"What's next, baby? I mean, I've gotten these cleaned; what do you need next?" Number one asked of me.
It was Monday, and he was working with me today because others would look after the kids during Christmas week, and we would keep the shop open for three days, which would be busy. I was making one arrangement out of roses, astilbes, spray carnations, a few cockscombs, a bit of ornamental grasses, and three orchids; it was a high-end arrangement, not the cheapest, but I was only doing what was asked.
"Did you get those compost sacks inside yet? And is Amaryllis ready?" I replied.
He stated, "The amaryllis are ready, but the compost has yet to arrive. The weather is bad, so it may take some time."
It was heavily snowing and windy, so the roads were more or less blocked, and driving could take some time. It was one of the reasons why numbers one, two, four, and five joined me in the shop. They were serving customers who were milling around despite the weather, purchasing as many Christmas flowers as possible.
I reached for my next orchid and placed it in the center of the arrangement, and it was complete. I tied it up, shortened the stems, wrapped it, and placed it in water. The couple who had ordered it would come in the afternoon to pick it up.
Okay, I had some time, and as I glanced over to our cooler, I noticed that all of our ready-made bouquets were once again sold out, so it was time to make some more.
Damon had cleaned stems needed for one of my arrangements featuring of roses, carnations, greens, larkspur, a few peonies, hydrangeas, and some snapdragons. It is beneficial to have a wizard as a husband because he can grow certain plants out of season.
We had seedstock, such as snapdragons and peonies, and with a bit of magic, those plants grew and bloomed, which was a big deal in our shop. I began to make modestly priced bouquets; I had a few ideas, and I would have to photograph my creations, calculate prices according to guidelines, and then post them.
As I was preparing my first one and putting it in the cooler, a group of young females entered; the salvatores were busy manning the coffee station, and number one was discussing various houseplants with one couple.
I approached females and said, "Hello, may I help you?"
"Well, we need flowers. I know this is kind of last-minute, but I just heard that my sisters and her entire brood want to come to us during the holidays, and they are plant lovers, so I was thinking something flashy but also houseplants like amaryllis and such, and because my house is kind of big, I need a lot."
The other girl said, "And I need five arrangements in a specific color theme, as my parents are coming in from France."
The third woman piped up, "I need scented flowers, hyacinths, and such; I need some Christmas in my house."
Last one explained, "We are on vacation from university and heard about this place, so can you help us?"
I smiled and groaned involuntarily; I was as busy as shit, and now this flood, but let's get this done.
"Sure, let's see what you need; come this way, and we'll make a plan."
Numbers four and five noticed this and approached me, introduced themselves, and attempted to charm the girls. I led the girls to my larger cooler to see what flowers I had.
Number four said to me, "Baby, why don't you go have a cup of coffee while we serve these ladies. You are pregnant, after all."
There was a hint of steel in his voice, and he was less pleased that I was constantly on my feet. He kept his protector radar the most sensitive of all Salvatores, which meant he noticed even the smallest glitch.
Number one was now serving cakes to those who had collected numerous houseplants; I knew I had a few trays of hyacinths and amaryllis in my back room, as well as other Christmas plants, so we'll see where this all leads.
Working with several overbearing husbands was very irritating for me because I was hormonal again. But, on the wilder side, I wanted to be alone and do my own thing, but there was no way. It felt like the majority of my willpower was expended right now trying not to snap these ones. A few damn arrogant smirks here and there indicated that they had snatched my irritation and found it amusing.
I went to our break room, where Salvatores had gotten a big fridge full of my meals as well as a circle of Magic to warm it up. The phrase "have a cup of coffee" meant eat as much as you can, as it was after 12 am, meaning my morning sickness had less effect, and the rest of the day, according to my over-eager husbands, would entail eating. Number one had given me and Mariella a long lecture, telling us that babies in utero hijacked our bodies; they made us give everything they needed and a bit more, even if it would harm us more or less.
And this meant some medical testing, bloodwork, as well as scans, and I was not in the mood, not at all. Not my best time, as I had pretty much hidden myself until Wulfe found me and snapped my neck, and I had woken up late on Sunday evening after having those scans and whatnot done. We both had brittle bones, which required calcium and phosphorus, so our meals consisted primarily of ground bones and milk.
I had four huge rolls in front of me as I took my next plate, full of various cheeses, meaning soft cheese with blue mold or white mold, whatever they had found from our selection, and they discussed them from time to time like damn cheese vendors.
I had also chopped up wagyu and mozzarella in my buns; according to Damon, my babies could use certain types of carbs, so he had researched what they needed to be and was making sure I had them so I could provide them for the babies and possibly keep them from pulling everything out of me.
I tried so hard to control my irritation while eating, but those damn males ordering me around did not sit well with my hormonal mind. This time around, I was less possessive and wanted to win Mariella, but I wanted my own time, decisions, and babies; it was all me and my independence, and it certainly did not make this pregnancy any easier.
To be honest, Mariella irritated me greatly; I couldn't stand her, and the thought of us commuting together after the holidays made my blood boil, but this was pack life, and I was dealing with my problems.
I had made little fruit cube jellies for myself, using a smoothie base with fruit cubes and gelatin to make a firm jelly and pouring it into a mold, but Damon said they were better for toddlers than for me, despite the fact that they had my smoothies and correct fruits; it had something to do with gelatin and the speed of my digestion or whatever.
