When Love Blooms

By Kathy Bosman

While posing as a celebrity bridesmaid at a client’s wedding, Collette meets Jonah, an attractive and interesting man who turns out to be the competition—the new wedding florist in town. But Jonah is hard to ignore as he helps her pack up the flowers when her employee disappears on the job. She has a yearning to start a flower farm in the country where she grew up and asks Jonah to take over her staff and office.

Jonah doesn’t want Collette to move to the country despite the opportunity to expand his business. He’s deeply attracted to her and after kissing her, believes he may have found the woman of his dreams. How will he keep the flame alive long-distance, and even more so if she just wants a friendship?

On top of that, family secrets, lies, and betrayal push an even deeper wedge between their budding romance.

Is this relationship meant to be, or is it doomed to fail before it’s even started?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Kathy Bosman
• Release date: Feb 11, 2022
• ISBN: 9781005720087

Kathy Bosman

Kathy lives in South Africa, where the summers are hot, the winters cool, and bugs thrive. She writes fiction in many forms, most of the time with women who feel deeply, men who care strongly, and characters who learn lessons along the way. Every so often, she sprinkles a little magic in her stories. When she’s not hectically busy, she loves reading, going dancing, watching movies, water painting, and exploring the spiritual world.If you’re inclined to keep up with Kathy’s book news, you can follow her on her website: http://www.kathybosman.com or subscribe to her newsletter: http://eepurl.com/NokET

Book preview

Collette has her dream job as a wedding florist. Or so she thought—until business starts to go down and restlessness kicks in, making her consider reality under a new lens. While posing as a celebrity bridesmaid at a client’s wedding, she meets Jonah, an attractive and interesting man who turns out to be the competition—the new wedding florist in town. But Jonah is hard to ignore as he helps her pack up the flowers when her employee disappears on the job. On the cusp of a new beginning, maybe the answer is to follow her heart and start a flower farm in the country where she grew up and get Jonah to take over her staff and office.

Jonah doesn’t want Collette to move to the country despite the opportunity to expand his business. He’s deeply attracted to her and after kissing her, believes he may have found the relationship of his dreams. How will he keep the flame alive long-distance, and even more so if she just wants a friendship?

On top of that, family secrets, lies, and betrayal push an even deeper wedge between their budding romance.

Is this relationship meant to be, or is it doomed to fail before it’s even started?

When Love Blooms

A Contemporary Romance

By Kathy Bosman

Edited by Zee Monodee

This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters, and events are fictitious in every regard. Any similarities to actual events and persons, living or dead, are purely coincidental. Any trademarks, service marks, product names, or named features are assumed to be the property of their respective owners, and are used only for reference. There is no implied endorsement if any of these terms are used. Except for review purposes, the reproduction of this story in whole or part, electronically or mechanically, constitutes a copyright violation.

WHEN LOVE BLOOMS

Copyright © 2022 KATHY BOSMAN

Acknowledgments and Note to Readers

Maybe it’s getting old, but it has to be said: I couldn’t have done this without my tireless, meticulously thorough editor, Zee Monodee. She takes a messy, rough piece of coal and polishes into a diamond. As an editor myself, I know how much tenacity, patience, and hard work it takes, and she went above and beyond for this book. She is my mentor and my role model.

Well, talking about diamonds, I sincerely hope that you enjoy this book as much as having a sparkling jewel on your finger.

I wanted to tell Collette’s story because being out in nature, tending my little garden at home, healed me deeply during a difficult time in my life. So, I sent my heroine into the country to face her demons there with the help of the flowers. I’d love to acknowledge Mother Earth and her beautiful bounty for inspiring this story and the story that comes after this one. I couldn’t resist writing a second book, so keep your eyes peeled for the next book.

Chapter One

Collette

I need your help. Rachel, Collette’s wedding planner friend, grasped her by the hands. You’re my only hope!

Collette Bremenger laughed, but the serious look on Rachel’s face made her heart squeeze. She’d suffered enough grief in her life to know when something not-so-good was up with those she cared about. And she hated the achy, empty sensation in her gut when she thought of her losses from the past. Best to forget that.

We have two hours before the bridal party arrives. Rachel’s eyes were wild, and sweat beaded her brow.

