“I’d really…like…you…to…uh, talk to me first about these things.” She sputters out the words, and they’re punctuated by angry breaths that make her chest rise and fall.
She has a mint green blouse on, a white camisole peeking from below, and tight black yoga pants that end in skinny legs at the bottom, cupping her shapely, long legs tightly. Her black ankle boots have enough of a heel to push up her calf and boot muscles, and her pants are tight enough to show both off smashingly. I realize I’m staring, but I also realize I’ve never fully looked at Luna before. I mean, I’ve looked at her. I’ve seen all of her many times, even without clothes on, but she’s so much more than just that. I was never one to notice the little things.
Like how she has her waist-length black hair braided into a fancy braid and curled into a tight knot at the base of her neck, but she’s left a few of the shorter strands down to frame her face. She also applied only the lightest makeup—some color on her lips and cheeks—which very well might be her annoyance and not makeup, but still. She’s wearing a set of gold earrings that dangle down like small teardrops with opal stones and diamonds surrounding them, and at her neck is a sparkling necklace with a matching opal and diamond pendant. It’s a lovely set, elegant because it’s simple, and it looks even more alluring against her creamy skin. I know she made all of it, and my heart swells with pride before I can stop it.
My heart is not the only thing swelling, either.
I rip my eyes away as the bracelet continues burning, burning, burning.
Luna crosses her arms and gives me a look that says she has work to do, I’m interfering with her day, and she doesn’t appreciate it, so I better say what I came to say.
“The meeting. Yes, you wanted to know about that. Well, I…never mind about that.”
She blinks. “Uh, okay…”
“I mean, what I wanted to say is that I would like to tell my cousins. But if I told them, they’d want to meet Milo, and Milo doesn’t know about me, so…”
“Right. Yeah.” She nods her head up and down, and a strand of her dark wispy hair flies around like there’s a breeze in the shop. At least the lights aren’t flickering on and off today. “I’ve been thinking about it for a week. So far, I’ve had zero luck hiring a new nanny. I got Charlotte by a lucky accident. She’s been my babysitter for years when I needed one, like after hours or when my other nanny was sick, or when I had to work extra hours or whatnot. My nanny quit on me at the beginning of summer, and Charlotte filled in when she was off school. I knew I needed to make an ad long before she told me she was going to quit since I knew she’d have to go back to school in September. I put one together and got it out there, but so far, I haven’t had any serious responses.”
“I’m good, Luna. I like this. It’s a pleasure being with Milo all day.”
She stiffens, but her eyes grow soft. It’s obvious she’s at war with herself, even before she says as much. “I’ve been in this constant state of anxiety, wondering what I should tell my mom and dad and my sister. I haven’t told anyone. I…not about Milo. They know all about Milo, obviously. And whose he is. It was obvious. But they don’t know that you know. I haven’t figured out how to tell them or how to answer all their questions, so I get it.”
“I think we have to tell Milo first before we tell anyone else. I know I said I’d leave the timing up to you, but…”
“But?”
“But maybe we can’t wait any longer?”
Luna sways backward and thumps down hard on her stool. It’s one of those twisty things, so it goes down a few notches, and Luna lets out a shriek of surprise. I’m there, at her side, ready to catch her if she falls—this time, I’m ready—but it’s clear from the way she thrusts her hands out to ward me off that she doesn’t need my help. I back up, giving her space.
I can smell her perfume now, which is funny because she doesn’t wear any that I know of. The perfume is all her. It’s her skin, the unique scent of her body, her hormones and chemistry, a mix of shampoo, laundry soap, a little bit of the same smell that clings to the shop, and something citrusy. She smells like metals and stones, like the materials of the earth she works with, hewing, shaping, and creating.
How could I ever have thought that what she did, didn’t matter? How could I have ever thought it was anything less than fascinating? She creates miracles out of freaking rocks, which is pretty spectacular. And what do I do? Well, I do lots. Most of it at night now. I’ve learned the art of using the people I have in place, like managers and staff. I let them do their jobs for a change, and it’s really taken a chunk out of my workload. So far, none of my stores have crumbled, and my empire isn’t set to expire. A lot of stuff has moved online now anyway. All I’ve had to do is check numbers, as I’ve always done, and do more delegating. I think I could get used to it.