The Faith in Flowers by Rachael Bloome

Author:Rachael Bloome
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Secret Garden Press

Without stopping to catch his breath, Reed sprinted through the garden gate.

If only he hadn’t avoided his father’s phone calls all afternoon. What if he arrived too late?

He’d never forgive himself if he didn’t intercept the package in time.

He also wouldn’t forgive his father for putting them all in this position in the first place. But Bruce Hollis had made a habit of putting his own feelings before everyone else’s.

Racing up the pathway, he searched for any sign of a special delivery, but no packages were in sight. He even checked behind the large terra-cotta pot housing the monstrous sunburst succulent and the kitschy bench made out of recycled shipping pallets.

But he found nothing.

His spirits sank. He was too late.

His only hope was that she’d brought the package inside but hadn’t opened it yet.

Without knocking, he pushed through the front door. “Mom?”

No answer.

He frantically checked each room, ending in the kitchen.

His mother sat at the dining table, a cardboard box and packing material littered around her like shrapnel.

Tears stained her cheeks and she didn’t look up when he entered, her watery gaze fixed on a small object clutched in her hands.

“Mom.” He spoke softer now, sitting beside her as his chest tightened. “Are you okay?”

“It’s our thirty-third anniversary today.” Her voice sounded hollow with grief.

“I know. Dad called. He wanted me to find this before you did.” Reed reached for whatever lay hidden in her grasp, but she tightened her hold.

“I assumed he’d forgotten he sent it. The card said, Faithfully yours.” She attempted a wry smile, but a strangled sob escaped.

“Mom, let me take that.” He leaned forward, desperate to remove the item causing her so much pain, but she wouldn’t release it.

Instead, she held it up for him to see. “It’s a carnation coral encased in resin,” she explained, sniffling as she tried not to cry. “We stumbled upon this little shop on our thirtieth anniversary trip to the coast. I fell in love with it and your father wanted to buy it for me. I told him to surprise me on our thirty-third, since coral is the traditional gift. I never thought he’d actually do it. But he must’ve placed the order that same day to ship at a later date.”

Seething with anger, Reed noted how fitting the gift had turned out to be, since the yellow carnation represented disappointment and rejection.

“I’m so sorry, Mom.” Seeing her so distraught made his chest ache. He wanted to take the trinket and smash it into a thousand minuscule pieces. But she still wouldn’t let go.

“I’m actually glad I found it.”

“Why?” He didn’t see how her finding it could be anything but a complete disaster—a disaster he could have prevented.

“Since the day your father left, I’ve been tormented over how long he’d been wanting to leave me. Had he been unhappy for decades and I just never saw it? But this…” She traced her fingertip along the smooth surface. “This means that three years ago today, less than a year before he left, he was planning on being around for our thirty-third anniversary.

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