Don’t I know! We still have several floral arrangements to prepare. She tried to spot Wesley and Shani—see if her two loyal staff were getting the job done quickly enough. Wesley dashed past her with a bunch of baby’s breath.

How’s it going? she shouted above the noise of wedding organizers, but Wesley didn’t hear her and rushed on, a determined look on his face. She appreciated him so much. If only she could guarantee him a future at Creations in Flora—

The bridesmaid didn’t make it.

Sorry. She looked back at Rachel whose jaw tensed, her eyes now pinpricks of desperation. What do you mean?

The one bridesmaid ended up with a terrible tummy bug and canceled her travels from out of town. She’s not going to make it to the wedding.

I’m assuming the bride knows.

Rachel ran trembling hands through her hair. She knows, but she’s frantic. She also believes the whole procession isn’t going to work without an even number of bridesmaids. You know how much we worked on blending the different purple-shaded dresses just right. Without the raisin gown, the bridal march will look wrong. Plus the groomsman won’t have a partner.

How can I help? All the flowers have been used up. We can’t make— I can’t order—

You need to pose as the bridesmaid. Rachel begged her with her eyes, fluttering her eyelashes.

Collette blinked. She was back on the high school softball team with the ball hitting her unexpectedly from the left, knocking her off her focus and messing up the rest of the game. What? I have to finish the arrangements. I don’t even look—

In fact, yes, you resemble her enough. It’s uncanny, actually. When Debbie told me her bridesmaid wasn’t coming, I searched frantically around for someone, anyone who may look like her, because I thought that’s the only solution. And then my gaze rested on you, poring over that arrangement by the altar. Your ashy-brown hair, your shortness, yet your long legs. Everything about you—except, I think she’s a bit thinner, but the dresses haven’t had the final adjustment yet. I don’t know why you weren’t the first person to cross my mind. When I saw the pics of the bridesmaid, I thought she could pass for your twin.

Collette squirmed and tried to find Wesley or Shani, hoping Rachel would give it up and move on. She hated last-minute changes. She loved everything in order, in sequence. That was how she ran her business. That was how her personal life worked. She was a perfectionist through and through, the very thing that had made her a success. Well, up until about three months ago, since Flowers by Jonah came into town. Who bought flowers from someone called Jonah?

I don’t think so. I’ve never been a bridesmaid before. I wouldn’t know—

You’ve watched plenty of weddings. Surely, you know the drill. You’re my best friend, Colly, please.

Stop using our friendship as a guilting mechanism. It doesn’t work. She rolled her eyes at Rachel.

But it did work. She knew she couldn’t let her friend down. They’d helped each other out for years in the business—recommending each other’s services to brides many times; in fact, all the time. Their loyalty was sometimes ridiculous even when aware the bride was looking for a different style to what their friend’s business offered.

I don’t know how this is going to work otherwise. The seating arrangements. The first dance. The procession up the aisle. The photos…

The fear in Rachel’s eyes pinched her heart. There was no way she’d let her friend down and mess up her dream career. She’d just have to face her fear of being on the receiving end of stares from strangers.

She took her friend’s hand and squeezed. Okay, I can see your career is on the line here. You owe me one for this. And I don’t mean a referral. I mean something big, like a new car or a new house or something.

Rachel kissed her on the cheek. I’ll give you my kidney.

Yeah, right, she mumbled.

Rachel took a paper out of her pocket. This is the address of the bride’s mother, where all the bridesmaids are being prepped. You need to get there, like yesterday, to get done up.

Collette scowled and grunted to disguise the anxiety sweeping through her abdomen. She hated being the center of attention. Now, she’d have to walk down the aisle in about two hours. So much for hiding behind her floral arrangements. And she’d be part of a group of tight-knit strangers to her, a spare part in someone’s special day. How awkward.

She ran to Wesley and told him about the new development. I’m putting you in charge. Here are the keys to my car. You need to take the arrangements and Shani to the wedding. She handed him the keys, relieved that he had run errands in her car before and hadn’t caused any accidents.

He just gave an easy smile as though he’d been waiting for this day for years.

Thank you. She gave him a quick hug in gratitude for his calm.

