It is Valentine's Day today but Josie is in a bad mood, she is tired, sad and lonely. Even if it is one of the best days of the year for the shop, financially. She isn't looking forward to putting up with all those happily in love people who will come in today to buy flowers for their loved ones. Josie was glad when Katherine said she would close the store with the intern so Josie could escape from all of it early. She was surprised with her assistant's proposal, Katherine normally always has a date on valentine's day and she has worked overtime a lot lately so she would have deserved the night off. Josie tells herself to make it up to Katherine and give her a couple off extra days off very soon.
While Katherine handles the checkout and the intern helps the customers, Josie makes bouquet after bouquet. The flower fridge is filled with three times as many red roses as there normally are and they also have more other flowers than usual because not everyone buys red roses on valentines.
"Josie, can you go for lunch first?" Katherine asks with a big smile on her face. Something is up with her, she has been smiling at Josie all day and she keeps telling her it will be a good day for her. Josie thinks valentines has gotten into her head and now she is high on love.
"Yes I will take my lunch now but if you need me, I'll be in my office so you come and get me." Josie finishes off the last bouquet with a red ribbon before she puts it in front of the store window. She walks to her office, wishing she could turn off her feelings but she can't and she feels like she has a hole in her heart. A hole that only one person can fill up.
In her office she falls into her chair with a big sigh and tiredly rubs her eyes before she reaches for her big black handbag, sitting on the ground next to her chair and looks for her phone, secretly hoping there will be a message from that one person she is craving so much.
Instead there is a text message from Ted, who volunteered to watch the kids today which is weird to Josie. Since it's a Saturday and valentine's she thought Ted would want to spend alone time with his precious boyfriend Jonas. She opens the message and smiles when she sees it's something from her kids.
The kids are so sweet and have been behaving so well since they have been at their father's. Last week, while she was at Ted's, Lou called her mother to apologise for her behaviour and promised to be good again. Josie has no idea where the apology suddenly came from but she thinks somehow Ted heard about his daughters behaviour and talked with her.
Josie sends a quick text back saying she will be ready and can't wait before she eats her lunch and goes back to work. She thinks that if she works faster, time will go faster too and she is looking forward to spending time with her children and Josie silently thanks them for lightening her mood with a simple text.
When Josie comes home she takes a much needed shower, it was so busy at the shop and she feels dirty, when Josie left they had already run out of red roses and she ordered more than last year.
Josie enjoys the feeling of the hot water flowing down her skin and relaxing her muscles, she stays under the shower a few minutes longer than necessary but knows she has to get in gear when she hears someone open the front door. Josie isn't afraid because she knows it's Ted who still has his house key, after the divorce Josie told him to keep the key so he could get inside when she wasn't home if he needs something for the kids. Fortunately Ted always behaved like a gentleman and only used it when she wasn't home or like now he probably knows Josie is in the shower, he never used it while Josie was home before.
She is drying her body when she hears two little feet stomping up the stairs and walking into her bedroom, immediately opening the door of her en-suite bathroom.
"Hi mum, are you ready?" Lou burst in the bathroom. Not able to stop jumping because she is so excited
"It's only five pm I still have some time but don't worry, I'm almost ready." Lou cheers and runs away again. Josie chuckles, glad her daughter is back to her silly old self.
Josie walks to her room naked and looks for some underwear in her drawer, eventually choosing a red sheer bra and panties. Harry loved this set, she thinks while she opens the door of her closet. When her eyes scan through the closet, her eyes fall on a red shirt of Harry's, Josie once stole it when she was at Harry's home. Josie takes it of the hanger, she slips it on her body, enjoying the feeling of the soft fabric. She hugs herself for a moment while she lets her nose fill with Harry's scent that is still on the shirt. When she takes it off again she buries her face in the fabric.
"I miss you so much, Harry. I don't know if I want to live without you." she whispers into the shirt, a tear rolling down on her cheek. She wipes the tear away she tells herself she can't be sad tonight, not when the kids have a surprise for her.
She puts the shirt back in the closet and takes out the red dress she loves so much. It is a sleeveless, knee length dress, tight on her upper body but flows out at her hips, she combines it with her black pumps, a silver bracelet and little silver star earrings.
She walks back to the bathroom to put some red lipstick on her lips and apply some mascara so her green eyes will pop out, lastly she sprays some perfume on and she is ready.
When Josie walks downstairs she is welcomed by her children, ex-husband and his boyfriend who are waiting for her in the living room, still wearing their coats. They all starting to cheer and doing wolf whistles when she appears and a pink blush creeps up her cheeks.
"You look beautiful, mum" Alex and Lou say simultaneously. They all laugh at that and Josie gives her children a kiss on the cheek, leaving a red lipstick mark.
"You do look gorgeous." Ted whispers in Josie's ear when she hugs him and then Jonas.
"Where are we going?" Josie asks while she takes her little black clutch.
"You'll see." Alex says. He steps forward and signals for Josie to come down a little. When she does, Alex puts a blindfold over her eyes.
"Ha! What's this about?" Josie complains smiling.
"You can't see where we are going." Ted simply states before they help her into her jacket and lead her out of the door.
The drive is short and silent, it's like they are all nervous for what's going to come. When the car stops Josie has no idea where they are, she tried to follow the road in her head but she had to give up very quickly.. Someone, she thinks it's Jonas, helps Josie out of the car and it feels like they lead her inside somewhere. Josie tries to stick her hands out to feel something but someone bats her arms back down.
When they stop, she feels someone pecking both her cheeks. Josie thinks it at the kids who are picked up by Jonas and Ted.
"Are you ready, mum?" Alex asks and Josie nods smiling enthusiastically.
Suddenly the blindfolds falls and she is stunned by her surrounding. She is in a living room, she has been here before but it is different now. Fairy lights are strung on the walls around the room, candles are burning everywhere, there is a big table set for a meal for two people, it looks so romantic. When Josie turns around her breath hitches in her throat, she sees all kinds of beautiful flowers standing in vases on the floor and in the middle of is him, the man who she has missed so much.
"Harry." Josie whispers, she is not sure if this is real, maybe she is dreaming? She looks behind her, to Lou with a scared and confused look in her eyes. Did Lou know about this? And she wasn't upset? Ted gives his daughter a little push but than Lou walks to her mother and takes her both hands.
"I'm sorry mum for making you sad. I realise now how mean I was. I met Harry last weekend at dad and Jonas' house and I was stupid for not giving him a chance immediately because he is very sweet." Lou admits and with a shy smile she looks at Harry who is giving her a wink. The little girl has tears threatening to spill over the edge of her eyes. Josie crunches down and takes Lou in her arms while tears run freely over her cheeks. When they let go Lou immediately goes to her brother who hugs her to and tells her how proud he is of her.
Josie gets up and shyly she tilts her head up to the man of her dreams who is standing there in between all these colourful flowers wearing a black and white flowery suit with a black shirt, he looks delicious with his long curls pulled back out his face and with a little dimpled smile.
Harry takes three big steps before he is right in front of Josie.
"Harry, I... I..." she whispers. But before she can say more Harry cradles her cheeks and presses his lips on hers.