This fic was originally written for the #loveforteamhook event as a way to support Alma, teamhook while she's going through a difficult time. Thanks to jrob64 for her work in betaing for me!
Killian Jones cupped the delicate blooms of an orchid in his hand and nodded in satisfaction. He'd been rather worried about this particular plant. It had shown signs of distress a week past, and for several days he'd feared it wouldn't make it. He had done his research, separated the diseased plant from its mates and cared for it as tenderly as a parent would their child.
Today was the first day the orchid showed signs of improvement. Like Killian himself, this orchid was a survivor.
Killian gathered up the plant and placed it back inside the bright, humid greenhouse, and then stepped back behind the counter of his shop Jolly Blooms Flower Shop. Sometimes it amazed him, the life he now led. As a young man, he'd longed for adventure, danger. He'd joined the navy to be close to his brother, and the life they'd led had been fascinating. He'd loved every minute of it.
Until the moment his brother Liam opted to leave the navy and marry his highschool sweetheart, Elsa.
Suddenly, with his brother no longer at his side, danger and adventure no longer looked nearly as appealing. Left at a crossroads, he'd taken some time to evaluate what he wanted to do with his life, and in the end, he'd opted for the pursuit of beauty.
There was something so calming and yet rejuvenating about being surrounded day after day by beautiful flowers. Providing a product that brought joy and comfort to his clients was infinitely rewarding. His was a quiet, peaceful existence.
His introspection was interrupted when his shop door was suddenly, forcefully opened. He looked up to find himself face to face with the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen. Her golden hair fell on her shoulders and down her back like a cloud of sunshine. Her green eyes shone.
Unfortunately, today they seemed to be shining with anger. So much for his quiet, peaceful existence.
"May...may I help you, love?" he asked, hesitantly as she reached his counter, planted her feet and crossed her arms.
"Yeah, I wanted you to help me yesterday, but apparently asking for a flower shop to deliver flowers was too big of an ask," she clipped out.
Killian found himself at a loss for words, barely even registering what the vision before him said. They say when you've found your soulmate, your True Love, you just know. You can feel it. He'd rather thought that was nonsense, but now...well, now he was beginning to rethink every notion he'd ever had about attraction, romance and even love itself.
"Well?" she exploded, planting her splayed hands on his wooden counter and scowling fiercely at him.
Killian blinked, shaking his head slightly, willing himself to come back to his senses. Whatever his attraction might be to this woman, she was a customer, and he must get it together and provide her the customer service that had made him one of the most sought-after small flower shops in the area.
"My apologies," he said. "Was there a problem with a flower delivery?"
She rolled her eyes. "Oh I don't know. I ordered a bouquet to be delivered yesterday, and yet still no flowers have arrived. Seems like a bit of a problem to me!"
Killian frowned. He'd had several flower orders go out yesterday, and he'd gotten no complaints from his delivery people that they'd been unable to complete their tasks successfully. "Could I have your name, love?"
"Not your love," she gritted out. "Emma Swan. I ordered a bouquet of snowbells to be delivered to Mary Margaret Nolan. It was very important that they arrive yesterday on her birthday."
He remembered the order, because of its unusualness. Few people specifically requested snow bells, and those who did typically wished for them to be an accent in a larger arrangement rather than the sole flower within the arrangement.
Killian typed for a moment on his computer, bringing up the order details. "According to my records, that bouquet was delivered as requested bright and early yesterday morning."
"And yet my sister still does not have her bouquet of flowers," the woman, Emma Swan, said.
Killian peered down at his information once again and groaned. Will. He should have known his newest-and most annoying-employee would be at the center of any mix up.
"Scarlet!" he called over his shoulder.
A moment later the man in question stepped through the back room door and walked up to the two of them. "Anything I can do for ya boss?"
"There seems to be a mistake with yesterday's deliveries," Killian said, willing himself to keep his voice even. There was just something about Will Scarlet and his care-free and yet somehow insolent style that made Killian wish to throttle him more often than not.
"Nope," Will said, grinning. "No problems with yesterday's deliveries. Handed the flowers personally to every person on my list."
"What about the bouquet of snowbells for Mary Margaret Nolan?"
Will tapped on his chin, seemingly deep in thought, and then he brightened. "I remember her. Pretty woman, that. Long, curly, fire-red hair. Kinda thought about asking her out, but decided that might not be so professional-like."
"Curly red hair?" Emma Swan bit out. "Mary Margaret doesn't have curly red hair. She has dark brown! I don't think she even knows anyone with curly red hair!"
"Did you confirm the name of the recipient?" Killian asked.
"Yep, just like you taught me," Will said, nodding vigorously.
"And this red-head confirmed that her name was Mary Margaret?" Killian asked.
"Well, I mean she said her name was Merida," Will conceded, "but I figured hey, that must be a nickname for Mary Margaret or somethin'."
Killian rubbed at his temples, a pounding headache beginning to set in. "And you didn't think to confirm that you had the right address and that this person, with a different name, was the actual intended recipient of your delivery?"
Will shrugged. "Hey, I don't ask questions. I just go where the Google maps lady tells me."
Killian full-on facepalmed this time before glaring at his unbelievably dense employee. "Just...just go back to what you were doing. Later, we'll have a long, probably rather loud discussion about the proper way to deliver flowers."
Killian watched the idiot disappear into the backroom, muttering to himself about it being Mrs. Google's fault and then turned back to face the wrath of the avenging angel before him.
"Miss Swan, my sincerest apologies for this unfortunate mistake," he said. "The delivery man at fault will be dealt with, and I will set to work this moment to create a replacement for your sister."
The remainder of the visit was completed in a matter of moments. Killian took down his dream woman's information, apologized profusely, and then assured her yet again that he would personally see to the creation and delivery of the arrangement, that it would be his first priority.
Killian's reassurances seemed to mollify the woman slightly, though her ire was clearly not entirely ameliorated. Satisfied that she'd at least accomplished what she'd set out to do, Emma Swan turned and walked briskly out of his shop and out of his life.
It rather amazed Killian what a profound sense of loss he felt as the door closed behind the lovely lady. He'd only known her for the space of five minutes, for Zeus's sake, and most of that was spent with her yelling at him. It made no sense that he'd feel such a deep, elemental pull to her already, and yet the heart wanted what the heart wanted.
Killian grabbed a vase and headed in the direction of his snowbells. There was no doubt about it; he must find a way to see Emma Swan again. Slowly, an idea began to take shape within his mind. It was a bold move, perhaps even risky, but if there's one thing Liam had instilled in him it was this: A man unwilling to fight for what he wants, deserves what he gets.
If he didn't at least try with Emma Swan, Killian knew he'd regret it for the rest of his life.
Notes:
-This story is loosely inspired by The Words music video, as you might have picked up. I've never written about florist Killian before, and I decided it was time to change that.
-I'm anticipating 2 more short chapters that I'll post on each of the next Thursdays. (The point of this event was to post one shots...but my muse is terrible at following directions, lol.
-Up next: We'll get some Killian pining (a la the music video), but the bulk of the chapter will be from Emma's POV. We'll find out why she was so angry about her flowers not being delivered, and we'll see her reaction to Killian putting into action the plan he comes up with at the end of this chapter.