Cherry Blossom Boutique

Brooke Adams

Description

Thirty-one year old Liberty Rossini has had her shop, Cherry Blossom Boutique, for just six months when she's nominated for - and wins - the Retail Best Newcomer Award. Life would be perfect for Liberty if it wasn't for one thing: Daniel. Liberty's ex who has recently re-appeared in her life. Theirs was a significant and serious relationship and they had planned to marry when Daniel mysteriously and suddenly dumped her one day and walked out of her life! Liberty was devastated. Strangely, Daniel still has a powerful hold over her. Is Liberty destined to be Daniel's victim? Will Daniel's emotional hold over her ever diminish? Some relationships are simply harder to let go of than others but unless Liberty lets go, she can't really move on with her life. When a new man comes into her life, there's a definite spark between them. He's Tom Anderson, a good-looking silversmith in his late thirties. Will Liberty be able to resist being thrown off course by Daniel? Can she put him behind her sufficiently to make the relationship with Tom work? Can she find the inner strength to say enough is enough? Will she ever give herself permission to move on and make a fresh start and fall in love with her new beau?

Sujets

• Contemporary romance

Informations

• Publié par: Troubador Publishing Ltd
• Date de parution: 20 novembre 2020
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781800467965
• Langue: English

Extrait

Copyright © 2020 Brooke Adams

The moral right of the author has been asserted.

Apart from any fair dealing for the purposes of research or private study, or criticism or review, as permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, this publication may only be reproduced, stored or transmitted, in any form or by any means, with the prior permission in writing of the publishers, or in the case of reprographic reproduction in accordance with the terms of licences issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency. Enquiries concerning reproduction outside those terms should be sent to the publishers.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

