Tori fussed with the cake, turning it one way, then the other. “Ready,” she announced, stepping back from the cake.
Brierley made her way over to the front door, turned the signage around to show that the store was open and peered out.
An expression of shock came over her to see the healthy gathering outside. A small crowd had formed outside the newlyopened re-shop. Self-consciously, she tucked her hair behind her ear and wished that she’d had time to get changed into something more appropriate than her day-wear sundress. But she was beaming. As the first couple approached, she greeted them personally and welcomed them into the store. They made positive-sounding noises as they browsed the store, taking great care to look at the jewellery on display and taking in the decor. As she glanced back, she saw Gorim and his wife, waving enthusiastically in the gathering. She grinned, returning the gesture. Happy that he’d kept his promise of being present for her launch celebrations.
Within minutes, the store was packed with visitors, both locals and tourists, all eager to try on or look at Ohpaua’s creations. Brierley took great care in speaking to several of the visitors, recognising some of them from her exuberant chatter on the day of distributing leaflets. She eagerly showed some of them around the store and told them about how she made the wares. Tori was busy serving customers, wrapping up gifts in boxes and handing them over to happy patrons in little cardboard bags, with fond farewells and well wishes to see them home.
Tori managed to give Brierley a flash of an encouraging smile before dipping off to help another prospective purchaser. Someone called Brierley over, explaining that they were a local influencer and asked if she’d be allowed to take pictures of the store. She leapt at the chance, anything to help, so off her designs. It was then that she felt a twist of guilt. The designs on offer weren’t all hers. A large handful of them belonged to Breht. A longing look came over her as she gazed towards the door, hoping that the large framed orc would come through at that very moment. He had been her partner in these changes, and she missed his enthusiasm. The way he’d have held her hand right at the beginning and then let go once she’d found her way. She’dbeen a fool to send him away without having heard his word. All thoughts of him were distracted as a fresh wave of visitors came into the store instead.
By the end of the evening, she was exhausted. So many enthusiastic visitors had come into the shop, leaving with a set of earrings or a necklace as a memento from their holiday. She slumped down in her chair, sprawling her arms over the side. “That was incredible,” she whispered when Tori closed the door on the last customers. She sat up and looked around the store, seeing empty display pieces that desperately needed filling before the shop opened once more. “I bet we’ve taken more money tonight than the previous six months combined!”
“No doubt, some of these pieces have sold for hundreds!”
“You’re kidding!?” Brierley asked, her head snapping up to look at her friend.
“No word of a lie,” Tori replied, picking up a slice of cake from the table and passing it across.
“I wish Breht had been here to see this,” Brierley said forlornly. Taking the cake and stabbing it with the offered plastic fork. “I owe him so much.”
“You’ve not spoken to him yet?” Tori asked.
Brierley shook her head. “I’ve not had the chance,” she had been busy all afternoon. The evening had snuck up on her.
“He’s not called?” Tori asked another question; her tone was sharp.
“You know, I’ve not even had the chance to check my phone,” Brierley confessed, putting her cake down on her work desk. She picked her phone up from underneath the counter and lookedat it. The blood drained from her face when she saw the sheer number of missed calls. Thirteen.
She turned her phone around to show Tori. Her thoughts whirled between affection and guilt. Breht clearly wanted to speak with her after having called her so many times, and she sure had some explaining to do.
“You have got to call that poor boy back! Right now!” Tori protested. “He’ll be going out of his mind!”
“How come you know him so well all of a sudden?” Brierley joked.
“He called me earlier and told me everything.” Tori confessed, “I said to give you some time and space to figure things out for yourself, but I didn’t expect you to ignore your phone!”
Tori stood up from the counter she’d been leaning against and plucked her bag from the floor. “I’ll give you some privacy,” she hurriedly added. Not wanting to be called out for talking to her friend's boyfriend behind her back. Not wanting to give all the details of the looming conversation away. What was about to transpire was between the two of them, and, as much as she loved a good gossip, the conversation wasn’t hers to pry into.
The happy sound of the bell rang out once again, and before Tori vanished behind the door, she called out, “Don’t forget to lock up behind me.”
Brierley got to her feet and pulled the keys from her back pocket, making her way over to the door. As she crossed the shop floor, she had a look at the empty display cases. Her eyes fell on a few of the remaining pieces. The jewellery that remained was mostly the ones that she’d come up with herself. Only a small handful of the ones remaining had been designed by the orc; shewasn’t perturbed by the fact but joyous for him. When she’d told Tori that she owed Breht a lot for what he’d done for Ohpaua, for her very livelihood, she meant it. She looked down at her phone again, tapped his name and started the phone ringing; finally calling him back.
“Hello?” Answered the gruff voice she’d become so familiar with. There was something wrong. No lilting, encouraging quality that she had become so accustomed to. If anything, the orc sounded harried, busy with something, and a wash of fear came over her. What if she was interrupting him?
“I shouldn’t have called, sorry,” Brierley hurried, looking for an excuse to hang up, but wanting nothing more than to linger on the line and listen to his alluringly deep voice. What was to follow wouldn’t be an easy conversation, and as someone who detested confrontation, she felt anxious.
“No, Brierley, you’re fine. How did it go this evening?” His tone was reassuring and encouraging. He sounded like he genuinely wanted to know.
“It was incredible, Breht,” she breathed, crossing the room so that she could recline in her chair and rest her aching feet while they spoke. “I’m going to have a few busy days working on replenishing the sold stock, but you should have seen it! The store was packed out, and we sold nearly all your designs.” On the other end of the phone, she could hear him moving about.
“That’s great, Bri,” he encouraged with a sliver of his usual enthusiasm.
“Am I disturbing you?” She ventured.
“Not at all, I’m just packing.”
“Packing?” She asked, dumbfounded for a moment.
“Yeah, got to head back to the office tomorrow.”
