27. Scarlett
Scarlett
The sun was still low in the sky, just beginning its rise to start a new day. The sound of the shower shut off, and I stretched my arms and legs, feeling delightfully sore from last night.
After we left Harpoon’s, Luke and I came back to his place. He wasn’t kidding when he said that the black satin dress wouldn’t make it to the bedroom. He had barely closed the door behind me when he pinned my back against the wall and ravaged me. The dress didn’t stand a chance.
I hoped we hadn’t ruined it, but even if we did, it was worth it.
Luke came back into the bedroom, rubbing a towel against his short hair, the rest of him standing gloriously naked.
“Good morning. I didn’t expect you to be awake now that you can sleep in,” he said.
“Old habits, I guess. What are you going to do today?” I asked.
Besides the multiple orgasms last night, we’d also talked about how to handle the new evidence. Luke was conflicted, and I understood his point of view .
“I’m going to do my job and keep my mouth shut. I’m working with Monroe today on the other cases, so I’ll be able to keep my eye on him. Be on the lookout for any suspicious behavior.”
He sat on the edge of the bed and leaned down to me for a kiss.
I could see the pain this was causing him.
He believed in what he did, what he represented to Calla Bay.
The idea that someone close to him was so morally corrupt as to put an innocent man behind bars for a horrible crime that he didn’t commit was eating at him from the inside.
“I trusted him, Letty. There was a time that I trusted him with my life without a second’s hesitation.
After I found out about him and Jules, I saw him in a different light.
That camaraderie was shot, but still… I don’t think I ever really saw him as a dirty cop.
Not until I had the proof of it before my eyes. ”
“I know,” I told him. My hands brushed along his clean-shaven jaw. “I’m sorry.”
“You didn’t do anything, baby. You have nothing to be sorry for.”
“I just feel bad that this is happening. What are you going to do about Ryan?”
He took a deep breath before getting up to finish getting dressed for work.
“I’m going to talk to his lawyer today, tell them that they need to get a copy of the report directly from the forensic lab.
They’re entitled to do so, but usually, they request the files from us and vice versa.
I’ll pass the tip along to them and let them go from there. ”
Luke leaned back against the wall, his shoulders tense, and let his head fall against the hard surface behind him with a sigh. “Once they get their hands on it, it’s going to open it up to public scrutiny.”
“Do you think you’ll be implicated in anything since you were one of the detectives?”
Luke was the most ethical, moral, honorable, law-abiding—except for the whole skinny-dipping in public thing—person I knew. For him to get dragged through the mud on this was going to gut him.
“That’s assuming there will be an investigation. Shit, Letty. I have no idea what to think anymore.”
My feet hit the floor, and I hurried toward him so I could wrap myself around him. His strong arms held me closely, one hand cradling my head.
Luke finished getting ready, and before he left for his shift, I asked if he minded if I stayed at his place during the day, even though he wasn’t home.
“If it was up to me, you’d never leave. Yes, Letty. You can stay here for as long as you want,” he said.
I had to stop at my place and pick up some more clothes. A lot of my stuff had slowly been migrating over to Luke’s house over the past few weeks, but the weather had taken a turn, and my warmer clothes were still at my apartment.
I grabbed a few more sweaters and some other necessities, including some pads and tampons.
I knew Luke wouldn’t blink an eye at the feminine products in his bathroom.
I hadn’t started my period yet, and I hadn’t been paying attention to the dates of my last cycle, but I knew it should be right around the corner, so it was better to be prepared.
On my way back to Luke’s, I decided to make an impromptu detour.
Daisy Days’ hand-painted open sign hung in the window. The display cases in the front were filled with beautiful autumn colors of rich golds, deep reds, and even some warm blues.
The bell above the door chimed when I walked in. Daisy’s long black hair swished as she turned around to greet me.
“Scarlett!” she squealed. “Where have you been?”
I laughed at her excitement. “Daisy, it’s only been like two weeks.”
“Three. It had to have been three weeks since I saw you last.”
