“Tell me something. If this was your shop from the very start, what would you have done differently?”
I leaned my head on her shoulder and lay my arm across her chest, thinking back to when I was a kid. “I used to pretend I was a shopkeeper when I was little. I always envisioned the
way the lounge is now along with the wall, but I also wanted a place in the back to hold things like poetry readings or music.
The store’s too small, though. Without moving things around, they’d never fit.”
“What about the tower?” she asked, gesturing at the ceiling above us. “It might not be the most spacious room in the store, but it could offer something different.”
But this is our tower. I kept the thought to myself. It wasn’t ours, hers, or mine. It just was.
As though she could read my thoughts, she said, “I know how important it is to you, but if you really want to make the shop your own without adding in more tech, then something has to give.” She was starting to sound like my sister.
She was also right.
“I could do that, or I could move some of the smaller reading sections upstairs. Maybe the magazines and newspapers. It’s quieter up here, so folks can enjoy their morning paper in peace.”
She was shaking my head before I could finish. “No, the tower deserves better than that. Having a room for quiet readers isn’t going to bring in the traffic this place deserves.
However, if you hold something like a poetry reading and give something like a 10% off coupon for those who participate, it could mean more people in the door along with more sales.”
“Because of the coupon they receive.” I couldn’t believe it.
Not only was it a great idea, but I could honestly see it working out.
“Exactly,” she said with a nod, sitting up with her back pressed against the sofa. “If folks aren’t coming through that door, give them a reason to do so.” She paused a moment, then said something I never thought I’d hear. “In fact, why don’t we do this. You open up the tower for events once I get back, and I’ll book your first one.”
I looked at her with disbelief. “You’d do that?” She’d already played inside the shop, but to actually organize something like that? Here?
“This place has reignited a spark inside of me I feared was long gone,” she said, kissing the top of my head. “If I can give something back, I will. And because I know you won’t take donations…” She gave me a pointed look and left it at that.
“I’ll think about it,” I said, not wanting to force her into something she’d regret. “But no promises.”
“That’s all I ask.”
With our concerns out of the way, we both sat in silence, enjoying one another’s company. As the night went on, Cassidy got even quieter. A part of me worried it was because of something I’d said. In the end, it was simply because she was tired.
According to her, packing up to go on tour was as exhausting as it was trying to get back home. She’d been on her feet all day, occupying her time between last minute bookings and seeing that the rest of the crew’s needs were met.
She didn’t talk about them much, but there was the guy behind the equipment they set up, a few girls who sat outside with merchandise, the driver of the bus, and of course, her manager.
Knowing she had a few friends she could lean on made me feel a little better, even if it meant only getting to see her over the phone for a while.
As the candles slowly burned out, night finally descended on my little shop. A part of me wished I could go with her, not right away but sometime in the future. Granted, taking time away from the shop wasn’t realistic, but maybe if I begged Bridget, she’d
fill in until I got back.
I could only hope.
Chapter Seventeen
The days flew by after that, but Cassidy still found the time to drop by every day after lunch. Her visits were short, a small tease of what had been but still a lot more than one person probably deserved. I could see she was worried and that her upcoming tour stressed her out, but she never said a word.
Knowing she wanted to enjoy what little time we had left, I kept my concerns to myself, more than happy to push them aside for just one more hour with her.
But when she drew away from me instead of sinking in my embrace like she usually did, I knew something was wrong.
“What?” I asked, lifting her chin so I could see her eyes, eyes that were glazed over with tears. “What is it?”