"Ah . . . this one's fine. "
"I just love all the little red bows and those tiny Santas. I'll get you a box for it. "
"Thanks. What are those?"
"Those are Christmas cacti. Aren't they beautiful? Harper grafts them. He's going to show me how one of these days. You know, you should have one. They're so celebrational. And they bloom for Christmas and Easter. "
"I'm not good with plants. "
"Why, you don't have to do much of anything for it. " She set those big baby blue eyes on him. "You live in an apartment, don'
t you? If you take the tree, a Christmas cactus, a couple of poinsettias, you'll be all decorated for the holidays. You can have company over, and be set. "
"I don't know how much attention Josh is going to pay to a cactus. "
She smiled. "Maybe not, but you must have a date over for a holiday drink, right?"
"Ah . . . I've been pretty busy with the book. "
"A handsome single man like you must have to beat the ladies off with a stick. "
"Not lately. Um - "
"You should have a wreath for the door, too. "
"A wreath. " He began to feel slightly desperate as she took his arm.
"Let me show you what we've got. I made some of these myself. See this one here? Just smell that pine. What's Christmas without a wreath on the door?"
He knew when he was outgunned. "You're really good at this, aren't you?"
"You bet," she said with a laugh and selected a wreath. "This one goes so well with your tree. "
She talked him into the wreath, three windowsill-size poinsettias, and the cactus. He looked bemused and a little dazed as she rang it all up and boxed his purchases.
And when he left, Hayley knew what she wanted to know.
She dashed into Stella's office.
"Mitch Carnegie's not seeing anybody. "
"Was he recently blinded?"
"Come on, Stella, you know what I mean. He doesn't have a sweetie. " She drew off her cap, raked her fingers through her oak-brown hair she was wearing long enough to pull back into a stubby tail.
"And he just spent a good half hour in the propagation house with Roz before he came in here to buy a tabletop tree. Harper sent him in there without even letting her know. Just go right on in while she's working and doesn't even have time to swipe on some lipstick. "
"Just sent him in? What is Harper, stupid?"
"Exactly what I asked him - Harper, that is. Anyway, then he - Mitch - came in all wet because he'd been walking around the place checking it out. He's going over to the house for a while now. "
"Hayley. " Stella turned from her computer. "What are you cooking?"
"Just observing, that's all. He's not seeing anybody, she's not seeing anybody. " She lifted her hands, pointing both index fingers, then wiggled them toward each other. "Now they're both going to be seeing a lot of each other. And besides being a hottie, he's so cute. I talked him into buying a wreath, three mini poinsettias, and a Christmas cactus as well as the tree. "
"Go, Hayley. "
"But see, he didn't know how to say no, that was the cute part. If Roz doesn't go for him, I might myself. Okay, no. " She laughed at Stella's bland stare. "He's old enough to be my daddy and blah blah blah, but he's just perfect for Roz. I'm telling you, I know this stuff. Wasn't I right about you and Logan?"