Heartsville 05 - Bloom Box (Cate Ashwood) by Heartsville

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