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somewhere. The brunette displayed quick efficiency, her thin dark hair scraped back into a tight ponytail.
    “You must be the florist.”
    “Yes. Yes, I am. Lily Farnsworth.” She handed over several bills, smiling.
    “Heard about you from Tate,” said the brunette, making change.
    “Oh?”
    This elicited a nod as the woman began bagging the groceries.
    Lily couldn’t help wondering just what Tate had said or where he was keeping himself, for that matter. She thought he was supposed to be her host.
    “Where is everyone?” she asked tentatively.
    “Wednesday evening,” the woman replied, as if that was answer enough. When Lily just blinked at her, she added, “Most folks are in church for midweek service.”
    “Ah.”
    “Folks don’t have midweek service back in Boston?”
    “Some do, yes.” But Lily’s church had not.
    “Hereabouts, nearly everyone goes to midweek service,” the checker said. “We rotate shifts here at the grocery so no one has to miss the service more than once a month.”
    “I see.”
    “Folks in Boston must eat shrimp,” the checker commented cheerfully, pushing the bags toward Lily.
    “Yes, we… they do,” Lily said, gathering up the bags. “Boston is known for its seafood.”
    The brunette smiled. “That’s good. Maybe I can move those cans back there now.”
    Lily glanced down at her groceries and nodded. Canned shrimp and midweek service. Well, it was a start. She had the makings of a reasonable meal and a good explanation for the empty aisles. She liked the thought of a churchgoing community. She’d been the odd man out for as long as she could remember, the one who didn’t fit, even among her own family. Maybe it would be different here.
    * * *
    Lily slept in the next morning, it being a national holiday. She expected some sort of community Independence Day celebration, but when none had materialized by midmorning, she went downstairs and got busy. Miss Mars came up with a suggestion. Lily doubted it could work at first. Even if the flowers arrived precisely on schedule the next day, she didn’t have the resources to do as the lady proposed.
    “You can find what you need in my shop,” Miss Mars insisted. “Just use your imagination.”
    Lily shrugged doubtfully. “First I would need to visit the other businesses.”
    “Of course. That’s no problem. I think everyone is doing just what you are today.”
    How could Lily refuse to try after that? Leaving her shop unlocked—as Miss Mars pointed out, they would be within “shouting distance” all the time—they went from shop to shop, starting with the Sweet Dreams Bakery on the corner. Miss Mars was right. All the newcomers were hard at work.
    Melissa Sweeney could not have been sweeter or more enthusiastic, and her shop gave Lily lots of ideas. Melissa eagerly accepted the offer of the loan of a floral arrangement to decorate her counter for the Grand Opening. Josh Smith, at the Cozy Cup Cafe, who struck Lily as a bit of a computer geek, did the same, as did Allison True at the Happy Endings Bookstore, Patrick Fogerty of The Fixer-Upper hardware store and Chase Rollins at Fluff & Stuff, the pet shop.
    The problem remained supplies, but Lily did as Miss Mars advised and combed through the back room of the This ‘N’ That, with happy results. Not only did she find some wonderful containers—a tin bread box, an old typewriter, a battered percolator, a bird cage, an antique vase and a rusty length of pipe, as well as a pair of old cowboy boots and the hat to go with them—she even found some usable silk flowers. She also discovered several bits of furniture that she could use in her apartment. In fact, the outdoor stuff that Miss Mars wanted her to consider didn’t look very “outdoorsy” at all. Rattan with red cushions about the same shade of scarlet as the short wall in her workroom, the three-piece set might work out just fine.
    Lily took the lot and got it all at a very good price. At least Miss Mars was