CHAPTER THREE — Wildflowers and Ghosts

Four years later…

“Mummy! Mummy! Watch me gooooo!”

I looked up from the counter just in time to see Aiden barreling through the shop, monster truck in hand like it was a prized jewel. His little legs moved so fast it was a miracle he didn’t trip over them. His sneakers, bright blue with tiny lights, flashed with every stomp, and he made the loudest engine noises his little lungs could manage.

“Careful, superhero!” I called out, grinning. “If you crash into the tulips again, I swear I’m selling that truck.”

He gasped, clutched the toy to his chest like it was sacred, and shook his head dramatically. “Nooo! Not Thunder!”

Thunder. That’s what he named the truck. Apparently, it saved the world every Tuesday.

I leaned my weight onto the counter, arms folded, chin resting on my hand as I watched him. My whole heart in one tiny, messy, loud, beautiful boy.

It still felt surreal sometimes how we ended up here. In this little town tucked into the coast of Maine, surrounded by old lighthouses, seagulls, and more pine trees than people. This flower shop was never part of the plan, but then again, neither was becoming a single mom at twenty-six.

I opened this place three years ago, right after I found my footing again. It started small, just me, some borrowed shelves, and a head full of hope. Now it was one of the most loved businesses in town. Locals came in for last-minute anniversaries, teenage boys for prom corsages, even grumpy old Mr. Hill for his weekly “fresh lilacs for the wife.” She’d passed six years ago, but he still bought them every Sunday.

If not for the offshore savings my dad tucked away when I turned eighteen, and the ridiculously generous cheque from Mr. Howard, I wouldn’t be here. I didn’t even want that money at first. I told him so a dozen times. But he just kept showing up, looking all grandpa-ish with his wrinkled eyes and briefcase of guilt.

“You’ll take it when the world gets too loud, Claire,” he’d said.

And I did. Because at the time, I was jobless, pregnant, and hiding from a life I didn’t recognize anymore.

I ran. From the lies. From the tabloids. From Lucas.

My stomach tightened just thinking about him. How I stared at those divorce papers for days. I almost tore them to pieces once. Almost let myself believe he’d come looking. But I didn’t. I mailed them. Sealed it all with my own trembling hands.

Lucas never called. Never asked. Never showed.

I used to wonder if he thought I was dead. But the truth? I don’t think he ever cared.

The tabloids kept publishing stories, Lucas Blackwell spotted with mystery woman. Lucas Blackwell expanding Howard Enterprises. Lucas Blackwell caught in scandal, again.

Not one headline asked, “Where’s Claire?”

Not even a whisper about me.

But I wasn’t surprised. Lucas had always known how to control the press. Tell them what to run. What to kill. Silence was easy when you had enough power to buy it.

I glanced back at Aiden, who was now kneeling in front of a bucket of daffodils, guiding Thunder through what I assumed was a battlefield of petals.

He had Lucas’s eyes. That same cool grey, like thunderclouds. His cheekbones. His nose. That sharp jawline I once traced at night when the world was quiet. Even the freckles I used to kiss on Sunday mornings—they were now scattered across my son's face like constellations.

But he also had my blonde hair. My sweet tooth. My weird obsession with raspberries, which Lucas had always hated.

“Thunder won again!” Aiden declared, lifting the truck over his head like a champion.

“Again?” I laughed. “That poor tulip army never stood a chance.”

He ran toward the back where Maya was setting up a display. I could already hear them.

“I’m telling you,” Aiden argued, “Cocoa Swirls are da best cereal in da whole wide universe!”

“Ugh. I feel personally attacked,” Maya replied, with full dramatic flair. “Frosty Stars walked so Cocoa Swirls could run. Respect your elders.”

“But they’re soggyyyy!”

I shook my head, chuckling. Every day with those two was a sitcom in the making.

Maya had shown up in my life like a hurricane—chaotic, loud, and impossible to ignore. I hired her two years ago when the shop started getting too busy for just me. She came in with red hair, big earrings, and zero chill. I loved her instantly.

She was funny and feisty, with a heart made of gold and a mouth that could talk its way out of any situation. More importantly, she adored Aiden like he was her own. And he loved her right back.

“Claire,” she yelled, popping her head out from the back. “Your son is bullying me again.”

“I’m not!” Aiden giggled.

“You’re right. You’re obliterating me.”

Maya grabbed him, tickling his sides until he squealed and kicked and fell into a pile of tulip wrappers.

“Okay! Okay! You win!” she laughed.

Their joy filled the shop like sunlight. And for a moment, I let myself believe that this—this soft, silly, beautiful life—was enough.

Then the bell above the door chimed.

I turned instinctively, expecting Mrs. Lester from the bakery or someone needing last-minute roses.

But the man who walked in… wasn’t from around here.

He was tall. Sharp. Sculpted like he was made from cold marble and forgotten by time. His black coat hugged his shoulders like a tailored shadow. His hair was dark, a little tousled, like he’d just run his fingers through it. And his face…

It was the kind of face that made people stop mid-sentence.

High cheekbones. A strong jaw. Piercing eyes that scanned the room like they were reading it.

He didn’t smile.

He didn’t need to.

The room seemed to shrink around him as his gaze moved slowly, then finally landed on me.

And stayed there.

I felt something tighten in my chest. Not fear. Not recognition.

Just… a pull.

Like the air shifted. Like my soul stood up straight without meaning to.

He walked toward the counter, boots silent against the wood.

And I stood frozen, wondering why my breath felt so shallow.

Wondering why his presence made the hairs on my arms stand on edge.

He wasn’t Lucas.

But he was something else entirely.

And that scared the hell out of me.