Read Online Daffodils and Danger by Mary Manners - Free Book Online Page A

with stock and deliveries on your own for over a year, especially with Dad so sick…with all you went through. And, Mom, I’ve never seen anyone arrange planters more beautifully. The customers love you. Most of them return time and again because of the service you provide. Dad knew this years ago, when the nursery was only a dream and a vision. He knew, and now I do, as well.”
    “So, you’re going to quit dangling the carrot and stick around?” Reese chimed in. “Well, it’s about time.”
    Wyatt brushed the caustic words aside. “Turn to page two.”
    Reese’s words wounded, mostly because they rang true. He had been dangling the proverbial carrot, choosing to be neither completely in nor completely out of the nursery’s revival. It was time to quit riding the fence and get his hands good and dirty with the work. “Here’s a projection of our cost to income ratio, after taxes. I finished filing day before yesterday. That, in itself, was a battle I’d rather not repeat.”
    “That bad, huh?” Reese’s tone softened. “I guess I should have rolled up my sleeves and dipped into the books a little more.”
    “We’ll be tight for a while, but there’s light at the end of the tunnel. That brings me to pages three through ten—a growth plan for the nursery. It’s a rough outline, at the very best, and definitely open to suggestions. I’d like you both to take a look, share your input. I’ve forwarded the report to Maddie and Dillon, as well. I figure they’ll both be finished with their schooling and right back here in another year or so, so they should both have a say in this, as well.”
    “Oh, Wyatt…all this work.” Hattie’s voice was thready, strained. “And, Reese, my loyal soldier…” She stood, gathered them both in for a hug. “Your father would be so proud. I’m proud. God has answered my prayer. Thank you. Thank you both.”
     
    ****
     
    “Are you OK?” Kami splashed coffee into Wyatt’s mug as she grinned down at him. She hadn’t seen him in two days and realized, with a start, that she’d missed him. They’d both been busy—her with the restaurant and him crunching numbers and filing taxes. Now, with his forehead furrowed into a neat line of worry, he appeared to carry the weight of the world on his shoulders. “You look…glum.”
    “Well, there’s a fine word.” Wyatt reached for the mug, sipped. “Do you have time to sit with me for a bit?”
    “Sure. Just give me a sec.” Kami glanced around the diner, noting the bulk of the customers had dispersed. Mr. Reynolds sat tucked into a corner booth; he’d stick around until closing time in half-an-hour, nursing his coffee. And a pair of love struck teenagers shared a root beer float, enjoying a pocket of privacy. She crossed to the service counter and grabbed a coffee cup for herself, filling it to the brim before setting the carafe back onto the burner. She removed her apron and snatched two slices of chocolate cream pie from the cooler before returning to slip into the seat across from Wyatt at the booth. “Here, this might help. Chocolate always does the trick for me.” She slid one slice his way, kept the second for herself.
    “Thanks.” Wyatt reached for a fork, stabbed off a generous bite. “It looks delicious.”
    “It’s definitely worth the calories, though I doubt you lose sleep over that.”
    “Can’t say I do.”
    “Lucky you.” She tucked a bite of pie into her mouth, chewed and swallowed. The light of a full moon flooded the windows, spilling over Wyatt’s dark hair and softening his rugged features. Stubble lined his jaw, and his eyes held a look that could only be called troubled with a touch of wild dancing around the edges. “Rough day at the office?”
    “You could say that.”
    “Anything I can do to help?”
    “You are. This is.” He motioned to the pie, to her. “You just taking the time to sit here with me means a lot.”
    “I’ll always make time to sit with you, Wyatt. I