Blossom Street Bundle

“Next Tuesday?” Looking pensive, Theresa bit her bottom lip. “I think so. Can I get back to you to confirm?”

“Of course. The thing is, I’m a Lunch Buddy for this little girl named Ellen and…well, she’s going to be in a school production and the counselor seemed to think it would help if I could be there.” She didn’t know why she was rattling on about this when it really wasn’t Theresa’s problem.

“I’m sure it’ll be fine but I’ll need to check with Jeff first.”

“Thanks, and if it doesn’t work out, don’t worry. I’ll try Cathy or Steve.”

Anne Marie went upstairs to her apartment. Baxter, who was asleep in his small bed, didn’t so much as stir. Apparently the excursion to the school had tired him out. “Some watchdog you are, Mr. Baxter,” she muttered.

Her plan for the afternoon was to work on her list of wishes. Since her dinner with Melissa, Anne Marie hadn’t really given it much thought.

1. Buy red cowboy boots

2. Learn to knit

3. Volunteer—become a Lunch Buddy

4. Take French lessons

Then, because it seemed so unlikely and yet necessary, she added the first wish, the one she’d crossed out earlier.

5. Find one good thing about life

She took out the binder she’d purchased and assembled the scrap-booking supplies and the few pictures she’d already cut out. Red cowboy boots from a catalog. A hand-knit sweater from a magazine. A photo of the Eiffel Tower. She’d need to get a picture of Ellen and… Suddenly it seemed pointless to go on, in light of what she’d discovered about Robert and her own pitiful life.

Rather than allow herself to sink into further depression, she reached for her phone and called Lillie. They arranged to meet for dinner at a Thai place they both liked.

That evening Lillie arrived at the restaurant before Anne Marie did and had already secured a table. “I’m so glad you phoned,” Lillie said, kissing her cheek. “I’ve got lots to tell you.”

“I can’t wait to hear.”

“It’s that list.”

“The Twenty Wishes?” Earlier, just reading her list had depressed her. She’d been convinced she’d never feel like dreaming again, not when she’d obviously been so wrong about her entire life.

“That list’s given me a whole new burst of energy,” Lillie said. “I’ve told my friends about it and now they’re all writing their own lists.”

“Really?”

“Lists are big these days. Who would’ve believed it?” Lillie’s eyes twinkled with merriment. “I’ve been adding to mine nearly every day, thinking about all the things I want to do. Things I haven’t considered in years. It all started when I bought that red convertible.”

“Speaking of which…”

Lillie waved the question aside even before Anne Marie could ask it. “Just a minor glitch and that nice man from the service department is taking care of everything.”

“You mean to say you’re still driving a loaner?”

“Yes, but it doesn’t matter. Everything’s under control and I haven’t been inconvenienced in the least.”

“You shouldn’t be inconvenienced. You bought their car!”

Lillie studied her menu. “I’m starved. How about you?”

Anne Marie needed to think about it, then realized she actually was hungry. “I am, too.”

“Great. The way I feel right now, I’m tempted to order everything on the menu. Let’s begin with the assorted appetizers, and then a green mango salad.…”

“And pad thai. I love their pad thai,” Anne Marie said, entering into the spirit of the evening.

Between the perfectly spiced food and Lillie’s invigorating company, dinner was a welcome reprieve from the low-grade depression that had been hanging over Anne Marie. Back in her apartment a few hours later, she came across the binder and the scrapbooking supplies spread out on the kitchen table.

She sat down again and read over her list. Maybe her wishes weren’t so impossible, after all.

Chapter 8

Lillie Higgins paid extra-close attention to her makeup Friday morning, chastising herself as she did. Anyone who even suspected that she was preening and primping for the service department manager at a car dealership would be aghast.

Lillie had nothing to say in her defense. She just found Hector Silva appealing; he was kind and generous and unfailingly polite. He seemed so natural, while the men who usually set out to charm her came across as self-conscious, trying too hard to impress. Not Hector Silva. His work ethic, his dignity and decency… She couldn’t praise him enough.