A smile stretched across my face. Daisy was so full of energy and positivity. I should have come here sooner rather than waste three days rotting on my couch. It would have instantly cheered me up.
“Okay, maybe it’s been three weeks. Sorry. I guess I’ve been busy.”
She stopped working, snipping back the dead twigs and leaves from her display pieces, and met me with a hug.
“What’s been keeping you away?”
“More like who,” I said.
Her almond-shaped eyes narrowed in offense. “Who’s stopping you from coming here?”
“Oh, no,” I said. Now that I heard it back, I could see why she would be upset by that. “I just meant that I’ve been seeing someone, so I’ve been a little busy lately.”
“Oh, well, that’s way more exciting. Who is it? Is he from around here? Do I know him?”
I was trying so hard not to blush, but I could feel the heat racing to my face at her inquisition.
“Yeah, you know him. I’ve been seeing Luke,” I said. “Wilder.”
Daisy’s mouth fell open, her hands coming up to her face like Macaulay Culkin in Home Alone . She squealed so high I thought the windows were going to break.
“I’m so excited for you. We need to celebrate. That’s what today’s bouquet will be, a celebration of new love.” She clapped her hands together with pure giddiness.
Her words rattled through my brain, sinking deeply into my soul.
Love.
I was head over heels in love with Luke Wilder.
I smiled at Daisy’s excitement for me. She wiped her hands on her apron that she had tied around her waist and dropped her pruning shears in the large front pocket.
“Okay, I know you don’t like dark colors, too moody, so we can go with some warm pinks and golds, some deep greens—I’m thinking sage, maybe eucalyptus or even acacia.
” Daisy was off, heading into the back stockroom, muttering her ideas more to herself than to me.
“Are you coming?” she called over her shoulder.
I followed her behind the counter and into the small room where she kept her supplies and inventory.
Something about the earthy scent of soil and sweet floral aromas was so soothing for me.
It reminded me of growing up in the western part of the state, running amok through the woods without a care in the world.
Nothing like the life I was leading now.
Not only was I without income, but I had also been anonymously threatened and had lost my trust in the institution that had sworn to serve and protect its community.
“Hey, what’s up?” Daisy asked, concern lacing her eyes. “You were smiling one second and frowning the next. Is everything okay? ”
“Yeah. Yeah.” I didn’t want to bring Daisy into my problems, but we had become close during all the time I spent here.
Daisy and I started to collect the various pieces that we wanted to work with, her advising me on the flowers and greenery that would go best together and fit the aesthetic I was going for.
“I got fired last week,” I blurted out.
“What!” Shock and outrage crossed her face. “Why? What happened?”
I took a deep breath, breathing in the calming scents of nature. “I may have mildly broken the law. Minuscule, really. But someone had taken a picture of it and sent it to the captain. Oh God, they probably sent it to Chief Williams, and he passed it off to Captain to handle.”
“What was it? Was it bad?”
“I went skinny-dipping in the ocean.” I cringed.
“That’s not a fireable offense,” she huffed.
“With Luke,” I added.
Her eyes sparkled, a small smirk pulling at her lips. “Well, that just sounds fun.”
“Oh, it was better than fun… We, um…” I trailed off. I didn’t need to get into details. She clearly understood what I was getting at based on the elated expression on her face.
“Is that what was happening in the picture?” she whispered, faux-scandalized.
I nodded before rushing to add, “You couldn’t really see anything because we were in the water, but my top half was clearly visible, including my face.”
“Well, that’s both amazing—get it, girl—and ridiculous that they would fire you for that.”
I shrugged like it was no big deal, and now that a few days had passed, I was feeling better. “It was reckless of us. And public nudity is against the law. I guess I should be happy I wasn’t fined.”
The peonies that I had selected were too light for the arrangement I was creating. I replaced them with carnations in a terracotta-orange color while Daisy was busy making an arrangement of her own.
She peeked over my shoulder at what I was working on, her shoulder bumping into mine with approval.
“That looks great, Scarlett. You should come work for me now that you’re out of a job.”
She was so sweet. I laughed, thanking her for the compliment on my flower choices. “It’s because I’ve had such a great teacher.”
