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I expected the typical motel shop—a cross between a convenience store and a souvenir shop stocked with necessities like aspirin in overpriced small containers, razors, and toothbrushes, as well as travel-related and souvenir items, like maps, postcards, and T-shirts and spoons with slogans about the local area.
This wasn’t that kind of shop.
Chapter Ten
This was the kind of shop that wouldn’t even be possible in my hometown. Let’s just say it catered to the honeymooning customer. If you looked in the mirror on the ceiling over your bed and thought you’d look better with body glitter, then you could dash across the parking lot and get it, along with several varieties of flavored lotions and powders, feathers in every color of the rainbow, bubble bath to use in that heart-shaped tub, and, of course, edible underwear, in case you worked up an appetite.
The motel’s manager came over from the office, and she noticed me before I could sneak away. “Hi there, how can I help you?” she asked.
I backed away a step or two. “Um, well, I was looking for some things, but this probably isn’t the right shop for me.”
“Oh, you’re the new wife from that couple who checked in late last night, aren’t you? Eloped, your husband said. I guess if you were in such a hurry, you must have forgotten something.”
Ah, so that was the story Ethan had told about why he wanted a honeymoon suite and hadn’t made a reservation. “Yeah, that would be us. And I did forget a few things.” I gave the display a sidelong glance and shuddered. “But not those kinds of things.”
She laughed heartily. “Don’t worry about the up-front merchandise. That’s just for show. I’ve got all kinds of stuff. What do you need?”
I looked at the list again, and there actually was an off chance that this shop would stock some of it. “I need some candles—but nothing scented. White if you’ve got them.”
“Of course we’ve got candles. Come on over here.” She led me to the other side of the store, which looked more like the motel shop I’d been expecting. “Candlelight in all those mirrors is very flattering. It makes your skin glow, and it hides a lot of figure flaws. Just don’t burn your room down,” she added with a wink.
She pointed at a shelf full of candles in ceramic holders. They all had various bride and groom figures and the legend “Our honeymoon in the Poconos.” Oh yeah, that was exactly what I wanted to buy to use with my boyfriend, my ex-boyfriend, and my boss, but beggars couldn’t be choosers. The woman got me a shopping basket and I put four of the candles in there.
“Do you need some matches?” the woman asked.
Owen could start fires with a snap of his fingers, so I shook my head and said, “No, I don’t think that’ll be necessary.”
“Anything else you need?”
I felt my cheeks burn as I realized that the body glitter might work as the metallic powder Owen had asked for. “Some of that body glitter would be good,” I said, unable to meet the woman’s eyes.
“What color do you want?”
I had no idea. He hadn’t specified. “Oh, I don’t know…”
“I bet gold would look good on you, especially in the candlelight,” she said after giving me a long, appraising stare.
“Um, okay, sure,” I mumbled. Owen would owe me for this, big time.
“Is that all?”
Since I was already there, I thought I might as well see what else I could come up with. “Can I just browse for a while?”
“Sure. Let me know if you need anything. Or if you need any ideas. Trust me, I’ve been married for thirty years. I know how to keep things spicy.”
I was suddenly very glad Owen had made me go on my own. I might survive the mortification, but if he’d been there, I wouldn’t have been able to look him in the eye ever again, assuming he survived the stroke he’d have had. I checked the list. Owen wanted fennel, marigold, rosemary, and peppermint, as well as cloves and anise. I couldn’t imagine finding all that here, but I might as well look. Among the bath products was a package labeled “Bath Herbs for Lovers.” I picked it up and read the ingredient label. It contained fennel, marigold, rosemary, and peppermint, along with a few other things like orange blossom and rose petals. I wondered if that would work and threw the package in my basket.
Owen hadn’t specified what scent air freshener he wanted, so I took a bottle of room spray in “mountain fresh.” Back in the less embarrassing gift shop part of the store, I found some souvenir bowls of potpourri. One shaped like a heart smelled of anise and clove, so I put that in the basket. I also picked up several “Souvenir of the Poconos” ashtrays. At the very back of the shop was the convenience store that I expected to find in a motel, and there I got a couple of plastic salt shakers and a travel-sized tin of aspirin.
The woman gave a low whistle when I went to check out. “Well, well, well, you’ve got some honeymoon planned, haven’t you?” she said, waggling her eyebrows. “You didn’t need my help, after all. Not that I judge. Whatever floats your boat, I always say. But this is definitely unusual.”
“Yeah, well, we are from New York,” I said with a shrug.
“Oh,” she said, as if that explained everything. “You do know the room is nonsmoking, right? I allow candles, but I draw the line at cigarettes,” she said as she wrapped the ashtrays in paper.
“Those are just souvenirs,” I said. “Gifts for some relatives.”
“Okay, then.” She leaned forward across the counter and gave me a leering wink. “Have fun, and enjoy your honeymoon.”
