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“What I meant,” he chuckled, “was we’re still doing okay, all things considered.” He gestured around the empty mall. “There aren’t many of us left.”
“Five stores,” I replied, “including you.”
I’d counted on the way in. Gone was the ratty-but-lovable arcade I’d played outdated games in when I was young. Same for the candy kiosk, the barber/stylist, the hobby shop, and the old coin store. Pancake Cottage was not only out of business, but if you peered through the dirt-caked windows you could see the tables were still set, silverware and everything. It looked like something out of Chernobyl, where everyone just up and left in the middle of the day.
But the lotto and scratch-off store was still in business. Apparently hope was always on sale. There was a shady-looking gym that used to be a Blockbuster Video, and a discount shoe store that somehow made it. Finally the liquor store was still open too, even after changing places within the mall more times than I could count.
“You’re busy though,” I pointed out. “And that’s good, right?”
Tyler took the towel slung over his shoulder and used it to mop his brow. “We’re barely making expenses, to be honest,” he said. “But we are making it so I can’t complain. The landlord raised the rent a few times, but he doesn’t have the heart to do it again. He’s a nice old man. He doesn’t have the energy to fix this place up, or the willpower to sell it to a developer.”
I shrugged. “Maybe you should move.”
Tyler laughed. “Move Aegean? You’re kidding right? This place would turn to dust.”
“Look at how many people are here,” I pointed out. “In a dying mall.”
“So? We have a following. A decades-long customer base.”
“Exactly,” I agreed. “Now just imagine what you could do in a busy shopping center.”
For a moment my eyes wandered, admiring how hot my ex-boyfriend looked in a plain white T-shirt. Did he always look this way? It was a damned good question.
The last time I’d dated Tyler he worked for his parents, the original owners. I’d found out that his foster father had passed away in his sleep, and his foster mother had followed him — loneliness, no doubt — a month or two later. This left Tyler as the sole heir to the pizzeria. He could’ve walked away or sold it for what little it was worth, but he’d stayed on regardless of the challenges posed by the declining mall.
And now here he was, struggling to keep his head above water, in a place that was way, way past its prime.
“Sorry we didn’t call or text,” Tyler said awkwardly. “We wanted to give you some space.”
“Space, huh?”
“Yeah.”
He slung his towel back and set his hands on his hips.
“Actually, stopping Luca was the hardest part. Turns out you made quite an impression on him.”
Without asking he reached back and poured a diet Dr. Pepper from the ancient beverage fountain, with extra ice. His memory always was fantastic. He handed it to me, straw and everything.
I closed my lips around it gratefully and took a few gulps.
“He even wanted to send you flowers the next day but we talked him out of it.”
I chuckled. “Luca?”
“Yes.”
I punched him playfully in the arm. “Why’d you stop him?”
Tyler shrugged. “If anyone’s sending my girl flowers, it’s gonna be me.”
I flushed a little warmer, trying not to let my face go red.Does he really still see me as his girl?
“All three of you could’ve put your name on the card,” I suggested. “I wouldn’t have minded.”
My ex-boyfriend dragged me over to one of the corner tables, away from the customers. Still sipping my soda, we slid into our old, usual seats.
“The way we took care of you the other night, maybe you should be sendingusflowers.”
