With a frustrated sound, she closed her laptop, scooted to the edge of the booth, and nudged him out of the way so she could get out. She dropped a ten-dollar bill on the table to pay for her egg sandwich and coffee, as well as a generous tip for the waitress. Then she walked toward the exit of the restaurant, uncomfortably aware that Charles still hadn’t glanced over toward her.
Fitz came with her. “At least you don’t look droopy anymore.”
She’d been headed toward her sister’s flower shop, but at that she whirled around. “I was not droopy.”
“If you say so.” Fitz had stopped too. He was about four inches taller than her, and he tilted his head down to meet her gaze. “I’m just saying that a guy who’s too stupid to be into you isn’t worth getting droopy about.”
She blinked. Heard the words he’d just said. Felt her cheeks start to warm. Her heart had already been racing from the silly argument—she always got riled up around Fitz—but now it gave a couple of little jumps. “What?”
It had sounded almost like he’d just given her a compliment.
And he’d never done that before.
“Are you having trouble hearing me? Why do you look so flabbergasted? I just said that not every guy is going to be into every girl. Nothing to be droopy about.”
This time it didn’t sound like a compliment. At all. It didn’t sound personal. It sounded more like a smug, obnoxious, generalized observation. The kind that was of no help whatsoever and that Fitz was the last person on earth to be making. She glared at him coldly as she gritted out, “I was not droopy.”
It wasn’t the most clever of comebacks, but she couldn’t think of anything to say. What the hell was wrong with her? Not just getting disappointed because Charles hadn’t noticed her but also getting disappointed that Fitz hadn’t said something sweet about her.
She must be out of her mind.
Without another word, she walked away from Fitz, and fortunately this time he didn’t follow.
WHEN SHE REACHED SECOND Chance Flower Shop, she pushed in through the front door. The store had just opened, and there wasn’t anyone sitting behind the counter. But a few seconds after Belinda entered, Skye Devereaux (soon to be Jenkins) popped her head out from the back room.
“Oh hey, Belinda. We’re all back here.”
Belinda followed Skye back.
When Belinda and Ria’s parents had died, they’d left their family flower shop to Ria since she was the only one of their two daughters interested in keeping it up. Ria had tried for a year or two to sustain the local business like her parents had, but there was simply no way to make a profit anymore. She’d been on the verge of selling out when she and her friends had gotten some attention on social media for a flower arrangement and a poem, and they’d somehow managed to rebrand a successful business from there called Second Chance Flower Shop.
Belinda still wasn’t sure how it had happened. People worked all their lives for the kind of success that Ria, Madeline, and Skye had found for the past few years. It wasn’t that they didn’t deserve it. They were all talented and hardworking and good at what they did. But any fool knew that it took more than that to find success in this world. For whatever reason, it had worked out for them, and Belinda was happy for them. She still didn’t want to be involved with the business—although she always helped with their taxes—but she had never been a jealous person, and she was so proud of her sister.
Today the three of them were sitting around in the back room. Instead of working, it looked like they were chatting and drinking coffee.
“Hey,” Ria said, smiling as Belinda entered. The sisters looked a lot alike with long dark hair, dark brown eyes, and slim, shapely figures. But Belinda had always understood that Ria was prettier. She always fixed herself up and dressed in stylish clothes. Belinda herself never had patience for that. She pulled her hair back in a low ponytail and never wore makeup. It had always seemed like more trouble than it was worth. “Is something wrong?”
“No,” Belinda replied. “Just Fitz hanging around, being annoying.”
“He’s not that bad,” Ria said.
“We’ll have to disagree on that topic.”
“It’s just because he likes you,” Skye chimed in. Her blue eyes got very big when Ria gave her a little kick. “What? He does, doesn’t he?”
Belinda rolled her eyes at the silly optimism of that remark. “No, he doesn’t. He just finds it entertaining to get on my nerves.” On this subject, she had absolutely no doubts.
“Well, you should try not to give him any ammunition. If you didn’t respond, maybe he’d give up.” Ria’s eyes were serious. She liked Fitz a lot, and she was always trying to make peace between him and her sister.
“I know that. But I can’t help it. He drives me crazy.” Belinda let out a long breath. “But you’re right. I should just try to ignore him. I’ve tried it a hundred million times already, but maybe this next time will be the winner.”
Ria laughed. “Maybe. I thought you were working at Anna’s this morning.”
“I was. But I wasn’t getting anything done, so I gave up. I’ll just go home and try from there.”
“Skye said she thought Charles was over there,” Ria said.
“He was. Or is. Or whatever. He was there when I left.”
“Were you able to talk to him?”
Belinda shook her head. “He didn’t even notice I exist. I think whatever hopes we might have in that direction are futile.”
“Well, why should they be? He hasn’t gotten to know you at all.” As always, Ria leaped immediately to her sister’s defense. “As soon as he gets to know you, he’ll be interested.”
The faith, however unfounded, made Belinda feel better. “That’s nice, but there’s no reason to assume that. If he doesn’t think I’m attractive, then he’s not going to have any reason to get to know me.” She sighed. “Guys just don’t like me that way.”
“Some of them do!” Ria insisted.
“Not any that I’ve ever been aware of.” Belinda fought against feeling droopy again, mostly because she didn’t want Fitz to be proven right. “It’s fine. It’s not a big deal. Maybe if I knew how to flirt and fix myself up, I’d have more success, but I don’t.”
“If you want, we could help you,” Madeline said. She was the quietest of Ria’s friends. An intelligent, serious blonde. “Not that you need to change in any way, but if you want to try it, we’ll be glad to help you.”
Belinda blinked a couple of times, genuinely surprised by the idea. “Really?”
“Are you interested?” Ria asked. “Of course we’ll help you. But only if you want. You’re beautiful and smart and generous and perfect exactly as you are. You don’t need to change to get a guy. You don’t.”
With a little laugh, Belinda shook her head. “That’s nice of you to say, but obviously I could use a few changes since whatever I’ve got going right now isn’t doing it for anyone.”
“So you want us to help you?” Ria confirmed.