A Chesapeake Shores Christmas by Sherryl Woods Page B

the meeting. “I have to say I’m impressed with your business acumen. I’ll do my best on your behalf, Megan. Once I’ve looked this plan of yours over more carefully, if I see any obvious red flags that need to be addressed, I’ll contact you before the meeting next week.”
    “Thank you for seeing me, Lawrence, especially at the last minute.”
    “Of course. We’re practically family, after all. Your daughter’s made my son very happy.”
    Megan smiled. “And vice versa. Abby couldn’t have found a better man for herself or a better stepfather for the twins.”
    “I just wish they’d hurry up and make me a grandfather again,” he grumbled as he walked with her through the lobby. “They don’t seem to be in any hurry, though.”
    “I know what you mean. I’ve had to learn to keep my mouth shut about things like that.”
    Megan said goodbye again at the door, pulled on her coat and stepped outside. Only after she’d walked down the block did she finally start to relax. She was pretty much oblivious to her surroundings when Bree stepped out of Flowers on Main and snagged her arm.
    “Mom, were you just going to walk on by without stopping?” she asked.
    “Oh, sweetie, I wasn’t even paying attention to where I was,” she said, then stood back to take a look at her daughter. “You’re showing! When I was here before, you barely had a baby bump at all.”
    Bree grinned and put a protective hand on her rounded stomach. “I know. Isn’t it amazing?” she said excitedly. “It’s finally starting to seem real to me. I think Jake’s still in shock. He just sits and stares at my belly as if it’s growing right before his eyes.”
    “Your father was the same way when I was pregnant for the first time with Abby,” Megan confided. “It was almost impossible to keep him from pointing out my expanding waistline to strangers on the street.”
    “Do you have time to come in for a minute?” Bree asked. “We can talk about flowers for the wedding.”
    “Actually I’d planned to do that today. Then I got distracted,” Megan said, following Bree inside. Jake’s teenage niece Jenny was working at the cash register. Megan greeted her with a hug, then followed Bree into the back room. The mingling of so many flowery scents could have been overwhelming, but Megan breathed it in with delight.
    “So, why were you so distracted?” Bree asked.
    Megan described her meeting with Lawrence. “I couldn’t tell if he was truly impressed with my plan or just placating me so he could leave it to the committee to turn me down.”
    “He won’t turn you down, Mom. He wouldn’t dare. Dad would raise a huge ruckus.”
    “I don’t want a loan just because your father might get upset if it’s denied.”
    “Mom, if you want this business, take the loan however you get it,” Bree advised. “I’m sure Dad’s the reason the bank okayed my loan and Jess’s initially, even though he didn’t cosign either one of them. After that one little blip at the inn, both loans have turned out to be very good investments. O’Briens are a safe bet and Lawrence knows it. As for the kind of things Dad does behind the scenes, I had to learn to turn a blind eye after he got the town to go along with my plans for a regional theater on part of the land in the park.”
    “I hope you’re right,” Megan said, her earlier confidence slipping despite Bree’s reassuring words.
    “Let’s talk flowers,” Bree said. “That will get your mind off of the meeting at the bank. Do you know what you want?”
    For the next hour, they pored over Bree’s portfolio of the weddings she’d done, as well as pictures of other floral arrangements. Megan was overwhelmed.
    “I was thinking of something much simpler,” she admitted. “Not that I don’t want to give you a huge amount of business, but this wedding is going to be small and quiet. Do you mind if I think about it a little more?”
    “Of course not. I actually have a couple of ideas