He pushed her away playfully and got back to his arrangement. I’ll be good. You go. He gestured to her with a chin wag.

She nodded and slipped out of the big building, her heart pounding wildly in her chest. She arranged for an Uber. It arrived within five minutes, and the driver set off to the address she gave him. Now to meet the bridal party.

What would she say to them? Oh, hi, I’m the last-minute substitute bridesmaid. Would all the guests know she wasn’t the real deal? Was she supposed to pretend to be the real deal? The paper said she was standing in for a woman called Andy Westner. Dreamy-sounding. Maybe Andy was an exotic dancer or singer with men fawning at her feet. Unlikely, if she is my twin. Not that she was terrible-looking, but she’d never been one to turn heads.

The drive took about ten minutes. She found herself at a large home with multiple stories, flanked by a beautiful rolling lawn. These people were rich, but she knew that already, by the number of flower arrangements they’d ordered.

She parked her car on the drive, behind several others, and made her way to the front door. She pressed the doorbell and waited, biting her lip, wishing she could find some way out of this.

An elderly man answered the door. Hi.

He gave a slight smile, his balding head shiny. He had a suit on but no tie yet—obviously in the process of getting ready. The father of the bride?

I’m here to fill in for Andy Westner. Her face was probably as red as the traffic light up the road as heat flushed her cheeks several times, especially when he stared at her through piercing blue eyes.

Um…I’m here to take her place in the bridal party as she—

Lance, who is that? A woman’s voice came from inside the house, loud and shrieky.

It’s someone who says she’s filling in for Andy, he bellowed over his shoulder, then looked back at her with narrowed eyes.

Oh, gosh. The woman pushed him aside and grabbed her arm. I’m so glad you could help us at the last minute. Debbie is frantic with worry. You’re a lifesaver.

Collette got pulled inside a beautiful home, immaculately decorated and clean, already covered with Christmas trees and fairy lights, even though Christmas was a month and a half away.

Can you explain what’s going on? the older man said, his face dark and his height imposing as the woman stared at Collette.

This is the wedding planner’s friend. She’s taking Andy’s place as a bridesmaid since Andy’s sick. Debbie didn’t know how everything was going to work without her. You know what it’s like for a bride on her wedding day—she wants everything just right.

His whole demeanor softened. He turned away and marched down the passage as though he didn’t have time for such technicalities. Neither did Collette.

Thank you so much for coming. My name’s Arnelle. It’s actually uncanny how much you look like Andy. Except for the hair length, you could pass for her in a celebrity-lookalike competition.

Oh, so Andy was an actress or model or singer. Collette giggled.

I’m not too sure what I’m supposed to do. I haven’t practiced. And the wedding is in just over two hours—

Oh, you’ll be fine.

Arnelle had the sweetest face and long, sleek gray hair that Collette couldn’t work out if it was natural or dyed silver—the new fad. She’d freaked a few months back when one of her brides had walked down the aisle in ashy-gray hair—it had been brown previously. Rachel had assured her that the décor and coloring of the wedding matched her look perfectly. She supposed black roses with silver ribbons did fit the strange, gothic-type wedding.

Take it from me, no one will even notice that you’re not Andy.

Oh, no.

It’s okay. You don’t have to tell anyone who you really are.

This was becoming more and more complicated by the minute. I don’t think I—

It will just prevent further questions. I’m sure Andy would hate to know that everyone found out she was down with a bad case of gastro. Andy has her pride, as always. Arnelle rolled her eyes. Too much sometimes.

I… What if people start asking me personal questions? What does Andy do? Can you give me a quick breakdown on her life?

Nonsense. That’s not necessary. Just talk about other things. Come with me. You need some makeup on, and we’ll have to get the hairstylist to do something really fast. She’s a dream, though. You’ll be transformed into something beautiful in a moment.

Arnelle didn’t even recognize the veiled insult in her last sentence. Collette sighed. Oh, well, it looked like she’d have to pretend to be a celebrity today.

Her greatest fears all rolled into one—walking down a church or chapel aisle, being open to judgment for her looks and behavior, and possibly messing up her best friend’s business. That was why she loved her florist career: she could remain in the background but still enjoy beautiful occasions. Only certain things made her über-confident: flowers, running a business, and her loyal, years-old friends. Being the center of attention in a crowd wasn’t one of them. Sometimes, social cues made her nervous; could it be because she’d grown up without a mom?

