“Oh?” It was Jen’s turn to be surprised.
“Yeah.”
“You buy Rose quite a lot of flowers. How sweet. Are you two getting married?”
He grinned. “Oh, no.”
Jen didn’t know what to make of it. Just then another customer rang the door chime as she entered, an older lady carrying a rather large brown handbag. She started to peruse flowers on the other side of the store.
Unfortunately, their conversation was cut short. Which was probably for the best. She did not look at taken men, even if they were unmarried. Was he living with Rose? Stop it, Jen. He’s just a customer. It’s none of your business. Still, she didn’t see any harm in appreciating a gorgeous guy when she saw one, especially one who obviously had a gift of making even strangers feel warm inside. He definitely had something. A special gift when it came to making friends.
After she’d rung up his transaction she asked him if he wanted any message on the card. He told her yes, “To the most beautiful woman in the world.” His voice was deep, low and seductive.
Jen felt light inside. Was that a tinge of jealousy? She felt terrible for feeling this way about a woman she didn’t know. She was happy for her. It was a good jealousy. The I-hope-to-be-as-lucky-as-her-one-day kind of jealousy. She truly meant them well.
How sweet of him, she thought. Her ex never did anything like that for her. Rose was very lucky indeed, she thought again.
***
“He was that hot?” Kelsia leaned forward, gaping at her friend Jen as they sat down at a table at Starbucks.
“Seriously. So I guess there are good guys out there. Just not in my path,” Jen chuckled as she lifted her coffee cup to her lips. She’d just finished her shift at The Special Gift Flower shop.
“Come on, you never know…he could be available.”
“Doubt it.”
“What makes you say that?”
“Because…”
“Because what?”
“Well, for starters he was buying flowers for a woman named Rose.” Jen cocked her brow.
“Did you ask him if Rose was his wife?”
“No. He didn’t wear a wedding band. Besides, I was too chicken. When I asked if it was for his mother, he said no. Then I told him Rose was a lucky woman. And he agreed. So I just left it at that.”
“Girl, you give up way too easily. I would’ve come straight out and asked him if he was single.”
“Kelsia!”
“What? If he was as hot as you said he was.”
“He was. Oh, trust me on that one.” Jen swallowed hard. She had a lot more on her mind than men.
“So how is the job hunting coming along?” Kelsia grilled her friend.
“Rough as usual. But I’m so glad to be working right now even if it’s only minimum wage. And Mr. Myers is so sweet. He pretty much lets me get on with my job unlike working at the firm…”
“Yeah, tell me about it. I hate office politics. Trust me, you’re not missing much by working by yourself in a flower shop, smiling at customers and helping them pick out pretty flowers.”
A warm smile touched the corner of Jen’s lips as she lifted her steaming cup of coffee to her lips to take another sip. The thought of Mr. Gorgeous and Mysterious whirled through her mind again. That was soon replaced by a cool dose of reality. She was still looking for a job in her field that could pay her full rent. She was pretty much living off the last of her savings while she searched online tirelessly for an opening in her field, marketing. It was hard when you were laid off, or fired because the boss was a real jerk and wanted to hire his step-daughter to replace you instead of keep you on and pay you what you were worth. That was the last time she would work for a family owned small business. Well, not counting the flower shop, of course.
She’d thought about going back to school to complete her master’s degree and then opening up her own agency but where would she come up with the money? A student loan was out of the question. She’d already racked up enough debt to last her a lifetime and then some.
Jen felt her migraine creeping back. She was thinking too much again. Stop over-thinking, Jen. You can’t worry about what you can’t control. It’s not worth it.