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This was not on his agenda today. Daniel lived by rules and procedures, and there was no room in his life for someone who thought it was okay to bring adoginto abookstore. He sighed and put down the paperback in his hands.
“What can I help you with today?”
The blonde wrapped the dog’s leash in her hands, the only belying nervousness behind that smile. “Yes, well. My name is Tessa Winters. I am new in town, and I am looking for employment. I have a resume.” She reached into her (quite large) purse and thrust out a crumpled resume.
Daniel did not reach for the resume, just fixed her with a steady gaze. “Look, I appreciate you coming in prepared. But we are not actually hiring right now. You can always check with Lily’s Diner.”
Tessa visibly deflated at that. “Oh. Well, I asked over there first. Lily said to check here.”
Of course she did,Daniel thought.Lily is always meddling.“Well, I apologize that you wasted a trip, but we aren’t looking. And you don’t exactly make a great first impression, Big City,” he looked down at the dog that was happily panting, taking in the new environment around him.
The words seemed to light a fire in Tessa. Her cheeks colored, and she stood up a little taller. “Well, there’s no need to be rude, Small Town.”
“I would argue you started it, bringing a dog into my shop,” Daniel protested, folding his arms across his chest.
“Istartedit? What are you, a seven-year-old girl?” Tessa mirrored his body language with an indignant huff. “All you had to say was no.”
Daniel opened his mouth to shoot back, but at that moment, Martha exited the back office, the paperback novel tucked beneath her arm. He thought he could see a picture of a shirtless and ridiculously muscular man on the cover.
“What is all this commotion out here?” Martha took off her reading glasses and let them hang from the chain around her neck. “Daniel, are you being rude to this beautiful young lady?”
Tessa beamed at that, and Daniel had to stifle a groan. “She was looking for a position here at the shop, but, as I explained to her, we don’t currently have any openings.”
At that, Martha blew a raspberry. “Oh, hush, Daniel. I realize you’re the manager here, but I am still the owner. And we have the money to hire extra help. Anyway, you spend entirely too much time here, and I know you don’t log all your hours,” she fixed him with a scolding look. “It would do us some good to have fresh blood around here.”
Crazy. Everyone had gone completely crazy. And he had a feeling they wouldn’t rest until he was right there with them. “Martha, can I speak with you in private?”
Martha sniffed and began polishing her glasses with her shirt. “I think that would be good, yes. Young lady, if you’ll give us just a moment,” she winked at her conspiratorially before walking toward the back office, Daniel following closely on her heels.
As soon as they were in the office with the door closed, Daniel sighed and ran his fingers through his light brown hair. “Martha, wedon’tneed another employee. We are doing just fine, just the two of us.”
With an undignified snort, Martha shook her head, “Daniel, in case you haven’t noticed, I am gettingold.”
“You don’t look a day over thirty-five,” he said with an affectionate smile. The truth was, Martha was pushing sixty-five. But they had always joked like this.
Martha affectionately swatted at his arm and chuckled. “You are a cad, my dear. But the point is, I don’t know how much longer I will be able to help with the shipments. We could use an extra set of hands. You don’t always have to be so stubborn, you know. So, give her a chance. She seems sweet,” she fixed him with an intent look.
Now, it was Daniel’s turn to snort, “I’m willing to concede that we could use an extra pair of hands. But I don’t know if I can go so far as to call that womansweet.”
“Well, maybe if you weren’t so prickly, her hackles wouldn’t be up right now. You didn’t exactly do your best to put her at ease.”
Okay, so maybe Daniel hadn’t been as welcoming as he could have been. But it wasn’t like he hadn’t been provoked. The whirlwind of chaos in which she had arrived had jarred him from his comfortable enjoyment of his book. Anyone would be cranky about that. He looked at Martha, whose green eyes had a sparkle that told him she knew she had won.
“Okay, fine. But if this doesn’t work out, I will rub your nose in ‘I told you so’ until the day St. Peter comes knocking.” The corners of his lips turned up in a teasing smile.
“Deal. Now, go tell that girl the good news,” she sat down at the desk and opened her paperback book, all pretense of “checking on the shipment” discarded. “I think this will be really good for you,” she said, not looking up from the pages. It was meant to come across as an afterthought, but Daniel knew better. Martha, like Lily, had her own ulterior motives.
When he returned to the front of the store, he found Tessa perusing the front display. Her fingers traced the cover of the new Brandon Sanderson. So she had good taste. That didn’t mean he was thrilled about her presence.
“Okay, well, it appears I have been overruled. Can you start tomorrow, Big City?”
To Daniel’s surprise, Tessa leaped up and down, clapping her hands. It was rare he witnessed an adult indulge in such a display of unbridled joy. Her dog joined in, tangling the leash around her as he dashed between her legs, barking and wagging his tail at a breakneck speed. It was amusing, to say the least. Who had they just invited into Daniel’s sanctum?
Finally, it seemed that Tessa realized how her display appeared and stopped her bouncing, brushing her hands on her blouse. “Sorry, I got a little carried away there. It’s just, I really needed a job. I sort of picked up and moved across the state in the middle of the night, which is like, crazy, I know. But it just seemed necessary for my fresh start. Of course, then I started thinking about money, andthatwas stressful, so—”
“So I take it you are accepting the offer?” Daniel cut off her stream of consciousness, worried about what else she might divulge if he let her prattle on.
“Oh. Yes. Of course, yes!” Tessa picked up a book from the display and placed it on the counter. It was, indeed, the new Brandon Sanderson. “But before I go indulge in a celebratory milkshake at Lily’s, I thought I would pick this up.”