They’d exchanged two brief conversations, and after each one Lillie had walked away feeling good. More than good, elated. She liked him—it was that simple—and she enjoyed talking to him. Both times she’d wished the conversations could’ve been longer.

Now that her car was repaired to Hector’s satisfaction, she didn’t have an excuse to chat with him anymore. So she’d decided to make the most of today’s encounter, which would likely be their last.

Lillie arrived at the dealership with the loaner at the precise time Hector had indicated. She wore a pink linen pantsuit with a silk floral scarf tied around her head. She’d struggled with that, not wanting to look like a babushka or some latter-day hippie, and she’d finally managed to arrange it in an attractive style. Desiree, the temperamental French hairdresser she and Jacqueline Donovan shared, had insisted that if Lillie was determined to drive a convertible, she take measures to protect her hair.

When Lillie pulled into the parking space outside the service area, Hector immediately stepped outside as if he’d been standing by the door, waiting for her.

“Good morning, Ms. Higgins,” he said with the slightest bow.

“Good morning, Mr. Silva.”

“Please call me Hector.”

“Only if you’ll call me Lillie. After everything we’ve been through with this car, I believe we’ve become friends, don’t you? And friends call each other by their first names.” Referring to him as a friend might be presumptuous, but she couldn’t seem to stop herself.

He grinned, and his dark eyes glinted with pleasure. “I feel the same way.” After the briefest of hesitations, he added, “Lillie.” She loved how he said her name, placing equal emphasis on each syllable. She’d never heard anyone draw it out like that. He made it sound…sensuous. Completely unlike the blunt “Lil” her husband used to call her.

“Your vehicle is ready.” He gestured toward the red convertible parked near the service area.

“Did you ever find out what the problem was?” she asked, although in truth she didn’t really care.

“As far as I can tell, the hydraulic hose had an air bubble in it. I worked on it myself and I had my best mechanic check it, too. He assures me the problem has been fixed. You shouldn’t have any steering troubles from now on.”

“Then I’m sure I won’t.” Instinctively, she felt certain that Hector’s pledge was the only guarantee she needed.

“I’ve taken it out for a test drive and in my estimation it runs beautifully. However, if you’d like, the two of us could go for a short ride.”

Lillie knew this was above and beyond anything that was necessary. Nevertheless she nearly squeaked with joyful anticipation. Oh, she was behaving badly, wasn’t she? And she intended to go on doing it.

“I’d appreciate that very much,” she told him earnestly. “But only if it won’t keep you from your duties.”

“You are our customer, Lillie, and it is the goal of the dealership to exceed your expectations.”

“Oh.” His dedication to duty dispelled the notion that he was doing this for her and her alone. In fact, he seemed to be quoting from a policy manual. That gave her pause. Perhaps what she felt toward him was imaginary, something she’d dreamed up—but she knew it wasn’t. The real question was whether Hector reciprocated her feelings.

Hector held open the driver’s door for her.

Lillie slipped behind the wheel as he walked around the vehicle and joined her in the passenger seat. “You’re sure you have time for this?” she asked again.

“Yes, Lillie, I’m very sure.” He encouraged her with a smile.

She turned the key and the engine instantly surged to life. “Is there any specific place you’d like me to drive?” she asked, hoping he’d suggest a route.

“Green River in the Kent Valley should be a good test.”

That was where the vehicle had broken down the first time. It was also twenty minutes away. This was more than a short test drive, she thought excitedly. More than business.

Still, they didn’t exchange a single word as she drove down the freeway. It wasn’t until they neared the river that Hector spoke.

“The car is in perfect running condition,” he told her in a solemn tone.

“You can tell just by the sound?”

“Oh, yes. My wife, when she was alive, used to tease me. She said I could read cars better than I could people, and she was right.”

“You’re a widower?” Lillie had noticed that Hector wasn’t wearing a wedding band, but she’d assumed it was because of his work.

“Yes, almost ten years now.”

“I’m sorry.” Lillie knew the pain of losing a life partner, even when the marriage wasn’t ideal.

“Angelina was a good woman and a good wife,” Hector said. “And a devoted mother. We have three beautiful children.”

“My husband died in a plane crash three years ago.”

