Chapter 2
2
Tracey led Brian out to the yard on the side of the bed and breakfast where she hosted outdoor weddings and other events. She walked quickly, but Brian had no problem keeping up with her. She wished he would linger behind and take his time. She hated being caught off her game, and she hated it even more when it was Brian who was doing it. Maybe because Brian Nelson had been catching Tracey off her game since she was in high school.
She hadn’t liked him back then. The good-looking, popular boy that all the girls in school had a crush on. Her included, but she’d known that Brian wouldn’t look twice at her. He was raised by well-brought-up parents, lived in a nice house on the good side of town, was a star in both basketball and wrestling, and had a new girlfriend every quarter. She, on the other hand, was the girl brought up in the Section 8 apartments in town, with the alcoholic father and a mother who cheated on him constantly. Tracey’s smart mouth constantly got her into trouble at school, and the only guys interested in her were the ones who thought she was just as easy as her mom.
Every time she was in the principal’s office for going off on someone for talking about her family, Brian was also there getting praised. Whenever she stumbled over her own two feet marching in JROTC, Brian was there doing a perfect about-face in a freshly pressed uniform. And when she’d accepted Cornell Murphy’s invitation to the JROTC ball senior year because she’d foolishly believed he liked her, only for him to try and shove his hand up her dress in the hallway, Brian was the one who’d witnessed the embarrassing moment and her punching Cornell in the stomach so hard he’d thrown up on Tracey’s new shoes. Then, as an adult, he’d been the first person to notice Bernard, her soon-to-be ex-husband, was cheating.
Yep, most of her embarrassing moments in high school were witnessed by Brian, and he’d continued to witness more when he’d moved back to Peachtree Cove as an adult. Which meant it was par for the course that he would be there just as she ran back into the inn, frustrated and flustered from doing Jessica’s job.
“Where’s the fire?”
Tracey stopped and spun to face him. “What?”
He gave her the same bland I’m-bored-with-this look that he always wore. Except this time a raised brow accompanied it. He pointed to her feet. “You’re damn near running. I thought maybe something was on fire.”
Tracey narrowed her eyes. “Hardy har har. You’re so damn funny,” she said in a flat voice.
“Why are you upset? It’s your own fault.”
“What’s my own fault?”
He pointed to the back of the inn. Jessica was on her phone at the back corner. “You should have fired her two months ago.”
“I need help right now. You, of all people, should know how busy things are.”
“If you’re doing her job, is it really help?”
Tracey crossed her arms over her chest. “You were in the kitchen with Shirley, weren’t you?”
Brian shrugged his shoulders. “Doesn’t matter where I was. My point still stands. Jessica isn’t doing her job. Even I know that. You’re running around here like a chicken with its head cut off doing her work and yours. Get rid of her and hire a real manager.”
Tracey took a deep breath. She was not going to curse out Brian. She was not going to kick him off her property. She needed his help, even if she didn’t want his very obvious, unsolicited advice.
After she’d calmed herself she asked in an even tone, “Do I come telling you how to run your nursery? No. So worry about that and not about my inn.”
“Then, don’t keep me waiting next time,” he shot back easily.
Tracey shook her head and smirked. “You’ll wait because I’m your biggest customer. Now, shut up and listen.”
Brian grunted, but the corner of his mouth lifted. Despite him having a first-row seat to the all things embarrassing about Tracey’s life show, Brian also refused to let her sharp tongue cut him. Which was why she couldn’t quite go from being consistently annoyed with him to straight up disliking him. Brian witnessed her shame, made the occasional offer of advice she didn’t want or need, and then moved on. That she appreciated. Other people took joy in reveling in the messed-up stuff in her life. He never did.
“What’s the layout?” he asked.
Tracey looked around the yard and envisioned it with the white chairs set up for a small wedding. “The usual. A small wedding. The happy couple will be in the gazebo.” She pointed to the wooden structure at the far end of the yard. “There will be about fifty guests. The colors are red and yellow, so I need flowers or shrubs to go with that.”