I just felt like he was making excuses to get one over me. Despite, how plausible his explanation appeared. This was my little, lovely, pregnant brain being paranoid and also pretty damn impossible. But I couldn't help it.
As I finished eating, I returned to my workstation; there were still those flowers left, and I noticed I had very few greens, so I went into the backroom to get more. I had also moved some peonies, delphiniums, and freesias from my flower room in the house to here.
So I grabbed bunches of them, as well as one mixed bunch of cheaper roses and alstroemerias, because I had very few of them. I hummed under my breath as I focused on cleaning my materials, cutting greens and fillers into appropriate pieces, and preparing everything.
Number two approached me and said, "Oh, you have a good selection, which saves time. I have a few ideas, and we also need a few custom-made pieces. Oh, lovely freesias," he said as he walked next to me and began to grab my ready-made flowers, which made me fume.
But I was making my arrangements in front of three different sponge-filled vases, and I tried not to snap at him, knowing he would just smirk at me.
"Baby, I see you have an idea; let me help." This time, it was number four who had arrived, and he came around the other side of me and began working on one arrangement where I had only placed a few flowers.
Oh my god, my patience was wearing thin, but I heard the door open, and more customers entered, so I dried my hands, removed my apron, and walked to the shop floor to see if I could assist, leaving my arrogant bastards of husbands having a ball with my supplies.
I fumed internally, but I kept it all inside because it was pointless for me to explode because this was Pack's business, not mine, and they had every right to be here and do things, no matter how fucking annoying it was at times. I could feel my blood pressure rising as my irritated mind fumed silently, but I smiled as I went to ask my customers what kind of flowers they wanted.
The woman began to explain to me her requirements; first, she wanted something that would live after Christmas, which meant no cut flowers, and then she wanted mauve, large blooms, and the ability to put it in her garden.
I told her, "Well, the first thing we have here is Helleborus."
I showed her several versions and different colors, and they were good garden plants, coming up early, blooming eagerly, and being attractive, so she chose a few.
I continued, "Then of course, classic hyacinth, as you can see, there are darker varieties here, and after Christmas, they can be planted in the garden and grow there as well. We have tulips and amaryllis in the garden, but true mauve is not one of their colors."
I continued to show her options, and she quickly chose several potted plants. The next step was pots; she had green plants and needed new pots for some of them, not just to cover them but also to have drainage holes.
I led her to our pot section and let her browse while showing her charts about various materials and pot sizes, as well as what kind of compost or soil was best for each type of pot.
Of course, the plant was important, but pots like clay could dry out quickly, so it was useful to have a potting mix with moisture-retaining beads in it. If you had a large pot, good nutrition was also required, and some plants prefer deeper pots while others prefer wider and shallower ones.
Number one emerged as he placed arrangements on the table and noticed I was talking, and the female, with her hands full, pointed to one type of pot on the lower shelf, but before I could even begin to crouch, Damon slid in and grabbed the pot needed, introduced himself, and nearly pushed me away as he charmed the female. Fine with me.
There were always more customers coming in, and I was soon crafting another Christmas-themed bouquet for a couple from Idaho who had come here for the holidays; they wanted it to be colorful, scented, large, flashy, and not too expensive. They also liked violet and red together, so it gave me some ideas. And how to set prices for my bouquets.
This time, number two walked next to me and kissed me as this couple watched me work.
Number two said, "Gotta take care of this wife of mine, as she is expecting four little ones," and placed his hand over my belly, his expression pure love mixed with a hefty dose of possessiveness; he was owning me right there and right now.
The man's expression became a little sour, as my pretender side told me he liked to fantasize about other females, and his wife liked women as well, but not like me, like Mariella.
I refrained from rolling my eyes, and soon number one was nearby, ready to protect me and subtly ensuring that that male had not fantasized about me as he got a nosebleed and dug out a tissue from his pocket, muttering something about his nose being dry in the winter.
Damon, number one, said, "You should try d-vitamin drops in your nostrils or hot steaming; winter tends to dry out your mucous membranes. I know because I am a doctor."
He used his Dr. Damon voice, and the man nodded, still holding his nose as I prepared my bouquet, and number two wrapped it up and went to the register to make the sale.
Number five ushered me back into the room for a few cups of coffee and more food. I didn't argue because he was too concerned with protecting me and was less interested in male thoughts. One could call it a telepath's curse, but for salvatores, it was a weapon, and stealing ideas from human minds about me was their favorite pastime.
Number one said to me as he walked into the breakroom while I was eating, "Just so you know, girls will take care of the next few days here; you gotta take it easy and eat. No need for you to work quite so much. I mean, you can craft at home too; no need to be here," he said without asking, making me roll my eyes.
But then again, I had gotten to know a few Salvatores really well, and even this incident with this one man did not seem like much; it was hardly only one thing that had happened today. It was just a fact that I was supernatural, meaning my aura and charisma pulled humans to me. And men being men got all sorts of ideas, and Salvatore plucking those from their minds was not really a feasible combo, so fine, I could take an easy few days and then have the Christmas holiday, and then see what was coming after the holidays.
I was not sure if this was the same with Mariella, but as I felt around the hive, I felt her frustration; she was already home and, oh yeah, being loved and owned. It seemed she, too, had gotten unwanted attention from humans, and Salvatores, being now so hyped up, had no patience for that. It was once again time to go with the flow and see where life takes us.