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“Your inner nerd is showing,” I teased.
“I’m serious, Grey. They’re not all perfect.” She looked away for a second, and I actually worried that she was too involved in these books when I saw the deep sadness embedded in her features.
“Hey, I was kidding.”
Charlie looked back at me and smiled, but there was still that sadness her eyes weren’t able to hide. “No, I know you were. I wasn’t offended by what you said. But I don’t believe everything is a fairy tale, Grey. Life hurts; there are parts of life that are so major that they’ll change you completely. We’re all on this giant roller coaster and you never know when you’re going to go down, or just how far down you’ll actually have to go. But those drops and those climbs are what make us, and make our life what it’s supposed to be—whether it hurts or not.”
I couldn’t move or say anything as I sat there listening to her. This girl I’d grown up with and who had always been so quiet and shy because she lived in her books sounded like her world had been crushed. I couldn’t think of anything in her life that would rock her enough to make her sound like this.
“Like I said, I don’t believe everything is a fairy tale. But I do believe that everyone meets someone in their life who will make it seem like their life is as close to a fairy tale as it can get.”
“Okay,” I said on a breath.
“Anyway!” She straightened her back and shook herself as a bright smile lit up her face. “I will get you to read a book one day, just you wait.”
“And I’ll just leave it there because I love the smell of books.” I looked behind me at all the shelves of books, and smiled. “I would work here just so I could have two of the best smells in the world. Coffee and books.”
“Why don’t you?”
“Hmm?” I turned to look at Charlie, my forehead creased. “Why don’t I what?”
“Work here. You told me the other night at Jagger’s that you were looking for a job. Unless you start your own business, you’re not going to find much in Thatch. Or you could always
travel into another town to work in an office.”
“I don’t want to work in an office,” I grumbled. “I can’t see myself sitting behind a desk all day.”
“Didn’t think so, and unless you’re about to turn into my mom and go through a bunch of phases where you try to make things, I’d say you don’t have many options.”
“Your mom and her phases . . .” I trailed off and laughed. “Yeah, definitely not going in that direction either.”
“So then what’s wrong with here?”
I looked around The Brew, pretending to look at it like I was seeing it for the first time. Until I was six or so, the coffee shop and bookstore had been two separate businesses. We didn’t have a Starbucks in Thatch; if you wanted amazing coffee, you went to The Brew. The bookstore had been owned and run by an old woman who really only carried books that she liked to read. When she got to a point in her life where she knew she needed to stop working, she’d just been planning to shut down the bookstore. And considering we didn’t have a library or actual bookstore anywhere within an hour from here, that meant bye bye books.
The owners of The Brew had bought out her store, knocked out the wall separating them, and updated the books and the look of the store so it was now inviting and there was something for everyone. On Thursday nights there was live music, and it really was one of the best places in Thatch to just sit and relax—especially during the winter. Jerry and Anne were the owners, and you never found the store without both of them in it. They loved their shop and all the people in it, and would easily be the best bosses around.
“I guess nothing is wrong with working here. I love this place, I’d just never thought of working here. I’ll talk to Anne before I leave.”
“There you go. Job search over,” Charlie said confidently, and I snorted.
“Uh, one, I never actually started searching. Two, no one said they would hire me.”
“Well, considering I talked to Anne while I was looking for books, and she told me she was going to have to put up a sign soon since one of the employees quit because she was having twins, and two of the others put in two-week notices since they were leaving for college . . . I’d say she’d be happy if you told her you wanted a job.”
“I would be happy.”
I turned around to see Anne standing at the end of the couch, bent over so she could rest her elbows on the arm.
“Good morning, Anne,” I said with a smile.
It didn’t surprise me that she’d chimed in on our conversation. That’s how she was, always flitting around the shop, talking with everyone. If it weren’t for Jerry, she’d probably stay out talking the entire day.
“Morning, girls. So, Grey, you gonna come work for me?”
“Would you like me to?”
“Let me think . . .” She clucked her tongue and gave me a look. “Um, of course! Why don’t you come in next Monday around two-ish, I’ll have you do all the paperwork, and then we’ll start training you for the registers and the coffee.”