“You’re a quick learner. I’m serious though.
Would you want to pick up a couple of days here?
I can’t offer a lot of hours, but I definitely need some extra help.
I have to shut my doors early on Tuesdays and Thursdays to make deliveries because I don’t have anyone here to run the shop.
We could hang for the day, work on some displays together, and then when I have to run out, you can work the counter.
” Her tone held a plea to it, like she really wanted to take me on as an employee.
“Are you serious? You don’t have to hire me just to be nice. I was going to start looking for a new job this week.”
“Completely serious. Please say yes, Scarlett. Pretty please?” She drew out the last word, her hands folded together, an over-the-top grin spread across her cheeks.
It wouldn’t be enough hours to make a living, but I could always fill in the other days with another part-time gig, at least for now .
It might be nice. It would definitely be less stressful. Even in a small town, dealing with crises all day could be exhausting. And spending my time here, at Daisy Days Flower Shop, was bound to lift my spirit.
“Okay. Yeah. If you’re serious, then yes, I would love to work for you!”
Daisy excitedly filled me in on what to expect and when I could start.
And just like that, I was no longer unemployed.
Despite whatever was happening within the police department, Calla Bay was the type of community that helped each other and truly cared for each other as more than just neighbors but as friends.
* * *
“Bye, Daisy. Drive safe.”
We had just finished loading up her beat-up truck with her deliveries for this afternoon.
She proudly drove through town in her ’98 Ford Ranger with more gray paint peeled off than was left remaining.
The bright white Daisy Days decal with colorful floral designs that was attached to the door was comically mismatched to the state of the truck.
“Thanks, Scarlett. Call me if you need anything, but I’m sure you’ll be fine.”
My first shift had been super fun so far. I thought I knew what I was getting into, having spent a decent amount of time here with Daisy, but as it turned out, there was a lot more to running a business than just putting pretty floral arrangements together .
After basically rotting on the couch for a week, standing on my feet all day was exhausting. I sat on the small stool behind the counter and stretched my back and shoulder muscles. My whole body sighed with instant relief.
I made my first sale when Debbie from Pine Street Market came in to purchase one of the premade bouquets.
That was it.
One customer over the course of the last hour. After scrolling on social media for a while, I decided my time would be better spent being productive. I had just gone into the back room to find a broom and mop when the bell above the front door jingled.
“One second,” I called, moving one of the boxes aside to grab the cleaning supplies.
When I came back out of the stockroom, no one was there. I hoped they didn’t think no one was working and left, but I had called out. Plus, it couldn’t have been more than thirty seconds before I was there.
Something moved out of the corner of my eye, and when I turned around, a man was standing there.
I nearly screamed he popped up so fast. Where did he come from? There was no one there a second ago.
It took me a second to recognize him.
“I don’t think I’ve ever been in here before.” He looked around the shop with interest. “It’s cute.” His cold, dark eyes brought me right back to that night a few weeks ago outside of the police station.
My heart was beating faster. I slowly took a step back, putting more distance between us. He was standing in a way that blocked my exit by the side of the counter, but he was technically still on the customer side .
“Is there something I can help you find?” I asked with a customer service smile.
“No,” he said. He was no longer looking around, his eyes solely focused on me.
“Well, if there’s nothing I can help you with…” I reached for my phone without taking my eyes off him.
The sound of the door pulled my gaze away as Daisy walked through the door.
“Hey, I’m back,” she called. “Oh, hey, Tyler. What brings you in today?”
“Just thought I should check out what you’ve done. I like it.” He smiled at her, and all the air left my lungs.
He was clearly a friend of Daisy’s. The tension dissipated, leaving me feeling a bit foolish for overreacting.
Tyler left after saying bye to Daisy, but before he did, he took a long look at me.
We locked up and closed out the day. I shook off the edginess I felt on my drive back to Luke’s place, but something about him unsettled me.
I planned to talk to Luke about the encounter when he got home from his shift, but I didn’t even make it to the bed. I sank onto the couch to wait for him, and within minutes, sleep overtook me.