“I’m so ready. It feels like a new chapter. I have the website up and going as of this morning, and I’m working on the marketing material, but I have business cards.” I reached in my purse and gave them each a card. “So it’s all really happening.”
Lulu squealed. “This is so amazing. You freaking did it. Now we need to find you clients.”
“I’ll start advertising, and it’s okay if it’s slow at the beginning. I need to balance the flower shop with the design company until I can transition to doing this full-time. So if I just find one client for now, it’ll get the ball rolling, you know?”
“Yes. You’ve totally got this. And you’re so freaking talented,” Eloise said.
“I have one hundred percent faith in you.” Henley reached for some nachos and put them on her plate.
We spent the next hour talking about all my plans to get things going, and I showed them my new Pinterest inspiration board. Jazzy came by, and we closed out our bill. We all slipped our coats on to head home.
“Okay, I have to ask before we leave,” Lulu said, leaning in. “How are you going to show Bridger the results of the polygraph?”
“It’s going down tomorrow. I’ll be heading over to his home, and I’ll knock on the door and personally hand him the paperwork before requesting my apology.” I zipped my coat up.
