Page 18 of Cheap Shot

After Sebastian was done reviewing the orders for the day, Morgan headed to the workroom to take care of a few of the simpler arrangements. She had experience as a florist, she was a hard worker, good at taking constructive criticism, and he was incredibly glad he’d found her.

At opening time, Sebastian flipped the sign on the front door fromclosedtoopen, then answered emails while he waited for his first customer of the day. It wasn’t long before the bell on the shop jingled and he looked up to see an older woman step through the door.

“Good morning! Welcome to Twig & Bloom.” he called out as cheerfully as he could manage at this hour.

She shot him a sunny smile. “Hello there, young man.”

“My name is Sebastian, how may I help you?” he asked as he stood and came around the counter.

Younger customers preferred to browse, then come to him if they needed something, but older ones really seemed toappreciate him getting up to greet them and take a more proactive approach.

“Well,” the woman said. “I’m visiting a friend who is in the hospital with a broken hip. Do you have anything cheerful I could bring her?”

“We have several bouquets made up that would qualify,” he said. “Let me show them to you and if they don’t quite suit your tastes, I’d be happy to create something custom for you.”

“Perfect!” she said with a smile. “Lead the way.”

In the end, she asked him to put together a brightly colored bouquet with orange Gerbera daisies, purple stock, magenta solidago, green dianthus, and sprigs of baby eucalyptus. It wasn’t exactly his style, but itwascheerful, and he carefully wrapped it in paper to protect it from the chilly air, tied it with a purple ribbon, then handed it over to her with a flourish.

She grinned at him, said thank you, and promised to tell all her friends about his shop.

He thanked her and held the door open to let her out, trying not to groan at the thought of increased traffic.

Did he want more customers? Of course he did. What shop owner—especially one who’d just invested a shitload of money on setting up a brand-new space—wouldn’t? Of course, he’d need to solve his staffing issues first.

After that, the morning passed quickly enough, with brisk foot traffic and a handful of orders that came in over the phone or online.

Midday, Morgan took her break, then came around front to work the counter while Joe reappeared to pick up more deliveries.

For lunch, Sebastian ate a bowl of soup and a tuna sandwich upstairs in his apartment, flushing as he took a seat on the couch and got a flashback to the strong grip of a rough hand around his cock.

Yeah, that was …notsomething he was going to think about right now.

Instead, he spent the afternoon in the back of the shop, listening to the most recentPuck Thoughtshockey podcast episode while he put together bouquets that would be delivered the following day.

He was lost in his own little world, focused on finding the perfect spot to slip the peachy-coral dahlia in the sunset-colored arrangement of roses, snapdragons, heuchera, sedum, and stock he was building, when he felt a tug on his arm.

He looked down to see Harper.

“Hey!” he said with a grin, pulling out his earbuds and glancing up from his niece to see his sister hovering in the doorway to the back room. “What are you two doing here? This is a nice surprise.”

“Mommy said we could stop by on the way home from my appointment!” Harper beamed up at him. Even with the medical mask she wore to protect herself from infections following her pacemaker procedure, he could see the way her cheeks pulled up in a smile and her eyes went all sparkly and happy.

God, she was such a trooper. So good at bouncing back from the constant appointments and tests and surgeries and procedures …

“Well, I am glad you did,” he said. “Want to sit up here?”

He patted the counter beside the vase, then moved the very sharp knife he used for trimming stems to the other side, just to be safe. Harper was careful, but …

“Please!”

He popped her up on the workbench and she leaned over, sticking her mask-covered nose in the arrangement. “This one doesn’t smell good,” she said, sounding disappointed.

“Nope,” he said. “Not even the roses.”

“They’re pretty though.”

“Yeah, this is one of my favorite bouquets,” Sebastian agreed.