Our little bean had really thrown a wrench in my plans.
Today I was on a mission to find something else to occupy my wandering mind beyond the gloriousness that was Cole Sullivan. Because the end of the school year had been insane, I hadn’t had a chance to get to the new bookstore on the square. Sully and Jake had mentioned the place and the owner, Ivy. Emma had met her too and thought she was someone we should get to know. Emma said she gave off a relaxed vibe, one of being super empowered, super feminist.
Ivy had actually worked with Emma and me on Emma’s author series project for the next school year, but our communication had all been via email and I hadn’t met her yet. I was actually surprised Emma hadn’t immediately conned her into attending yoga with us, though I’d missed the last few classes, so who knew, maybe she had.
Emma was always looking for new women in town to connect with. She was such a nurturer and always wanted to ensure no one was ever left out. It was one of the reasons we’d become friends when I moved here. Well, that and the fact that I kicked Chance Miller’s ass the first day we met in second grade because he was a prick to Emma. My temper flared just thinking of that second grade bully.
I parked just outside the bookstore and considered their storefront, forest green with black awnings. The name of the store, Pages, was spelled out in the windows in giant typewriter keys. It was a small storefront but absolutely adorable. I moved toward the bright yellow front door.
Inside I felt like I was in my own version of heaven. Maybe Ivy and I would become friends, and I could just live here? Walls of books surrounded the small room with gleaming hardwood floors and tables of books taking up the center. Moving around one long shelf, I came upon two women that were about my dad’s age. They were browsing, but upon seeing me, one turned to the other with a whisper and glance in my direction. Yep. Joy of small towns. Could be anything from the fact that I was a teacher to the intel that I was knocked up to some pity story. Whatever. Moving on.
There were a few nooks where you could curl up with a book, and the register was toward the back on the left at a small counter. It was there a woman stood, humming to herself, eyes closed, as she danced in the small space. She was a bit shorter than I was, probably around five foot five. Her blond-brown hair tumbled in waves over her shoulders and down her back. She wore a tank and flowy skirt, lots of bracelets and a few chain necklaces. I noticed the wireless headphones tucked into her ears. This must be Ivy.
Not wanting to scare her, I tried clearing my throat. Nope, she was still humming and dancing, clearly in her own world. Crap. I moved closer, standing across the counter from this dancing whirl, and reached out to tap her arm that she had raised out to the side as she moved. Her eyes sprang open, and a huge smile spread out on her face that seemed completely natural and gorgeous without any trace of makeup.
“Hey!” Ivy said. She tossed her headphones on the counter. “I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t wear these when I’m in here. The bookstore melts away, and I’m compelled to move.”
I grinned. Anyone who could dance with abandon in a public setting when she wasn’t drinking was my kind of person. I stuck out a hand. “Hey, I’m Maggie.”
“Emma’s Maggie?”
I laughed. “She’s taking ownership of me now? Fabulous.”
Ivy’s eyes twinkled when she laughed. “We meet in person, awesome! So, school’s out? How are you feeling?”
I took a breath. Might as well get used to this. “Well, pregnant.”
Ivy’s glanced dropped to my stomach, then back to my face. “No way! Congratulations! How far along are you?”
“Eight weeks. So not out of the first trimester, but far enough along to be having some morning sickness.”
“Wow.” Ivy came around the counter and hugged me, placing her hand on my stomach. “Sorry, I guess I should ask you first. And you aren’t even showing or anything. I just love pregnancies. How cool is it we get to grow a human? I mean really!” She hugged me again, then took a step back to lean against the counter. “Emma didn’t mention anything about a baby last time we talked, but this is new, right?”
“Yep. Apparently, it’s my new intro for the next thirty-plus weeks.”
Ivy held my hand and squeezed it before letting go. Giving me a look filled with curiosity, she asked, “Now were you planning on traveling this summer, because I feel like that is something she mentioned.”
Placing my hand on my stomach, I shook my head. “I’d planned on it, but this threw a bit of wrench into the works.”
I noticed that when Ivy talked to you she listened. Not like someone waiting to get her turn to speak, but like she really cared about what you were going to say.
“Momma?” A soft voice floated from the back of the store.
“Right here, Addie,” Ivy called out. Glancing at me, she whispered, “My daughter.”
I was taken aback. I don’t think anyone mentioned Ivy had a daughter. Minutes later a sleepy-eyed girl appeared clutching a picture book. She looked to be around three or four and was a miniature Ivy. Long wavy light blond-brown hair, vivid blue-green eyes. She was adorable.
“Hey Addie,” I said by the way of greeting. “I’m Maggie.”
“Maggie is a teacher to big kids,” Ivy said pulling her daughter up to sit on her hip. She quickly leaned in, giving her a loud kiss on the cheek, then pulled back and looked at me. “Hey, I just had a brilliant idea.”
“What’s that?”
“This place is new so I haven’t hired anyone to work here besides me. However, if there is a chance you would want to work some place a few hours a day, I could absolutely use someone to open in the mornings, ten a.m. to twelve p.m. Monday to Friday. Then this sleepyhead wouldn’t need to get up so early.” She tousled Addie’s hair, and my heart gave a small pang. Not unusual—my mom had been gone for so long—but sometimes it just hit. “You’d need to come around nine-thirty a.m. so you could be ready for opening, but it would be a really low-key job, that is if you were thinking of something like that. Sorry, I often just jump to conclusions, and with you not traveling, I thought… Never mind. You might be completely done in after the end of the school year and all.” Ivy grinned at me. When she smiled, she beamed.
“Are you the sleepyhead, Miss Addie?” I asked Ivy’s daughter. Pangs to the heart or not, this kid was beyond adorable. She nodded sleepily at me. So sweet. Looking over at Ivy, I met her grin with one in return. “I’d love to work here. Books are absolutely my thing. It is just one of the many things Emma and I have in common. And I was just thinking today that I needed to find something since I planned on being around this summer.”
“Cool! Want to start Monday?”
