Make You Feel My Love

Getting to know a new city was made easier when Paul introduced Tessa to one of his new teammates, Joe Pavelski, and his wife Sarah. Joe and Paul had been teammates at the Olympics, and he was happy to invite them over for dinner after they had been in San Jose a week.

Sarah and Tessa hit it off and when the guys started settling back into hockey mode, Tessa was grateful to have a new friend in their new city. At the first game of the regular season, Sarah made sure to introduce her to the other wives and got her involved with some of the charitable things the other women were involved in with the team also.

It was the end of October before she knew it, and Tessa had just left lunch with Sarah. She had parted ways with Sarah at the restaurant and had chosen to take a stroll through the shops nearby to where they ate. The weather was pleasant as she pushed Ava, asleep in her stroller, peering into windows as she walked.

Tessa was happy in their new city, and mostly happy in life. The only thing that nagged at her was losing the last bit of weight she had gained while pregnant. It was a silly thing to stress about but she didn't love her new body quite as much as she had her old one. Of course she wouldn't trade having Ava in her life for anything but fitting back into her favorite pair of jeans would still be nice. A thirty minute walk around the little village setup of shops and restaurants seemed like a good idea, especially since she abhorred the gym.

She noticed a flower shop just ahead and she made her way towards it. She was expecting Delilah in town the following afternoon and fresh flowers were exactly what she needed for the house. The bell over the front door jingled as she opened the door, maneuvering the stroller inside. She inhaled deeply the scent of fresh blooms with a smile.

"Hello, can I help you?" The friendly voice came from behind her.

Tessa turned to her. "I need flowers for a friend who's coming to visit. Do you have alstroemerias?"

"I do. Anything else in particular?"

"Irises. Lily of the valley, blue hydrangeas and sunflowers if you have them."

"I have all of those too. You know your flowers."

"I worked for a florist part time my first couple years at college."

"I'm Katelyn; I own the shop."

"Tessa," she replied, shaking her hand. "And this is Ava," she added when Katelyn looked into the stroller.

"She's beautiful."

"Thank you."

"You're not looking for a job by any chance, are you?"

"We just moved here last month; I'm still trying to figure out where I'm going most days."

"What brought you to San Jose?"

"My husband's job," Tessa smiled. "But it's nice here. The weather is already ten times better than it would be where we moved from."

Katelyn laughed. "I understand that completely. I moved out here after college, mostly to start over but also because the weather was better. Let me get your flowers; should I arrange them for you?"

"Loose would be great."

"Give me just a minute," she said before disappearing into the back. Tessa's phone dinged and she was answering a text from Paul when Katelyn returned.

She set a vase down on the counter and laid the stems down beside it. "I just want to see what you come up with."

"I'm not nearly as talented as you," Tessa gestured at the vases on display. "I dabble at best."

"Let's see you dabble then."

Tessa blushed but stepped forward and chose a stem to start with, building around it with the flowers she had asked for, plus some greenery and filler that Katelyn had brought out. When she was done, she stepped back and looked up at Katelyn.

"You're selling yourself short. This is fantastic," she said with admiration. "Please tell me you're husband is a stay at home dad and you can come work with me."

Tessa laughed. "Stay at home dad is not at all how I would describe him."

"At least think about it; I could really use some help, even part time. My help quit last month and I am going to burn out if I don't find someone soon." She grabbed one of her business cards and scribbled her cell number on the back. "Think about it, talk it over with your husband. These are on the house today."

"No, you have to let me pay."

"No way. You arranged it, it's yours," Katelyn smiled as she passed the card to Tessa. "If you're interested, call me."

"Thank you. And I will think about it."