“I’m sorry for your loss.”

Lillie focused her attention on the road, although their conversation was of far greater interest. She might be seeing more here than was warranted but she sensed that Hector wanted her to know he was a widower. She wanted him to realize she was unattached, too.

“How old are your children?” she asked, not reacting to his sympathy, which made her a little uncomfortable. David had been an excellent provider and an adequate husband, but he’d had his weakness. Unfortunately that weakness involved other women.

For years Lillie had turned a blind eye to David’s wanderings. It was easier to pretend than to confront the ugly truth of her husband’s infidelities. During the last ten years of their marriage, there had been no real intimacy between them. Lillie had swallowed her pride and pretended not to know about her husband’s affairs—as long as he remained discreet.

“My children are all grown now,” Hector said. “They have graduated from college and taken advanced training in the fields of their choice. Manuel is an attorney. Luis is a physician and my daughter, Rita, is a teacher.” His pride in his family was evident.

“My goodness, all three of your children are accomplished professionals.”

“Their mother and I believed in higher education.” Hector looked at her as she slowed the car’s speed to take a sharp curve. “You have children?”

“A daughter. Her husband was with mine in the plane crash.”

“He died, as well?”

“Unfortunately, yes.”

Hector’s eyes grew dark with compassion. “In one day your daughter lost both her husband and her father.”

“Yes.” It had been a horrific day and not one Lillie wanted to think about. David and Gary had been flying home from a business trip. The pilot and co-pilot had died, too.

The FAA had investigated, and after a thorough exploration of the facts had determined the cause of the accident—sudden, catastrophic engine failure. But that knowledge didn’t take away the shock and the grief.

“Your daughter has a family?”

“Two sons.”

“You are a grandmother, then?”

The boys were the very joy of her life. “I have twin grandsons, Eric and Kurt. They’re in their first year of college.”

“No.” Hector wore an astounded expression. “It isn’t possible you have grandchildren of that age.”

“Both my daughter and I married young.” Although she wasn’t in the habit of divulging her age, she felt she could with Hector. “I’m sixty-three.”

Again his eyes widened. “I would have said you were closer to your mid-forties.”

With another man, Lillie might have expected such flattery. But Hector was what David would’ve called a straight shooter. He didn’t give compliments for any reason other than that he meant them.

“I’m sixty-four,” Hector admitted. “I will be retiring in a few months.”

“How long have you been with the dealership?”

“Thirty-four years.”

“With the same dealership?” That was practically unheard of these days.

“I started as a maintenance man and attended night school to become a mechanic. When I had my certificate, the service manager at the time offered me a job. I worked hard and within ten years I was the chief mechanic.”

“When did you take over as manager?”

Hector didn’t need to think about the answer. “Almost twelve years ago. I would have retired sooner, only the expenses of college made that impossible.” He grimaced comically. “Private colleges.”

“All of your children were in college at the same time?”

“Yes. Thankfully, each one received financial assistance through scholarships and grants. But I have to tell you the costs were staggering.”

Lillie knew that from what Barbie had told her about Eric and Kurt’s tuition costs and the other expenses associated with getting them started in school. Even now, Lillie could hardly believe it. She was impressed that Hector had managed to put three children through school on what he earned as a service manager. He no doubt made good money, but still…

“Your daughter attended college?” he asked.

Lillie shook her head. “Barbie married young, just as I did. Both David and I were disappointed but ultimately we approved of the marriage. She knew her own mind, and I will say she and Gary were very happy.”

“That’s how it is with love sometimes, isn’t it?” he said, glancing in her direction. “Sometimes the heart really does know what’s best.”

Her own heart was speaking loud and clear at that very moment.

They’d been gone for more than an hour, and it was time to return to the dealership. Both grew quiet. Minutes earlier, their conversation had been animated; now, reality set in and there didn’t seem to be anything else to say.

When Lillie pulled into the dealership’s parking lot, she experienced a pang of regret. This was it; the ride—and her relationship with Hector—was over. There was no further reason to see him. It wasn’t as though they’d ever encounter each other in the normal course of their lives.

He told her where to park, pointing at an empty slot.