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For my Mother,
With much love.
Contents
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
CHAPTER ONE
The crystal chandeliers reflected a soft light across the ballroom. Hundreds of guests were waiting expectantly to hear who had won this year’s Retail Best Newcomer Award. Liberty looked stunning in a midnight-blue peplum dress and a pair of matching blue Louboutins. Her long, dark hair fell in waves across her shoulders and her dark smoky eyes complemented her plum lip colour that subtly shimmered. She was anxiously sipping champagne, seated at a large, round dinner table beside her mother, Sonja, and Jessica, her best friend. They’d introduced themselves to the other four guests at their table and were enjoying chatting with them over dinner. Tonight was the big night! Cherry Blossom Boutique, which had only been open for six months, had been nominated for the award, much to Liberty’s delight. Liberty was so excited, and just being there was an honour. After dessert, and more champagne, the audience grew quiet as the winners were about to be announced.
Sonja and Jessica held each of Liberty’s hands tightly as the stage lit up in blue neon and silence prevailed. The tall host, dressed up in a smart tuxedo, approached the podium and took the audience through the eight shortlisted nominees, describing why their businesses were special and what they offered the community. Cherry Blossom was considered a boutique that not only offered good value for money, but also added an aesthetic presence to the community. The boutique never failed to provide that perfect gift, even for the trickiest family member and it was a pleasure to shop there. Liberty felt her face redden as the witty host delighted in Cherry Blossom and praised it for its “sense of prettiness and fun”!
Finally, the moment had arrived:
“… And so it gives me great pleasure to announce the winner of this year’s Retail Best Newcomer Award.” He carefully opened the envelope, Liberty’s heart was pounding. “… And the winner is…” Jessica tightened her grip of Liberty’s hand, and the host smiled as it gave him huge pleasure to announce “… Cherry Blossom Boutique!”
Liberty’s jaw dropped as her heart thumped and heat rushed to her cheeks. There was a loud round of applause as the lights changed and everybody turned towards her table. Jessica stood up and literally jumped for joy, Sonja took Liberty’s hand and together they stood up and hugged each other. Both Jessica and Sonja had to give her a little push to go and receive her award, as Liberty stood there, frozen in a state of shock. The entire audience stood up as they applauded jubilantly, as the loud clapping continued and the stage lights turned pink.
Those seconds as Liberty approached the podium felt like a dream to her; she was greeted on stage by several top retail executives, smiling and ushering her over to the podium to say a few words. She felt as if she were caught in a slow-motion scene in a film as she shook their hands eagerly.
“I can’t express enough gratitude to the community for being nominated, never mind winning this prestigious prize.”
She cleared her throat nervously. Her eyes glistened with pride.
“It’s been quite an adventure, setting up my business. It’s been pretty stressful at times, but it’s all been worth it.”
She paused and lowered her gaze, fighting her tears of joy, her mouth dry, her heart pounding as she tried to remain coherent.
“Thank you to the organisers for seeing the potential of my store, and of course, to all of our customers who make it happen every day. I hope to grow the business and reach more customers. I select the products at Cherry Blossom with care and enjoy discovering beautiful and sustainable merchandise every new season.”
Liberty swallowed as her eyes welled with tears, and as she looked up at the audience’s supportive faces, it gave her the confidence to add, “… And, well, my mum’s sitting over there, I just want to thank you Mum for always being there for me and also my late father who always encouraged me to take risks in business and never stopped believing that I would make my dreams a reality.”
Liberty’s voice wavered as she was overcome with emotion and the memory of her loving father swept over her.
“Thank you all so much!” Liberty turned to the others on stage beaming, as she held the elegant cut-crystal award, her eyes filled with tears, thanking everybody around her. They all seemed so happy for her. As she walked down the steps back to her table, the audience clapped supportively, and she noticed a tear falling down her mother’s face. Jessica was all smiles, beaming with delight for her best friend, whom she loved dearly. They had met as teenagers and shared a deep bond. They always supported each other, which gave them both the confidence to make things happen in their lives.
Tonight was Liberty’s night, Jessica thought. Liberty looked absolutely stunning in her taffeta dress, holding her award and she kept taking photos. Some of the guests seated nearby left their tables and flocked around them to offer their congratulations, so many hugs and kisses and kind words. It was all quite overwhelming, and Liberty just couldn’t believe that it was all really happening.
They spent the evening drinking plenty of champagne and mingling with people from the industry. It was all so exciting. Jessica reminded Liberty to enjoy it, as she had been with her every step of the way and knew how her dear friend had worked her socks off to get to this point. Sonja joined in the fun and had never felt prouder of her little Liberty; she imagined if only her father were here to see this, to see her radiating beauty and success. She was sure he was looking down from heaven and sharing their joy.
*
The next morning Liberty didn’t get up until gone ten, with an aching head. She made herself a strong coffee and sipped it in bed, memories of last night made her smile. Sonja had already WhatsApped her about ten photos from last night. She took it easy then noticed all of the business cards strewn across her coffee table, she couldn’t believe how many contacts she’d made last night and at around noon set off to work in her little boutique in the heart of London. It was nestled just off King’s Road in Chelsea, between cappuccino bars, perfumiers, jewellers and antique dealers. Given its prime location, the shop was always busy, just how Liberty liked it.
As it was the autumn season, the boutique was brimming with beautiful ‘shabby chic’ home accessories, like aromatherapy candles, sheepskin throws, antiqued mirrors and decorative monogram coasters. There were pretty coffee-table books about fashion, shopping and interiors. There were luxury and humorous cards for all occasions and vintage-looking costume jewellery ranging from rose gold to silver. Other chic fashion accessories included silk scarves in a myriad of colours, a small selection of silk tights, jewellery wraps, a few silk tops and cocktail dresses from select small designers, faux-fur headbands and cashmere gloves.
Liberty was tall and slender. Her dark eyes naturally shone with enthusiasm, her slightly bronzed complexion was clear, her cheekbones were high and lips full and perfectly shaped. Liberty’s Brazilian heritage would explain her chocolate-coloured locks and long, dark eyelashes. You’d never guess that her thirty-second birthday was fast approaching. Nobody in the neighbourhood knew that much about her, as she kept herself to herself, apart from the fact that she was beautiful, and seemed to be from a wealthy background. Her late father was English and had left her a small portfolio of properties in London and a tidy sum of money that she had invested to fund her boutique venture. Liberty’s mother Sonja grew up in Belo Horizonte and was offered a modelling job when she was just seventeen. She then moved to the U.S and then to England in the mid-seventies to work for an agency. By the time she was in her early twenties, she had appeared on the covers of Vogue and Tatler and worked hard for a ten-year period all over Europe. She had met Liberty’s father while they were both viewing a property in Chelsea.
*
It was a busy Tuesday lunchtime, and Liberty had a couple of meetings lined up with her stockists. After that she’d