The original Dogwood design.
The same jacket June had made for a county fair before opening Bluebird Stitchworks.
Tessa had taken it from the garage on the day Glenn sold the machines.
She’d framed it as the inspiration for her boutique’s signature collection.
For two years, nobody had questioned it.
Now she looked at Glenn.
“There’s one workshop that can handle this.”
He stared at her.
“No.”
Tessa folded her arms.
“Bluebird Stitchworks.”
Glenn shook his head.
“June won’t help us.”
“Then make her an offer she can’t refuse.”
He looked at the contract again.
“Tessa, you don’t understand.”
She stepped closer.
“Your mother’s house is tied to this business. If we can’t resolve the contract, the lender could demand payment we don’t have.”
Glenn went quiet.
For the first time, he understood how much depended on the order.
And he knew exactly who had the skills to fulfill it.
That was why he returned to June.
Now he stood inside Bluebird Stitchworks, holding the contract and trying to sound confident.
June watched him carefully.
“Why should I take this order?”
Glenn shifted.
“Because it’s good money.”
“For whom?”
“For you. For your business.”
June glanced at the jacket photograph.
“And for Tessa.”
He said nothing.
Martha approached the cutting table.
“June, the afternoon shipment is ready for inspection.”
June nodded.
“Thank you.”
Then she looked back at Glenn.
“Does Harlan’s know who actually designed this?”
Glenn swallowed.
“Tessa told them it was hers.”
June folded the photograph.
“Then there’s a problem.”
He lowered his voice.
“Please. We can’t afford another problem.”
June looked around her workshop.
The machines were running.
Her employees were working.
The business she’d built from almost nothing was finally secure.
She didn’t need Glenn’s money.
She didn’t need his approval.
And she certainly didn’t need to rescue the woman who had helped take her livelihood away.
But she knew what would happen if Tessa continued selling the Dogwood design under her own name.
More garments would be made.
More customers would believe the story.
And June’s original work would disappear beneath someone else’s label.
She looked at the contract.
Then at Glenn.
“I’ll consider producing the jackets.”
His face brightened.
“Thank you.”
“Under one condition.”
“Anything.”
“I speak directly with the buyer from Harlan’s.”
Glenn hesitated.
“Why?”
“Because I don’t manufacture through middlemen who misrepresent my work.”
He stared at her.
June continued.
“I want the buyer, Tessa, you, and anyone responsible for the production contract in one room.”
Glenn looked uneasy.
“Tessa won’t like that.”
June folded her arms.
“Then she can find another manufacturer.”
He glanced toward the machines.
He knew there was no other manufacturer nearby with Bluebird’s capacity and experience.
Finally, he nodded.
“Thursday.”
June looked at him.
“Thursday.”
After he left, Martha approached.
“You aren’t seriously considering helping them.”
June looked down at the jacket photograph.
“I haven’t agreed to help them.”
“Then what are you doing?”
June walked to a cabinet near her desk.
She unlocked it and removed an old folder.
Inside were sketches, fabric samples, and photographs.
At the top was a dated design sheet.
DOGWOOD JACKET
JUNE WHITFIELD
FALL COLLECTION 2023
Martha stared at it.
“That’s the original.”
June nodded.
She turned another page.
Photographs showed twelve jackets hanging on a rack in the garage behind her old house.
The images had been taken before Tessa opened her boutique.
June had posted several of them online to advertise her work at the county fair.
Martha looked closer.
“That’s the same jacket she has framed in her shop.”
“Yes.”
June selected a photograph showing the inside of the collar.
A tiny bluebird was embroidered beneath the seam.
Beside it were her initials.
J.W.
And the year.
2023.
Martha looked at June.
“You signed it.”
June smiled faintly.
“My mother taught me to sign everything I made.”
Martha touched the photograph.
“Then you have proof.”
“I have a beginning.”
June closed the folder.
“Now I need to make sure the right person sees it.”
The meeting took place at Tessa Rose on Thursday morning.
Laura Vance arrived carrying a tablet and a sample-quality checklist.
She wore a navy blazer and comfortable shoes, with her hair tied neatly at the back of her head.
She looked like a woman who had spent many years visiting factories and knew how to distinguish a convincing sales pitch from a reliable production plan.
Tessa greeted her warmly.
“Laura, we’re so excited to move forward.”
Laura smiled politely.
“I’m looking forward to reviewing the production arrangements.”
Glenn stood near the back counter.
Dolores had come as well, concerned about the business loan she’d guaranteed.
Tessa looked surprised when June entered beside Martha.