“Thank you, Hector, for everything you’ve done,” she said, forcing a smile.

“My pleasure.”

They sat in the car, and he seemed as reluctant to move as she was.

“I should get back to work,” Hector finally said.

“Yes, of course.”

His hand was on the door handle. “It isn’t every day I get to ride with such a beautiful woman,” he said with quiet gallantry. He climbed out and gently closed the door. His eyes avoided hers. “Goodbye, Lillie.”

“Goodbye, Hector.”

He was a service manager for a car dealership and she was a wealthy widow. She accepted that their paths would likely never cross again. Despite that, she could do him one good turn. When she got home, Lillie phoned the dealership, leaving a message for the owner, Steve Sullivan. She praised Hector’s efforts on her behalf and stressed to Steve that he had an outstanding employee.

That way, at least, she could play a small, if benevolent, role in Hector’s life.

It wasn’t enough but it would have to do.

Chapter 9

Monday evening, Barbie showed up at the theater a little later than she had the previous week. Tessa Bassett was selling tickets again, and when she saw Barbie, her face lit up.

“Should I recommend another movie?” the girl asked cheerfully.

“Please do.” The ill-tempered Mark Bassett was the sole reason Barbie had come back. In the last week she’d spent a lot of time thinking about him. She felt strangely invigorated by the challenge he offered, but it was more than that. She was attracted to him, not only because of his looks but because she saw in him the same loneliness she’d experienced since her husband’s death. Once she made it past the barrier he’d erected against the world, perhaps they could be friends. Perhaps even more. The fact that he was physically disabled didn’t bother her, nor did she find it especially daunting. She knew it didn’t define or describe the person inside, any more than her appearance did.

Tessa mentioned a movie Barbie had never heard of and handed her the ticket, as well as her change.

“You’re sure this is a good movie?” Barbie asked.

Tessa’s eyes held hers. “It’s the perfect movie.”

Barbie was willing to take the girl’s word for it. In the theater lobby, she once again purchased a small bag of popcorn and a cold soda, then walked into the dimly lit theater.

She saw that Mark was already in one of the wheelchair spaces. Tessa had been right; this was the perfect movie.

Without hesitation, Barbie moved around the back and entered the row from the opposite direction. She sat down, leaving one empty seat between her and Mark.

The instant she did, he turned to glare at her. “This space is reserved for wheelchair seating.”

“Yes, I know,” she said as she crossed her legs. She started to eat her popcorn as if she didn’t have a care in the world. Feeling both silly and daring, she tossed a kernel in the air and caught it in her mouth. Proud of herself, she grinned triumphantly at Mark.

Clearly he wasn’t impressed with her dexterity. “Would you kindly move?”

His voice was even less friendly than it had been the last time.

“I have every right to sit here should I choose to do so,” she returned formally. She held out her bag of popcorn. “Here,” she said.

He frowned. “I beg your pardon?”

“I’m offering you some of my popcorn.”

“What makes you think I want your popcorn?”

“You’re cranky. My boys get cranky when they’re hungry, so I figured that might be your problem.”

He looked pointedly away.

“If you’re not interested, the proper response is no, thank you.”

He ignored that, and Barbie munched her popcorn, swaying her leg back and forth.

“Stop that.”

“What?”

“Swinging your leg like a pendulum.”

She crossed the opposite leg and swung it, instead.

Mark groaned.

The theater darkened, and the previews appeared on the screen. Barbie finished the small bag of popcorn. Her hands were greasy, but in her rush to get into the theater she’d forgotten to pick up a napkin. She’d also forgotten to replace the tissues she kept in her purse. She stood up to go back to the lobby. Rather than march all the way down the row, she leaned over to nudge Mark.

“Excuse me.”

“You’re leaving?” He actually seemed pleased.

“No, I need a napkin. Can I get you anything while I’m up?”

“No,” he muttered.

She sighed audibly. “Are you always this rude or is it just me you don’t like?”

“It’s you.”

She refused to feel insulted; instead she interpreted his response as an admission that he was aware of her. Aware and interested.

“You act as if that pleases you,” he said, sounding surprised.

