“And she likes to color? I found a bunch of adult coloring books I had planned to sell at the sidewalk sale. I would love to give them to your mom and the other patients at her facility instead.”
That was what he remembered about Emma. She was always kind to everyone, even long-haired skateboarder punks like he had been.
“That would be great. She and her friends all love to color. But I’m happy to buy them. You don’t have to donate them. Your mom pays me a very good salary and I don’t have that many things to spend it on.”
“I want to,” she said. “Remind me to grab them before you go.”
“Thank you.”
“How did you come to be working for Lucas Construction?” she asked after a moment.
“I started when we were back in high school. The summer before our senior year.”
He wasn’t surprised she didn’t remember. That was around the time she had basically become a different person, more interested in hanging out with the stoners and partiers than anything else.
“You remember that job I suggested to Jack? Cleaning up jobsites at the end of the day? That’s where I started. After graduation, your mom offered me regular employment, though I didn’t know much about construction except what I learned in high school shop class. Rosie has been great to me. I owe her more than I can say.”
“She thinks very highly of you,” Emma said stiffly.
“And vice versa.”
They talked about people they both knew until Emma pushed her plate away. “Well, you’re right. That pizza was deliciously addicting.”
“See? Wood Briar has a few other things to recommend it besides the nice people and the beautiful scenery.”
Her mouth twisted into a smile and he wondered what she would do if he leaned over and kissed her right here in this cramped office.
“Thanks for sharing with me,” he said instead. “Now put me to work so I can pay for my supper.”
“I won’t turn down your help, if you’re sure you don’t mind.”
“Not at all. I’m at your service,” he said.For whatever you might need.
“You’re probably going to be sorry you offered. I needa lotof help.”
“Point me in the right direction.”
She put him to work moving boxes of books for the sidewalk sale the next day. He hauled a dozen heavy boxes and stacked them near the front door while Emma continued going through shelves to pull out inventory.
“How are you planning to display all these books for the sale?”
“Apparently Grandma uses a couple of folding tables and puts the boxes on that. The bookstore also has a shelter she puts up in case of a sudden rainstorm. I guess I need to bring those out, too. They’re back in the storage area.”
“I’ll grab them. Point me in the right direction.”
“I’ll have to show you.”
She led him through a small hallway near the single restroom to a doorway with a sign that said Staff Only on it. The space was perhaps fifteen or twenty feet across, running nearly the entire length of the store.
He looked around, taking in their surroundings. The area was windowless and narrow but the high ceiling gave an impression of space. His mind raced with possibilities. “Why is this used for storage instead of retail space?”
“Believe me, I’ve wondered the same thing. If I had unlimited resources, I would love to create a doorway through the wall of the main retail store and expand into here.”
“That coffee and pastry shop we talked about would be perfect in here. You could take the whole front half for that. You could even punch a window out onto Main Street.”
“Is that possible?” She looked intrigued and excited at the idea, her features bright and animated.
“Why not? Rosie owns the whole building. She can do what she wants, as long as she doesn’t break any zoning restrictions. As this is already zoned commercial, she should be fine to expand into here.”