5. What She Felt

5

WHAT SHE FELT

“ Y ou’re walking funny this morning,” Poppy Bloom-McGill said to Laurel on Monday morning. “Anything exciting you want to share?”

She turned and grinned at one of the owners. Poppy was pregnant and due in less than a month with her son. “Nothing worthwhile,” she said. “Just got a harder workout in this morning.”

No reason to mention that she’d spent the time doing a workout she’d never done before and with a sexy mysterious neighbor.

Easton didn’t talk much, but when he did, he made her grin.

“Bummer,” Poppy said. “But I know how hard it is when you’re new in the area. How do you like it so far?”

“It’s great,” she said. They were in her office and Laurel had been rearranging things so that she could look out the big windows onto the floor better. She didn’t like her back to the windows so she was facing the door. Now she could go sideways and turn her head easily enough to the factory floor or the door.

“We are glad you are here,” Poppy said. “I know some of the staff can be difficult.”

She snorted. “I’ve dealt with difficult staff before. Remember, I was a union leader. Nothing worse than union members during negotiations.”

“I can only imagine,” Poppy said. “Not my thing. We are much more laid back here, but you’re going to get some that are still bitter that an outsider came in.”

She sighed. “I know. I expected that. There was no one you felt you could move up?”

“No,” Poppy said. “Lily is better at deciding those things, but the three of us talked it over.”

Lily Bloom-Wolfe, Poppy, and Rose Bloom-Klein. The three sisters who started and ran Blossoms turning it into the mega-million-dollar business it was today.

Who would have thought soaps, lotions, candles, accessories and jewelry made from flowers or inspired by flowers would have taken off in this small tourist area as it had?

And since Laurel grew up about an hour from here, she knew all about the business.

“It seems no one had much to say about Aster coming in,” she said. “Being a guy and all.”

Aster Allen was a friend of Lily’s husband, Zane. Someone from the Army. He’d been hired last summer doing construction with Zane and then later promoted to the Director of Facilities for the building and machinery.

She loved taking things apart and seeing how they all worked, but it wasn’t her job, and in a way, probably a good thing.

She had her hands full as it was now.

“We have a few men here,” Poppy said, “as you know, but it’s primarily women. It wasn’t planned that way but seems to work for us. None of my girls in my division could or are interested in really moving up other than a supervisor there. The same with Rose’s staff.”

She’d learned that those in accessories wanted to stay only overseeing that line. They had a skill set and better understanding there. Rose’s staff too with the jewelry.

Her job was to make sure the supervisors for those divisions met with her about any issues with staffing or production.

Laurel oversaw the biggest part of the business: the candles, soaps and lotions. There were a few supervisors. One to oversee each of the big products on a small level under her. Then there was Heather’s line of herbal products that Heather and Laurel were jointly overseeing.

She was guessing a supervisor would be hired there too and Heather would go back to spending more time creating lines.

“True,” she said. “And I think they look at Aster as the fixer, so it works for him. No one complains to him too much.”

Poppy laughed. “I think Aster’s biggest problem is the women flirting with him. He always kept to himself and the fact that he’s dating someone seriously now and talks about Raine all the time makes a difference. Everyone knows Raine is Ivy’s future sister-in-law, so they aren’t going to step on toes.”

She liked Ivy Greene a lot. Young, peppy, and over the top excitable. Also very protective of her family. And that family included not only Raine, but also Ivy’s sisters, Jasmine, who ran the greenhouses, and Dahlia, who oversaw the finances.

A big old extended family network and it was something that drew her in.

Family fought, sure, but they stuck together in the best way possible when it mattered.

That was what she needed in her career since she’d had it in her life.

“Ivy will put anyone in their place if she finds out they are flirting with Aster,” she said.

Aster was a treat to look at, but not her type.

She didn’t think she had much of a type and went by what she felt. It made her wonder what the hell she’d felt for Philip and should have gone with her gut and stood her ground with him.

No more pretty boys in her life.

No more liars, cheaters, and those who couldn’t even look you in the eye when asked a question.

And whiners—oh, hell no. It’s not a pretty look on women let alone a man.

“She will,” Poppy said. “Aside from things going well, you’re not too lonely here?”

“Nah,” she said. “I’ve never been one for going out much. I’m busy with work.”

“I know,” Poppy said, “but we don’t want you burning out either. You need to get out and have some fun.”

“Are you trying to get Laurel to pick up some guy?” Rose asked, coming into the office.

Rose was pregnant and due in three months. It was babies galore since she’d been employed here.

Ivy’s sisters, Jasmine and Dahlia, both had boys in the past month or so. Then Poppy, Violet who managed the flower shop, and Rose were all pregnant.

There were a few weddings coming up too.

It seemed to her when people were hired, shortly after, their personal lives took off along with their careers.

Hmm, interesting that just occurred to her.

It might have brought up thoughts of Easton, but she’d push them off.

“We are just talking,” Poppy said, putting a cute pout on her face. “Nothing wrong with that. I wanted to make sure Laurel wasn’t regretting moving to a smaller area.”

“I’m not,” she said. “Or I don’t. I love it here. The area and the job. I can go home and visit any time I want or see friends too.”

Not that she wanted to because some of her old friends were tied to Philip. Others were married or had kids.

There was no one in her life who was in the same situation as her. She was used to it.

Just like the way she was raised. Being unique wasn’t a bad thing by any means.

“And we want you to,” Rose said. “You don’t have to work on the weekends.”

“I didn’t work this weekend,” she said, smiling. “It was nice and quiet here just like we like it. Is there something you both need? Did you want to go over the production schedule or make changes? I’ve got a meeting with Lily tomorrow for it.”

“We’ll all meet then,” Rose said. “I just saw my nosy sister over here and wanted to make sure she wasn’t giving you a hard time. I’m going over to my side of the building to get some things done.”

“It’s my side of the building too,” Poppy said. “I’m coming with you. And slow down, I can’t walk as fast as you. Baby Tatum likes to kick my bladder when I do it. I can’t pee on the floor.”

She heard Rose cover a laugh as the two of them walked away and she got back to unplugging her laptop and moving everything off her desk.

She was glad they’d left and didn’t see her moving furniture or they’d want her to get help.

Laurel didn’t need it. She was tough and could handle it all herself.

“What do you think you’re doing?”

Her shoulders dropped when she heard Aster’s voice behind her. She’d just gotten one side of the L-shaped desk lifted to put sliders under it to slide the whole thing easier.

“Moving my desk so I’ve got a better view of the floor and my door.”

“Let’s do it together,” Aster said. “This way you don’t break the thing.”

“It’s not going to break,” she said, grinning. “And if I loosen some screws, I can fix it easily.”

“Too many independent women around here,” Aster said.

“Not a bad thing,” she said.

Aster lifted the other side of the desk much easier than her and slid the tiny circles under the legs, and the two of them moved the desk in place faster than if she could have done it alone.

“Anything else you need moved before I leave? Your bookshelf closer to you or are you leaving it there?”

Her head went back and forth. “I could move it closer since you’re here. Did you see me doing this and come down or was there something else you needed?”

“I was on the floor and saw you doing something and wasn’t sure what. The window is big and I figured I’d see if everything was okay.”

“Thanks,” she said. “I’m not one for asking for help but do appreciate it.”

“Just as I said, too many independent women.”

“I was raised that way,” she said. “Got to make my father proud.”

When Aster left, she started to put her things back on her desk. It’d been a few months since she’d seen her father. Maybe she’d go home for a visit this weekend. Let him know she was doing alright and he should be proud of her.

He’d raised a damn strong independent daughter, just as he’d always wanted.