Heartsville 05 - Bloom Box (Cate Ashwood)

Bloom Box

Cate Ashwood

If there’s one thing William Sullivan knows less about than how to run a business, it’s flowers. When Will is left carrying responsibility for the flower shop he’d leased for his cheating ex-boyfriend, he is sure it will lead him into financial ruin.

Just when he’s about to abandon all hope, in walks Milo Hart—young, overflowing with energy, and perhaps best of all, a genius when it comes to flowers. Will hires him on the spot and they begin a working partnership that might be Will’s only saving grace. The more time they spend together, the more Will’s feelings for Milo evolve and Will must choose between keeping things strictly business, or taking a chance to let love bloom.

Bloom Box

Published by Cate Ashwood

© 2015, Cate Ashwood

Cover Design © 2015 Natasha Snow

http://natashasnow.com

Edited by Erika Orrick & Sandra Depukat at One Love Editing

http://www.erikaeditsbooks.com/

http://oneloveediting.com/

This is a work of fiction. Characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental and beyond the intent of the author.

All rights reserved worldwide. The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without the written permission of the author, except where permitted by law. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Help support authors by purchasing only authorized copies.

Content warning: Contains graphic language and sexual content. Not intended for anyone under the age of eighteen.

Thank you to Piper Vaughn, Nico Jaye, Jayden Brooks, and J.H. Knight for inviting me into the gayborhood. This was such an amazing experience, and so much fun.

Thank you to Erika and Sandra for cleaning up all my messes, and an additional thank you to Sandra for keeping me on track (and in line) and for generally listening to me whine and complain mid-write. I owe you much cheesecake.

Welcome to the gayborhood! In the cozy town of Heartsville, the streets are lined with trees, the shops are full of friendly faces, and happily ever after is just around the corner. Come get to know the boys next door—naughty, nice, and everything in between.

Chapter One

Your boyfriend cheats because I fuck him like this.

The video remained unwatched on Will’s phone. It had been two months since the clip and accompanying message came through, but he hadn’t worked up the balls to face what was sure to be a full-color, high-def audiovisual of the immediate dissolution of his longest, most serious relationship.

The grand opening of the shop was set for the first of August, less than a month away, and the walls were still bare. The ink had barely dried on the lease before
the text
had come through and the shit hit the proverbial relationship fan. There he was, two months out of a years-long failure of a relationship that ended with his boyfriend running off with a guy named Denim—seriously, who the fuck named their kid Denim?

Will stood in the center of the room and spun around slowly, taking in each boringly gray inch of space. There was no furniture, no displays or fancy lighting. Just gray drywall and bare lightbulbs that hung from exposed electrical wires. The store had no signage yet, and the large windows along the front allowed passersby an unobstructed view of Will’s humiliation.

The back room was stacked with boxes. Piles of boxes that contained floral supplies purchased from a company that had been liquidating everything for cheap. When Spencer had told him, Will couldn’t believe their good fortune. Now they sat there, still sealed and mocking him.

He was so fucked. The only thing he knew less about than renovations or how to run a business was flowers.

The sound of the door opening and the squeak of wet shoes on the laminate flooring pulled Will from his thoughts. He turned to see a guy walk in, his shoulders darkened from the rain. Water dripped from his brown hair, sliding in droplets down the curve of his neck before being wicked into the fabric of his T-shirt. He looked a little soggy around the edges, but he wore a broad smile that made the room feel brighter somehow. Will’s stomach flipped as his eyes met the deep green ones looking back at him.

“Can I help you?” Will asked.

“Yeah, uh, I was just wondering if you happened to be hiring?” He looked around the shop, his tone becoming woefully uncertain as he no doubt noticed the lack of… well… anything on the shelves. Will was surprised he was still there. Most people would have made some excuse and ducked out. “I guess you’re not, though?”

“To be honest, I’m not sure. I sort of… inherited the business, and I’m trying to figure out what to do with it. I hadn’t thought about employees.”

The kid stepped forward and handed Will a soggy sheet of paper.

“Just in case, here’s my résumé and a list of references. I know there’s not much on there, and I don’t even really know what kind of business this is, but I’m a hard worker, and a fast learner, and I’m good with my hands. I know my way around a computer, and I have good references. I can get you more if you need them… as many as you want… although some will have to be personal references… I mean, it’s not that I don’t have professional ones, just I don’t have many on account of me being in school…. Anyways, give me a call if you’re looking to hire someone. I’m between semesters at the moment. Havenston U.”