“Well, it doesn’t hurt my feelings if that was your intent. Now, can I get by? Please?”

With exaggerated effort, he rolled back his wheelchair, allowing her to exit the row.

Barbie pushed the sleeve of her soft cashmere sweater up her arm and hung her purse over her shoulder. “Don’t get too comfortable,” she told him. “I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

“Don’t hurry on my account.”

“I won’t.”

When she entered the lobby again, she saw that Tessa was working behind the concession stand. The girl looked curiously in her direction and Barbie nodded. She grabbed some napkins to wipe her hands, then walked over to wait her turn. She made an impulsive purchase, smiling as she did.

“How’s it going?” Tessa asked, handing her the change.

“He wants me to leave.”

Tessa seemed worried. “You’re not going to, are you?”

Barbie shook her head. “Not on your life.”

Tessa nearly rubbed her hands together with glee. “This is so cool.”

“What is?”

The teenager shrugged. “Well, you know. You and my uncle Mark. He needs someone in his life. He doesn’t think so, but… well, it’d just be so cool if that someone was you.”

“Don’t get your hopes up, Tessa.” Barbie felt obliged to warn her. “I’d better get back. The movie’s about to start.”

“Don’t let him give you any crap,” the girl advised. “Oops, I mean attitude.”

Barbie grinned and gave her a thumbs-up.

Attitude was the right word, she mused as she made her way into the theater. It wasn’t hard to figure out that his surliness was an attempt to protect himself from pain and rejection. If there was one thing she knew about, it was dealing with the insecurities of the adolescent male. And if she had her guess, he’d reverted to that kind of negative behavior after his accident. Beneath all the hostility, he was as lonely and lost as she was.

The film was just beginning as she reached their row. She stood in the aisle, waiting for him to roll his chair back.

“Excuse me,” she said when he pretended not to notice. “I’d like to sit down.”

“Must you?” he asked sarcastically.

“Yes, I must.” Taking the initiative, she raised her leg and attempted to climb over his lap. He got the message fast enough when she presented him with an excellent view of her rear. He shot back with enough force to bolt into the empty space two rows back.

Barbie reclaimed her seat, then tossed him a chocolate bar. “Oh, here,” she said. “I thought this might sweeten your disposition.”

He tossed it back. “My disposition is as good as it gets. Chocolate isn’t going to change it.”

“Fine. I’ll eat it then.”

From that point on, she ignored him and he ignored her.

The movie, another romantic comedy, was delightful and Barbie quickly got involved in the plot. She and Mark didn’t exchange a word until the credits were rolling and the lights came back on.

“That was really good,” she said to no one in particular.

“It was sappy,” Mark muttered.

“Naturally you’d say that,” she protested. “Don’t you believe in the power of love?”

“No.”

So why had he chosen this movie? “Well, I happen to believe in it,” she told him.

“Good for you.” He wheeled back and started out of the theater, with Barbie keeping pace five steps behind him. Tessa, still at the concession stand, glanced at her eagerly. She gave the teenager another thumbs-up, and the girl returned a huge grin.

Just outside the complex, he unexpectedly wheeled around and confronted her. “Are you going to make a habit of this?” he demanded. The corners of his mouth curled scornfully.

“Of what?” she asked, playing dumb.

“Monday night at the movies. The only reason you’re here is to irritate me.”

“I didn’t realize I had to pay money to do that. Couldn’t I just sit out here and do it for free?”

He pinched his lips tightly closed.

“I enjoy the movies and Monday’s a good night for me.”

“Come another night,” he said.

“I don’t want to.”

Frustration showed in his face. “Why are you doing this?”

“Doing what?” she asked, again feigning innocence. “You mean coming to the movies two weeks in a row on a Monday night?”

“Yes.”

“Well, like I said, Monday evenings are good for me and movies are my favorite form of entertainment.”

One look told her he didn’t believe a word of it. “Then how come you picked the same movies I did?”

She tried to pretend she was bored with the subject. “If memory serves me, I was seated first last week. You’re the one who invaded my space.”

He frowned as if he’d forgotten that. “Maybe so, but this week was no accident.”