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“Alright, alright, we can reinstall the stained glass. I put them away in the shed,” I relent.
Chet wrestles the huge heavy glass monstrosities one by one out of what I thought would be their forever home. It never occurred to me that Auntie M. was designing the place for comfort and not aesthetics.
I watch him work on top of the ladder crowbarring my beautiful bay windows out of the wall. So much time, so much money laying in a heap at my feet. On the positive side, I now have a gorgeous bay window for the sitting room in Auntie M.’s side of the house. Chet will be putting in more work around here if he’s not careful.
“You’ll see, the reinstallation of these windows is a huge sign of good faith with the community. They’ll warm up to you before you know it,” he assures me.
“What else should I consider?” I ask.
Chet carries the window panes into my shed. Some two at a time, I try not to stare. He stops after carrying an arm load and thinks for a minute.
“Take out the trellis and fake flowers. Also, I know you put in that recess lighting above the booths. I wouldn’t tear that out, but you need to add a dimmer switch so the place doesn’t get too bright at night.”
“Night time? I close at eight!” I insist.
Chet smiles. “And that’s something Chris and Ms. Maria worked out. She’d serve’em dinner and then everyone would go over to Chris’s for drinks and hang out there the rest of the night. Your aunt was a hell of a darts player.”
Wow, this place sounds so close knit. More so than I am used to, how can I ever think I’ll be able to fit into this town of — unusual characters?
Chet lifts another arm load. He smirks when his eyes meet mine.
“That’s quite impressive,” I coo. I’m flirting like a teenager, but Chet doesn’t seem to mind.
“Yeah it’s one of the perks of the — the other guy. It comes in handy when he has to drag off a deer carcass,” he replies.
I wince at the imagery of a dead deer. Chet notices my discomfort. He hurriedly shoves the rest of the bay windows into the shed.
“You’ve got me for the full day. I’ll help you make the changes I mentioned,” he offers.
I droop a little with sadness, but I follow him to the wall outlets to help him install the dimmers. It’s nice to have a friend here. Although, if I’m honest, things could go a little differently very easily.
* * *
Chet is right,as soon as the windows reappear, so do my customers. Carolyn and Dylan begin coming in for coffee breaks. Mr. and Mrs. Murphy have a standing Tuesday night dinner reservation. Although she says she has some suggestions for my meatloaf recipe. I fall into the town’s rhythm. I can see why Auntie M. liked it here so much.
When word was put out that the school needed to make fundraising plans, I volunteered my cafe as a meeting spot. The first meeting, I meet the famous Billy. The boy is still transparent, but he is so polite when I take his order. I’m not sure how he will eat a triple fudge sundae, but I make it anyway.
I sit the dish down in front of the boy. Veronica looks over at it. “Why in the world did you order that?” she scolds.
“I thought it sounded good,” Billy answers.
“You don’t even have a stomach to digest that,” she presses.
Billy tries to pick up the spoon, but misses. “I thought we could enjoy it together,” he pouts.
“We need to decide what we’re going to do for the school fundraiser,” Veronica says.
Seeing a chance to contribute, I make a suggestion. “What about a bake sale?”
Veronica and Carolyn turn to me as if I asked them if my second head needed a root touch-up. Then again, that’s a simple yes or no question around here. Heck, Carolyn probably has ‘a girl’ that could help me with that.
Slowly as Veronica and Carolyn continue to spit ball ideas. I watch Veronica inch by inch reaching for the sundae. Billy smiles and I understand their relationship a bit better. I try not to giggle when she sees I am watching her shovel the chocolate into her face.
“What? We can’t let it go to waste,” she insists.
“Of course not,” I reply, holding back my chuckle.
6
