Page 28 of Crazy In Love
And that stung. I’d always put my family first. It was the right thing to do. But they never acknowledged that. They never acknowledged the sacrifice I’d made to take over the flower shop.
They’d never acknowledged my own personal dreams.
“It’s not a pipe dream,” I said, straightening my shoulders and meeting my father’s gaze head-on before turning to look at my mother. “I actually have my degree in interior design, and I went to school to do this, not to run a flower shop. Yes, it will be challenging to get things going, but we don’t have a design firm here, and there are always people looking for help in creating their dream home. I have a business plan. I have business cards. I have a website up and running.”
My mother’s eyes widened, as she was clearly startled by my words. “Wow. You’ve really thought about this.”
“Yes. For a long time.”
Dad nodded. “Well, let’s just see how it goes.”
“As long as the flower shop remains your priority. That’s a family business we’re letting you run, Emilia. So with that comesresponsibility.” My mother moved a cherry tomato around on her plate before finally forking a bite of her salad.
“Letting me run the family business?” I scoffed. “I love you guys, I really do, but that’s a stretch. I did not want to take over the Vintage Rose, but I did it because you needed me to. I’ve also tripled the revenue since taking over five years ago. So, let’s get real. You aren’t letting me do it—I’m doing you the favor. You have yet to relinquish any ownership to me.”
The Vintage Rose was owned by my parents and my grandmother. They were the owners; I was an employee.
“And we rely on that income, and so does Gram,” my mother said.
“Okay, things are getting a little out of hand.” Dad blew out a breath. “We hear you, sweetheart. We will try to be more supportive. Maybe you could come spruce up our place, and we can be your first customer.”
I’d rather spend my days in the flower shop than have my parents give me a pity job.
“It’s all right, Dad. I’d like to find some clients organically. But if you are willing to let me run an ad in the newspaper, I would appreciate it,” I said.
“Those ads aren’t cheap, Emilia, and I doubt your new business can afford advertising right now,” Mom said as she set her fork down on her plate.
Dad looked as surprised as I probably did.
“Come on now, we can give her the family discount.” He chuckled.
“She wants to make this happen on her own. Organically, right?” Mom shrugged. “So we wouldn’t be doing you any favors giving you a freebie ad. You should do it the right way, like everyone else.”
I nodded, my hand gripping my fork hard. She thought she could break me, but she was wrong. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
We ate the rest of our dinner in silence, and my father finally spoke, trying desperately to lighten the mood.
He brought up the upcoming weekend, because Jacoby and his girlfriend, Shana, were coming home.
I was grateful for the change in topic and ready for the evening to come to an end. There was a heaviness when I hugged my mother goodbye, a distance that I’d always felt from her. I’d tried for years to improve our relationship, but it just hadn’t happened. I’d always felt this animosity from her that I’d never understood. She’d always laugh it off, saying that mother-daughter relationships were complicated, but it was more than that.
I truly felt as if my mother didn’t like me. I’d felt that way for most of my life, and I’d tried desperately to turn our relationship around. But at this point in my life, I’d realized that I couldn’t fix things on my own. She had to want to fix our relationship, too.
After an awkward hug goodbye, I waved goodbye and walked home.
I startled when I saw a giant box sitting on my front porch. I hadn’t ordered any new furniture, and it was large enough to be holding a chair or nightstand inside.
I had to maneuver around the side of it to get to my front door. A note was taped to the outside of the box.
Emilia,
Let’s move on and leave the past where it belongs… behind us.
I’m attaching Brenner’s phone number below, and you can text him your schedule and he will arrange installation for you.
Bridger Chadwick.
You’ve got to be kidding me. It needed to be installed?
