With a gracious smile to the delivery man, Beauty waited until he'd left before she looked over the roses. At first, she'd hoped that they'd been from the coworker who had become something a little more than a coworker.
As she read the note, then found the signature, her smile turned flat and then faded altogether.
Then she gathered all the flowers very carefully - seeing the broken ones, the ones still with thorns - and settled them in the basket she'd brought with her today from home to carry the coffee and tea supplies in to work.
For the rest of the day, she was pensive. And when the night came and she closed the shop, she walked home with them, saying nothing about them at all when her escort fell in step with her.