But really, what could go wrong? Nothing much. Unless she dropped her bouquet or tripped over the bridal train, if there was one. She’d briefly scanned through the wedding details a couple of months ago to advise on the choice of flowers. How would she remember?

The mother of the bride led her down a passage and up the stairs to a labyrinth of rooms. They entered a large drawing room buzzing with talking and giggling young women, all glamorous in shades of purple.

The bride, Debbie, drew her gaze in a shimmering dress dotted with deep purple silk flowers. She met Collette’s eyes, and hers widened. Andy?

It’s not Andy. It’s her twin. The mother laughed. This is— Oh, gosh. I never got your name.

It’s Collette Bremenger. She walked up to Debbie. I hope I can help somehow.

Can you believe how similar she looks to Andy? Debbie just talked straight over her to her mother. Jennifer, check how much she resembles Andy.

Her skin prickled all over as every head in the room turned to scan her. If Collette could feel anything like a specimen, now was the epitome of it. She didn’t read People Magazine, so had no idea who Andy was and how stunning she probably looked. Collette would never be able to measure up to this woman, yet they were all saying she resembled her like a twin. Did they expect her to have the poise of a celeb? No more hiding behind her busy florist business. She swallowed the lump in her throat and looked at her feet.

She needs a hairdo right away. And some makeup, one of the other bridesmaids said. Hi, I’m Natalia. I’m the maid of honor. You’re just in time. Well, a bit late, but we’ll make it within reasonable time.

Thank you for helping out, said another bridesmaid with blond hair and gentle, brown eyes; she seemed to pick up how awkward Collette felt and showed compassion in her gaze.

Collette shakily smiled at her. At least someone understood.

The hairstylist grabbed her and placed a black cloak over her shoulders.

You’re not cutting my hair, are you? I’ll kill Rachel if they cut my hair; I’ve been growing it for over a year.

Just a quick trim and style. We’ll do an updo so no one can see how long your hair is. Andy’s hair is just over shoulder-length, so people may wonder how you grew it so quickly. If it’s up, no one will know.

Not too much, please, she begged, not caring what everyone knew about Andy, the celebrity bridesmaid.

I promise, she said.

The hairdresser got to work while Collette watched the women buzz around the room, zipping up their dresses and doing the final touches. Debbie was buzzing like a queen bee over her entourage—definitely one of those hands-on brides. She tried to stop her knees from shaking.

When will we get our bouquets? one of the ladies asked.

Calm suddenly oozed through her at the simple wedding-logistics question. Shani will give them to you at the chapel entrance. She’s the girl with short, black hair and about five piercings on her face.

Oh, thanks.

They didn’t bother to find out how she knew. The less they knew about her, probably the better. Her head was spinning, and she couldn’t wait to get home. Things like this reminded her how her business had helped her come out of her shell in life. Oh, well, she’d get through it somehow. Maybe helping the family out would boost Creations in Flora through its current slump as they’d spread the word about her in gratitude for filling in at the last minute.

Good thing someone playing with her hair made her feel relaxed and sleepy, so by the time they got to the makeup artist, she was much more at ease. When the woman had finished the job, she took her to a mirror to see how she looked.

Gorgeous, hey?

Collette nodded. She hadn’t dressed up so glamorous in a long time. She liked the feeling. Maybe this afternoon would be quite an adventure, after all. She would end up getting a free meal, and the wedding menu was divine—she’d taken a peek earlier. Plus, she’d get to dance and maybe have a couple of drinks. She just had to get through the ceremony without making a fool of herself.

Debbie came to her with the raisin-purple dress draped over her arm. She had the baby’s breath flowers that she’d ordered from Collette’s business in her hair. They framed her face beautifully.

Aren’t you the flower lady? she asked.

Collette nodded and smiled.

I can’t believe I didn’t notice. There have been so many cancelations that I’ve been in such a state. I’m sorry if I seemed rude to you earlier.

It’s okay.

"I want you to enjoy the wedding. Have as much fun