“I think I should come for a visit,” Mom said.
Panic shot through Sophie. “That’s not necessary, Mom.”
“I can give you support. Advice. Encouragement.”
Interference. She never should have told her mother she was thinking about dating. She should have waited until she was engaged. Or had already eloped.
“I appreciate it, but Addy and Bash need you.” Her niece and nephew hadn’t been called by their full names since they were born.
“True. And Lis and Dan are leaving for their cruise in two weeks, so I need to prepare to keep the punkins.”
“Exactly.”
“But you’ll keep me posted, right?” A note of desperation filled her tone.
“Of course.” Her heart softened again. Mom meant well, and Sophie needed to remember that. “I have to go give Hayley this order so she can deliver it, and we’re busy up front. Tell Dad I said hello.”
“I will. Oh, I’m so happy for you, Sophie! You’ve worked so hard to make your store a success. Your dad and I are very proud of you. I’m glad you’re taking some time for yourself.”
She couldn’t help but smile. Knowing her parents realized how hard she worked and what she had accomplished meant the world to her. “Thanks, Mom. I love you.”
“Love you too. Oh, and dear?”
“Yes?”
“I realize that you’re an independent woman, and I know that’s important to you. But just remember that it’s okay to want companionship.”
“I have friends, Mom.”
“I’m talking about male companionship.” Before Sophie could protest, her mother said, “Talk to you soon!” Then she hung up the phone.
Sophie swiped her phone screen, then took out her earbuds and put them in her pocket, followed by her phone. She stared at the clear glass vase in front of her. Of course independence was important to her. But that wasn’t what had kept her from dating. Up until this point her job had been all consuming. She’d made the choice not to date, and now she was choosing to date. She just hoped it wasn’t too late.
Shaking off the depressing thought, she tied an emerald green ribbon around the vase, then picked it up to take out front to Hayley. She was determined to focus on work for the rest of the day. It wasn’t like she’d be able to do something about her dating life immediately. Now that she’d told her mother, she would have to follow through with diving into the dating pool. Maybe that was the reason she called Mom in the first place—because more than once, she’d thought about chickening out, and she knew Mom would never let that happen.
She walked into the front of the shop, which was full of flowers, gifts, and, fortunately, customers. She smiled at Jasper Mathis, an older man who stopped by at least once a week, mostly to look at the flowers and shoot the breeze with the customers. Every once in a while, he bought a single rose, though Sophie had no idea whom he gave it to. Not that it was any of her business.
What would it feel like to get flowers? And not just from friends who don’t want me to be left out on Valentine’s Day. She couldn’t count how many flower bouquets, sprays, garlands, and gifts she had made over the years for all the Valentine’s Days, weddings, and anniversaries. She’d even made a few for husbands who were trying to get out of the doghouse. How would it feel to be surprised with a vase filled with her favorite flower, simple pink roses, from a man she loved?
Maybe one day she would find out.
* * *
“Well, it’s about time.”
“Shh.” Joe held his hand up and glanced around the Sunshine Diner. Even though it was late afternoon and the lunch rush had passed, a few people were still in the diner. More importantly, two of them were his students, although they were in the back of the restaurant washing dishes, probably since the moment school let out over an hour and a half ago. “If I wanted the whole town to know I would have told Gina.”
His best friend and coworker, Travis, scoffed as he dug into a thick piece of cherry pie. “Your sister doesn’t even live here anymore.”
“She has connections,” Joe said somberly. “Lots of them are people she talks to on the regular. Gina pounces on gossip. Remember the time she told everyone you were afraid of the dark?”
“We were in fourth grade.”
“She hasn’t changed, trust me.” Joe loved his sister, but he’d been thrilled when she announced she was moving from Maple Falls to Boise, Idaho, after meeting a potato farmer online. From all accounts she was happy, but she still had strong connections to Maple Falls, just like Joe did when he lived in Little Rock for ten years, teaching at Central High School and working as an assistant JV football coach. When the opening at his alma mater—tiny Maple Falls High School—appeared eight years ago, he jumped on it and never looked back.
“All right.” Travis leaned forward. “But, hey, congrats on finally joining the living.”
Joe frowned and used a white paper napkin to wipe the condensation off the glass of his double-thick banana shake. “I’m just going on a date, not coming back from the dead.”
“Same thing, in your case.”
As Travis scarfed down the rest of his pie, Joe pondered his friend’s statement. He’d been plenty satisfied with his teaching and coaching, plus working with youth camps in the summer. Being able to positively affect young lives was gratifying and rewarding. But lately something had been missing in his life. Companionship. He wasn’t sure why he’d changed his mind about staying single, but he had. Now he wished he’d kept that decision to himself.
“So, who’s the lucky girl?” Travis pointed his fork at Joe. “And I mean that. You’ve been Maple Falls’ most eligible bachelor for too long.”
“When did you suddenly turn into a girl?”
Travis smirked. “Being concerned about you isn’t girly. Look, I’ve known you all my life. You’ve always been a family man. I’m just sayin’, it’s time for you to have your own.”
“My last attempt didn’t turn out so well.”
“Because you married the wrong woman at the wrong time.”
Joe nodded. He and his ex, Jenna, had married right out of high school, ignoring everyone’s warnings, including Travis’s. The marriage lasted six months before Jenna asked for a divorce and moved to Florida. They hadn’t kept in touch, and that was seventeen years ago. But the failure had been long lasting.
“Don’t tell me you’re still hung up on her,” Travis said.
Joe shook his head. “Of course not.”
“Good. She was all wrong for you.”
“I know.” Joe slurped his shake. “And she’s in the past.”
“Right. So, I’ll ask you again, who’s the lucky woman?”
Joe took another sip of his shake, stalling as he thought about the woman he had finally decided to ask out—he glanced at the clock on the wall—in about half an hour. He figured she wouldn’t be too busy at work, but he didn’t want to ask her in private, because if she turned him down, she would have to be polite about it if they were in a public place.
Chicken. His hands were starting to get damp just thinking about saying the words, “Would you like to have coffee sometime?” Yeah, he was definitely lily-livered when it came to this dating thing.