AllFreeNovel
Share Us
The curiosities most often acted as reminders of something that had once brought joy that might now be missing from that person’s life. Then they sparked a desire to seek that happiness again.
Ava ran a thumb over the crown of the thimble. “But I don’t understand why you’re giving this to me. Is it part of the job?”
“My job? I guess you could say so.” My daddy had created the Curiosity Corner for me about six months after my mama disappeared, after it had become clear that I’d picked up collecting curiosities where she had left off. Here at the shop, where I spent so much time, was the best place to house them.
Rosiness bloomed in Ava’s fair cheeks. “I meant, is this thimble for the job I’m applying for? I’m pretty good with a needle and thread, and I have to admit I have a fondness for sewing. My grandmother was the one who taught me.” She held up her sleeve arm, showing off an embroidered hedgehog surroundedby flowers on the fabric. “There was a hole there when I bought this blazer.”
The hedgehog was adorable, quirky, and charming, but I was still stuck on the part she’d mentioned about applying for a job, since I was down an employee. “Do you have any experience as a barista?”
Ava’s big eyes blinked slowly. “I think there’s been some confusion. I’m here to interview for the caretaker opening.” She reached into her tote bag and pulled out a crinkled piece of paper and scanned it. “For the peculiar old man?Oh no.”
“What?”
“In my rush to get here—I drove through the night from Ohio—I didn’t stop to think about how old this listing might be. Well, not in terms of the actual job, anyway. I was too busy thinking about—” She cut herself off. “I’m rambling. Sorry. The interviews were probably weeks ago. I feel so stupid.” She let out a deflated sigh, then a second later lifted hopeful eyes. “I don’t suppose there’s any chance the job is still available?”
It took me a second to process what she was saying.A peculiar old man?My heartbeat kicked up a notch. “May I?” I motioned to the paper.
She handed it over.
HELP WANTED
Patient, energetic, unflappable in-home caretaker wanted for a peculiar, stubborn old man; a spoiled, she-devil cat; and a cluttered, possibly haunted beach house…
As I read, my heart started beating so loudly that it felt like everyone in the room could surely hear it. This was the want ad I’d put in the window a month or so ago, then torn down and thrown away. At the top of it, someone had scribbled a short message to her.
“Where did you get this?”
“It came in the mail.”
A noise rose from outside, sounding like a flock of overexcited seagulls that had just spotted a beach picnic. The Mermaids had breached the square. “Who sent it?”
“There wasn’t a return address, but I think… I think it came from someone I used to know. Alexander. An ex-boyfriend. That kind of looks like his handwriting at the top.”
“Does he live near here?” I asked, trying to understand. Had the man gone through Magpie’s trash?
Ava looked over her shoulder, toward the front window. A monarch butterfly was fluttering against the glass, looking like it was trying to get inside. Her face drained of color, and she turned back toward me, her eyes pained.
“No, he doesn’t.”
“This is all very strange. The want ad was just me venting mostly, not an actual job opportunity. I threw this away after typing it up. That’s why it’s crumpled.” I handed the paper back to her. “I don’t know how it found its way to you.”
The clouds shifted. Ripples of light caught my eye. Sunlight sparkling on sequins. Estrelle leaned against a lamppost just outside the shop. She watched us through the window, and I easily heard her voice in my head, telling me,Youwillhire her.
Herbeing Ava?
Had to be, with the way Estrelle was looking on.
Good god. I certainly didn’t want to be on Estrelle’s bad side. I easily recalled the head-to-toe blistery rash Kitty Bethune had suddenly developed after denying she’d called Estrelle a creepy old hag. Some said the rash had come from a blueberry allergy or was simply swimmer’s itch, but everyone around here knew that Estrelle doled out her own form of justice just as much as she handed out advice. I’d not heard Kitty utter a single bad word against Estrelle since. Or anyone else, for that matter.
“So there’s no job?” Ava asked, her shoulders slumping.
As I stood there, I realized my headache had faded, barely pulsing now. It was as if my body recognized that Ava’s presence in my father’s life would helpmystress levels.
And lord knew, I needed to lower those levels.
“I didn’t say that. There are extenuating circumstances. Butwith that being said, I’m curious why this job even interests you. It wasn’t the most appealing description.”
“Alex, he, well, he…” Her voice was so quiet I could barely hear her and then she trailed off, the words falling into nothingness. Finally, she took a deep breath and pressed on. “You mentioned this was strange. It gets even stranger. Alex passed away a month ago, just weeks after we broke up.”
