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He squeezed her shoulders as they walked onto the porch and into the house. “I’m glad you’re happy for Sam. I’m happy for Sam. But sometimes, family can disappoint. I hope this isn’t one of those times.”
Chapter 2
Wednesday after lunch, the doorbell rang. Sam and a tall, muscular man walked into Rarity’s bookstore. She waved at them from the register, where she’d been working on a list of current and classic elementary-aged books for Janey to look through. Right now, Janey was sitting on the floor in the children’s books aisle, reading what they already had. Rarity had to admit, Janey was taking her new job seriously and getting ready for her first book clubin two weeks.
“Hey, guys, what’s going on?”
“Rarity, this is my baby brother, Marcus.” She pulled him toward the register counter. “Marcus, this is my best friend, Rarity. And don’t hit on her. She’s in arelationship.”
Marcus held out his hand. “All the good ones are. Nice to meet you, Rarity. This is a great shop. I’ve always wanted to run a bookstore, but IT pays a lot better. Or at least that’s what I’ve heard.”
“Since I used to do marketing for a large firm, and I know IT paid more than what I was making there, I think your sources are sound.” She shook his hand. Strong, quick, but warm. “On the other hand, there’s a lot to be said for work-life balance. I run my shop; then I go home and swim or take a hike. And if I want to head out for a day, I close the shop and leave. No one is telling me what to do, and I’m not punching a time clock. Of course, my paycheck is based on what I do, not my position.”
“You’re making self-employment sound more attractive.” He pointed toward the thriller section. “Mind if I glance through what you have? I need some reading material to keep me busy at night. I’m on vacation, and it’s killing me not to open the laptop and just work. Especially at night.”
“And that’s why you should come to Darby’s party tomorrow night.” Sam stared at me, waving her hand to get me to invite him as well.
“That’s a great idea. You’ll meet a ton of people from here. My boyfriend, Archer, will be there, and you can ask him about the hiking around here.” Rarity pointed to another section of bookcases. “We’ve got a ton of tourist and hiking books about the area. Oh, and Drew Anderson should be there too. He’s yoursister’s beau.”
“And one of Rarity’s friends. They share a love of dogs,” Sam added.
“I’ll think about it. But I do need some books.” Marcus excused himself and went to the other side of the store.
“What’s that about?” Rarity turned to Sam. “He doesn’t want to meetyour friends?”
Sam shrugged, staring after her brother. “I’m not sure. I know he just got out of a relationship. Maybe he just needs some alone time.”
“Well, if he’s going to be moving here, there will be plenty of ‘alone’ time. He needs to figure out if Sedona is the right fit. Living in this small of a town isn’t for everyone,” Rarity reminded her friend.
Janey came up from the other side of the store. “Sorry to bother you, but do you have that classics list? I think some of the books areshelved wrong.”
“That’s quite possible. The kids pull them out and put them back or don’t. I’d rather they didn’t, but I haven’t figured out a way to stop them.” Rarity reached down to get the sheet she’d printed out, when she saw Marcus come back with four books he sat on the counter. “Oh, Janey, this is Marcus. He’sSam’s brother.”
Marcus grinned at Janey, and Rarity could feel the heat between the two immediately. “Janey, so nice to meet you.”
“Looks like you’re going to be curled up in your room reading for a few weeks. I’m doing the same. I hate getting behind at the beginning of a term. And unlike undergrad, graduate students don’t get an easy year in the program. I can’t believe they want me to take stats.” She took the paper from Rarity.
“Is that what you’re reading now?” Marcus pointed to the paper.
Janey laughed and held it out so he could see. “Nope. I’m immersing myself in elementary literature for the book club I’m running in a couple of weeks. And there will be no math books for the club. Unless the kids outvote me.”
“I got As in my stats class. So if you ever need help studying, I’d be glad to help. I haven’t been away from college so long.” Marcus smiled at Janey.
Rarity felt like she and Samwere invisible.
“That would be great. I better get back to work. Lots to learn.” Janey nodded at me, then turned to Sam. “Nice to see you again, Sam. I guess I’ll see you tomorrowat the party?”
“Yes. I’ll be there. I’m trying to convince Marcus to go as well.” Sam punched Marcus lightly in the arm.
“You should go.” Janey waved and disappeared into the stacks.
The trio didn’t talk at first. Then Sam asked Marcus, “So you’re comingto the party?”
He stared at the spot where Janey had disappeared into a row of bookshelves.“I think I am.”
* * * *
Thursday morning, Rarity and Killer were on their way to the store when Drew Anderson pulled up beside them in his truck. Drew was a local police detective, Sam’s boyfriend, and the reason Rarity had Killer.
