It had not been her intention to worry or confound him, but that was what happened when she went too fast or could not make up her mind. Things got terribly jumbled and confused. Perhaps she should have just left it alone as she felt that it might have been a bit of a damper on the whole day.
Holding his hand did help, though, and she was glad he had not let go when he stood. Silently, she weaved around the greenhouse and the public gardens, getting lost further in the yard that stretched out and away from them. Most of the flowers were beginning their sleep, settling into a rest period that the Simonetts could but usually did not stir them from. A time for everything.
When she reached her private garden patch she stopped and just looked at him for a moment, still holding his hand. "This one is mine," she said, indicating the rows. Then she let go and turned to the flowers, stepping over to the cluster that she wanted. The tulips were too far into their rest for her, she could feel, but the chrysanthemums should work. They were at the end of their blooming cycle, but some buds were curled tightly, waiting. She stirred them, each and every bud, and they all unfurled, creating a display of brilliant red.
She could not look at him. "The trick up our sleeve."