it…
Misha knocked on the door and smiled at me, holding a bouquet of flowers.
I scooped up the tax paperwork and put it into a folder and closed it.
Nobody needed to know about this mess.
Except me and my mother.
And Jackson.
Of course Jackson was involved.
He didn’t know how to stay out of anything in my life anymore.
“Callie?”
I shook my head. “Yeah?”
“I said these are for you,” Misha said.
“The flowers?”
“Yeah,” she said. “They came to the front desk and they called me. Apparently you’re in a mood today.”
“Who said that?” I asked. “I’ll fire them.”
“You’re not firing anyone. What’s wrong? Something wrong with Jackson? Is that why he sent these?”
“Jackson sent those flowers?” I asked.
“Yeah,” Misha said. “Were you expecting flowers from someone else?”
“No,” I said. “I thought… maybe Derrick… but Jackson threw him out on his ass.”
“Oh? What did I miss?”
“You don’t want to know,” I said. “This marriage thing is a pain in the ass.”
“Just imagine if it was real,” Misha said.
She put the vase down on my desk.
It was an array of beautiful flowers. I didn’t know any of their names, except for the six red roses in the mix. There were all kinds of colors though. And they smelled like Easter in the springtime.
There was a card on top.
I plucked it off the holder and flipped it open.
To my bride.
My love grows more each day - like these flowers.
Love,
Jackson
I flicked the card to my desk.
“What an asshole,” I said.
“He’s playing it hard,” Misha said. “You have a little audience watching. Just so you know.”
I looked and saw a few people in the hallway.
I grabbed the flowers and walked to my door.
Jackson casually strolled to his door.
We stared at each other.
He smiled.
I looked down the hallway. “How did I get so lucky? Did you see these flowers?”
Everyone smiled.
“And to think he got them delivered even though he could have just brought them to me. This is… so thoughtful.”
“I’m glad you like them, wife,” Jackson said.
I turned and walked into my office.
I slammed the door behind me.
I curled my lip and put the vase on my desk.
“I’m going to throw up,” I said.
“He’s just so sweet, Callie,” Misha said with a laugh.
“I just have to remind myself this is about the bonus money,” I said.
“That’s right,” Misha said. “The bonus. The promotion. You got this, Callie. I’m in your corner.”
I looked at the flowers.
I pictured the face Jackson made when he ordered them.
Not out of love.
But with a smart-ass smirk on his face.
I could play the same game.
Jackson was playing a game he wasn’t going to win.
There was still a banner above the store.
Crooked.
Faded.
Clarice’s Vision.
My mother’s name and her purpose of life.
Her vision.
That’s all she ever had were visions.
But visions didn’t pay the rent.
If she wanted to have a real vision, she should have started with the winning lottery numbers so she could take care of herself.
I opened the door to the shop and the smell of clove and lavender hit me so hard, my eyes started to water.
“Whew,” I said, waving my hands like I was walking through a burning room.
“Callie!” Lake yelled.
“Where?” Sunny called out.
“I’m over here,” I said.
Joni sat behind the counter with her eyes closed.
A smile on her face.
Sunny came walking toward me with a box in her hand.
She put the box on the counter and hugged me.
“That smell is…”
“Pure,” Sunny said from across the room, nodding. “It’s so perfectly cleansing. Just what this place needed. It’s been a slow few days. Time to change the energy.”
“Sure,” I said. I nodded to Joni. “What’s she doing?”
“Deep meditation,” Sunny said. “We better leave her. We don’t want to mess with the energy.”
“Where’s Mom?” I asked.
“In the back,” Sunny said.
She took my hand.
When I walked by Lake, she reached for my face.
Her fingers grazed my cheek.
I tried hard not to show how cringeworthy the moment was.
In the back of the shop, Mom sat behind a desk being held up by books.
“I got your info here,” I said to her.
“Are we all set?”
“It’s a lot of money you owe,” I said. “You don’t have anything saved?”
“For what?”
“Mom, the taxes…”
She waved a hand. “I thought you were going to call them.”
“There is no calling about taxes,” I said. “This is what you owe. You have to pay this.”
“Okay. So then I’ll pay it.”
“With what money?” I asked.
“I’ll get something in order,” she said. “I can ask the universe…”
She looked up and put her hands together.
I rolled my eyes.
“I’m going to need your books,” I said. “I want to go through everything