Brian frowned as he considered the yard. Tracey let him do what he did. The side yard for The Fresh Place Inn was cute and quaint, but it wasn’t very decorative. Tracey used Brian’s nursery to provide the extra pizzazz needed for events. He brought in shrubs and flowers of various colors and sizes to provide natural decoration. Tracey paid him for the temporary use, and then he hauled them away after the wedding was complete.
“I can bring in some gold zebra and maybe some admiration barberry. We can put those around the gazebo.”
Tracey nodded. “I don’t know what you’re saying, but I trust your judgment. Do it.”
Brian turned to her with a quizzical look. “You’re not going to hand-select the flowers this time?”
She shook her head. “I don’t have time. The wedding is this weekend.”
His head fell to the side, and his eyes widened. “Saturday?”
“Yeah.”
“Tracey,” he sighed, looked heavenward then shook his head. “It’s Monday, Tracey. You know I need more time to get the plants in.”
“I know, but this slipped through the cracks. I thought I’d already booked the shrubs with you, but I didn’t.”
“What if I can’t do it by Saturday?”
Her heart jumped damn near out of her chest. If he couldn’t, then the cute side yard she’d promised the bride would not come true. The bride would leave a horrible review. Others would pile on, and the inn would fail. Probably not immediately, but if she kept this up it would.
She clasped her hands together as if praying and held them out to Brian. “If anyone can do it by then it’s you. Please, Brian, do this for me.” She may not be as easy as her mom, or half as desirable, but she did know that if she batted her eyes and pleaded, her pitiful look sometimes worked on Brian.
Brian rubbed his temple. “How did this slip through? You used to be better organized than this.”
“I used to have a good person working next to me, but now I don’t. So this is what happens.”
He dropped his hand, and his eyes met hers. “Don’t do that.”
“Do what? Bring up why I had to hire Jessica and important things like booking the flowers for a wedding at my inn slip through the cracks? Why not?”
“You need to let that shit go,” he said easily. As if getting over betrayal and heartbreak were something a person could just wake up one morning and say Yeah, that sucked, but I’m over it now .
“Well, I can’t. You, more than anyone, should also know why I’m struggling here.”
His eyes narrowed. “Don’t go there.”
“Too late. I’m already there. I’ve set up a chair and got comfortable.” She took a few steps closer until there was only a few inches separating them. “So because you know why I’m floundering, with the increased bookings and popularity of Peachtree Cove, you should know that I really need you to do me a solid and get the shrubs here for the wedding on Saturday.”
Brian glowered down at her. He had his hands on his hips and his nostrils flared. She had to fight not to smile back at his frustration. She loved frustrating Brian, mostly because his observations frustrated her. He was also cute when he was upset. She liked watching the cool playboy, down-for-whatever facade disappear when she pushed his buttons. And again, he was cute when he was upset. Teenage Tracey liked to come out and play and remind her of the old crush she used to have on him.
“What time is the wedding?” he asked through gritted teeth.
She didn’t bother to hold back her smile. “Two in the afternoon.”
His eyes narrowed more but he asked, “What time do you need them set up?”
Her cheeks hurt from the grin on her face. “Can you get it set up by eleven?”
He pointed at her. Tracey grabbed his finger and shook it. “Thank you, Brian. You’re a lifesaver. And I’ll pay you ten percent extra.”
He sighed and jerked back on his finger. Tracey let him go. “Get rid of Jessica, get your schedule under control and don’t do this again.”
She nodded. “I’ll get it worked out.”
“I’m for real, Tracey. You can’t keep going like this. Losing Monique the way you did was messed up, but don’t ruin your life trying to prove that you can keep doing this by yourself.”
The smile fell off Tracey’s face. In the blink of an eye, he’d reminded her why he stayed on her Annoying Person list. “Quit minding my business.”
He pointed around the yard. “This last-minute thing makes it my business.” He reached over and tweaked her chin before turning and walking away. Full-on swag with his ridiculously long legs and broad shoulders. Damn him!
Tracey gave his back the finger. He looked over his shoulder at the same time and caught it. Then, in Brian Nelson fashion, he grinned, turned away and kept on walking.