“I know you did, sweetheart. We’ll figure something out,” I assure her, rubbing circles into her back.
“That’s not all,” she says as she looks up at me.
I pull back and look at her face. “What do you mean?” I ask, preparing for more bad news.
“Let’s talk inside,” she says, and I go into panic overdrive. I quickly turn off my car and we head inside. We sit on the couch side by side, and Ember grabs my hand.
“Mrs. Phelps is closing down the bookstore. She doesn’t want to run it anymore, and people want more than just old books,” she says, squeezing my hand, and then continues. “She knows how much I love it, and she offered to sell me the inventory at cost, so that she can break even.” I see the light hint of a smile playing on her lips. “The only thing is that the building itself is going to be going through some remodeling and sold off so that she can try and make some money back.”
“So where does that leave you and the books?” I ask her, head cocked to the side and my eyebrows pulled into a crinkle.
“Well, I was thinking, and it’s only a thought…” she says, a hint no longer there, but a full spread smile stretched across her face. “The two commercial spaces next to the roastery are on the market.”
“So you want to work next to me?” I ask her, not quite understanding where she’s going with this.
“No, I want to workwithyou,” she tells me, her excitement barely contained.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
EMBER
Realization and understandingfinally dawns on Harley.
“I was thinking, if we buy the two spaces, we could open it up to be one storefront. We could leave the roastery sectioned off, but not close it off entirely. We could offer tours for those interested in the process.” I can barely contain all the ideas I have running through my head, and Harley sits and listens with a smile plastered on his face.
“I was thinking, everyone who you have graced with your coffee talents has gushed over it. What if we made it a bookstoreanda coffee shop?” I finally get to the point.
I wait for him to process, and he looks away, nodding his head to himself. He mumbles to himself a bit before looking back at me. A smile breaks out on his face, and I jump into his arms.
I begin telling him everything about the meeting. From start to finish. Mrs. Phelps was terrified and heartbroken to meet with me. She told me how sorry she was for everything that had happened at the bookstore when I was taken. She couldn’t even look me in the eyeas she talked to me, but if I am being honest, we both knew the time was coming for the bookstore to close shop. We had a small handful of regulars, but it wasn’t enough to keep it up and running.
“I have always dreamed of having my own bookstore,” I tell him. “Black book cases, with space for old authors who still get love, and new authors who need more love and visibility.”
“I want to see if we can wholesale little pastries from the local bakery. Just smaller things to snack on. A space for people to sit and drink their coffee and read their books. Big comfy chairs with a fireplace maybe?” I say excitedly.
“I think that it’s exactly what the town needs, honestly,” he tells me. “Eventually maybe we could add apparel and book accessories.” My heart swells, knowing that this isn’t just my fantasy anymore.
“Let’s go grab some dinner and talk some more,” he says, pulling me up from the couch.
“Let me go clean my face up since I cried all my makeup off,” I tell him before heading into the bathroom. When I walk into the bathroom, my phone rings in my back pocket, and I take it out, seeing Atlas’s photo across the screen. I answer it quickly, hoping nothing is wrong. Asher has been gone for just over a week now, so the girls have been adjusting to time without him.
“Hey, At. What’s going on?” I ask her, waiting for a response, frozen until I know she’s okay.
“Nothing, I was just calling to confirm what time you want me and Peanut to head over Friday to help move?” she says through the phone.
“You can come any time you want, but Harley is picking up the U-Haul at nine in the morning with Chase, and then they’re heading back here, and we’ll start then,” I tell her. “Honestly though, if you don’t want to, we’ll have plenty of help from Harley’s dude group.”
“I’m coming, Ember. You’ve done too much for me to not be there.” A laugh falls from her lips. “Plus, if I’m not needed, we can just stand around and be the managers of the situation.”
I laugh. “You know what? You’re right,” I agree with her. “No, but seriously, any time is fine.” She laughs and then gets quiet again.
“Have you heard from Asher?” I ask her, knowing their communication has been less than stellar.
“I talked to him once the other day, he really only wanted to talk to Peanut,” she says, and I hear the hurt in her voice.Motherfucker.
I have a sneaking suspicion, and every time I get a new update, it feels like we’re moving closer to the confirmation of it. I haven’t vocalized anything, to her or to Harley, because I’m hoping I’m wrong.
“I’m sure he’s got a lot going on during this mission, At. How’s the baby?” I ask her.
