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She seemed so at ease, and without much make-up, her natural beauty shone. The customers handed her their dishes, and she took them behind the counter.
Derek took a deep breath before saying, “Hey Kylie.”
“Hey.” Her smile lit him up inside.
“Audrey told me you’re selling your clothes to pay for the fair?”
“Yeah.” The cups rattled as she set them down. “It turns out I have a lot of clothes I don’t really need anymore.”
“But you told me you were broke,” he said. “Shouldn’t you be saving that money for yourself?”
“Honestly, I’ll be fine. I’m kind of sick of them anyway. They just remind me of my epic failure.”
“I was a jerk for giving you a hard time about your clothes before. And now you’re giving them away to help…the town. It’s incredibly generous.”
“Well yeah, you were being kind of a jerk about that. But thank you for saying so.” She smirked.
Derek stuffed his hands into his pockets. “Are you going to be at Nick and Jillene’s tomorrow night?”
“Am I welcome?” She cocked an eyebrow.
“Of course.” He shrugged. “I’m done being an ass. Scout’s honour.” He held up three fingers.
“Good to know. It’ll depend on how quickly I can clean up after the sale, but I’ll try to make it.”
“Great. I’ll see you then.”
~ * ~
Friday night, Sandy agreed to let Kylie start setting up before close. Right at seven o’clock the door opened as her mom and dad, followed by Audrey and Steph, carried in duffle bags and garbage bags of her stuff. Kylie had borrowed a few rolling clothing racks from the dance studio and slid the unoccupied tables together. The clothes got hung up. The shoes and boots lined the floor along the bookshelves, and the tables were covered with the purses and a collection of scarves, hats, and jewelry.
At eight o’clock sharp the bell above the door rang as group after group of women, and some men, came in. Sandy wisely kept the café running, and people bought teas and coffees to sip while they browsed through all the clothing and accessories. Kylie used her own pocket money to put out a plate of cookies by the jewelry to entice buyers over.
The sun was setting outside, but the café was lively with happy people and chatter. She went from shopper to shopper trying to help them find the perfect outfits or gifts.
Jillene arrived, but she started to get weepy eyed at the clothes she couldn’t fit into with her pregnant belly. Luckily, Steph swooped in and directed her to the handbags and scarves.
Edna and her friends came in. “Oh hey, sweetie,” Edna said, gripping Kylie’s arm. “Thanks so much for inviting us. It’s not often we have plans to go out on a Friday night anymore.”
“What do you all usually do on Friday nights?” Kylie asked, leading Edna and her posse over to the seats around one of the remaining tables.
“Grey’s Anatomyreruns,” Shirley said.
“Oh Shirley, you make us sound so boring.” Edna smacked her friend on the arm. “She’s not wrong though. Friday isGrey’snight.”
“Well in that case, I am honoured you’re missing McDreamy for my little gathering.” Kylie placed her hand over her heart and bowed.
“I for one am hoping to get Grandma of the Year Award for finding something amazing for my granddaughter’s birthday,” Grace said.
“I’ll bring over some of my favourite things.” Kylie left them and scanned the handbags to pick out some things for the women to look at.
A group of people came in that she guessed were in their early twenties. They went straight to the clothing racks and started talking very excitedly as they slid hangers aside to examine each piece.
“You can try them on in the bathroom if you need to,” she said, passing them with a smile as she went to help an older couple checking out the jewelry.
Audrey slid up to Kylie’s side and whispered, “Randy just bought a Dolce & Gabbana purse.”
“What?” She must’ve misheard her.