The kid was obviously nervous. Will had been there. He remembered what it was like, pounding the pavement with a folder full of résumés, right out of college and no idea yet how the world really worked outside the safe walls of his alma mater.

As he turned to walk away, Will glanced down at what he’d been handed. The ink was smudged from the rain and the edges were tattered, but he could read it.

Milo Hart.

He did a quick scan over the list of previous employers and saw that Milo had worked at a nursery. A rush of hope washed over him. He looked back up to see Milo reaching for the door handle.

“Wait,” Will said before he could think about it. “Do you know anything about flowers?”

Milo turned back toward him, a slow smile spreading across his face. “Yeah, tons.”

“I can’t pay you much, at least not at first,” Will said finally.

“I’m okay with that,” Milo replied.

“When can you start?”

Milo stared at him, mouth slightly agape. “Seriously? Just like that?”

“I need all the help I can get.”

“Wow, thanks… uh….”

“Will.”

Milo reached out to shake. His hand was strong and warm, and Will couldn’t help the twinge of something he felt as their palms slid together.

“Thank you, Will,” Milo said, the sincerity heavy in his words.

Will let his hand drop to his side as the awkwardness set in. It was a spur of the moment decision, and he’d never hired anyone before. He’d ever expected to hire anyone. He knew nothing about having an employee or what the protocol was for starting a new job. Sure, he’d been on the other end of the transaction, but he desperately wanted not to sound like an idiot. His back was against the wall, though.

“Do you have a few minutes?” Will asked.

“Definitely.”

“Okay. You don’t have a jacket,” Will noted. “Why don’t you wait here, I’ll go grab us a couple of coffees, and we can iron out the details? If everything sounds all right to you, I’d like you to start as soon as possible.”

“Tomorrow?”

Will grinned. “Tomorrow’s perfect.”

“Morning, Simon,” Will said as he walked into the coffee shop down the block. He’d become quite the regular since acquiring Bloom Box—coffee being the one staple in his diet that kept him sane.

“Morning,” Simon replied.

“Is Aaron in today?”

“Nah, he’s out running errands.”

“Too bad. Tell him I say hi,” Will said. “Could I get a couple of lattes to go, please?”

Simon’s eyebrows lifted. “Two?”

“Yes, please.” Will didn’t elaborate, but he could feel his cheeks heat. It was stupid. There was nothing remotely untoward about sharing a cup of coffee with his new potential employee. Strictly business, but there was a strange tingling in his belly at the thought. He pushed it aside and concentrated on keeping his expression neutral.

“You got it,” Simon said, turning to make Will’s drinks.

When he was finished, Simon rang up his total, Will paid, then thanked Simon before walking the short distance back to the shop.

Over the next hour, Will and Milo sipped lattes and discussed the details of Milo’s employment. By the time Milo left, Will was feeling lighter than he had in weeks. It seemed as though by magic or miracle, Milo had shown up at precisely the right time, and even more wondrous was the fact that their needs seemed to dovetail perfectly.

Will locked the door behind Milo as he left, the sky dark with clouds, even with weeks of summer left. Checking to make sure everything was secure, Will walked back through the shop and through the door to the back. He ignored the mounds of boxes stacked along each side of the room, the encumbrance they represented weighing a little less heavily on his shoulders.

He reached the second-floor landing and stepped through the door into a space that was never meant to function as an apartment but had become his home since the split. He’d sold the house he’d bought to be his home with Spencer the same week he’d learned of Spencer’s indiscretions. This was smaller, more cramped, but easier too. There were fewer memories here, and in the two months since Spencer left, Will was grateful for that. There’d been no holidays or birthdays here, no celebrations or quiet intimate moments. It was just four walls and a ceiling, above a shop that had been meant to be his gift to his partner.

Chapter Two

The morning found Will feeling brighter than he had in a long time. Knowing Milo would be there soon gave Will the push he needed to sit up and throw the covers back. He showered, then dressed, and before long he was downstairs staring at the piles of boxes, just as he’d done since the day they’d been delivered.

A sharp knock pulled Will’s attention away, and he crossed the small shop to unlock and open the door for Milo, who was standing there holding two cups and wearing a goofy smile on his face.

“You forgot your jacket again,” Will said.

“It’s summer.”

“It’s supposed to rain,” Will cringed at the thought he must sound like Milo’s mother. He was keenly aware of the age gap between them. Milo couldn’t be older than twenty or twenty-one, and Will was staring down his late thirties.