4. Frankie
FOUR
Frankie
The small wooden cabin was lighter than I expected as I picked it up to examine it before setting it down with the rest of the small trinkets. The store smelled of pine and vanilla, which I had to imagine was due to the large assortment of candles in the back corner.
“What about this for Mom?” Mattie held up a pink-checkered sweater that did look exactly like something our mother would wear, except for one fact.
“Are you forgetting she lives in Florida?”
Mattie thrust the sweater into my hands. “Are you forgetting they’re taking another Alaskan cruise in a few months? Feel it. Isn’t it soft?”
The texture was indeed plush and luxurious. I fought the desire to bring it up to my cheek and nuzzle against it.
“I’m getting it,” Mattie insisted. “And I’m buying you this green one.” She held up an oversized cable-knit sweater that I’d been admiring when we first walked into the boutique.
“You don’t have to do that,” I protested, but she was already moving toward the checkout counter with the sweaters and a few additional items in hand.
Mattie had taken the day off today and insisted on showing me around Key Ridge. So far, that had entailed eating breakfast at her favorite diner, then she took me over to the small reservoir at the edge of town. The surface of the water was frozen and littered with cars and tents. She’d insisted it was fully solid, but I still couldn’t imagine feeling confident enough in nature to drive a car out to the middle of a lake. We’d walked around the outskirts of the reservoir before heading back to Main Street.
Now she was dragging me into every shop in town for a little retail therapy.
My mood had recovered a bit since arriving in Key Ridge a few days ago. While cheery might be too extreme of a word, I had at least stopped outright sulking. Mostly.
The job pool wasn’t great. So far, I’d only received rejections, but I was holding out hope. My résumé was good—I knew it was. Someone would see that and give me a call. They had to.
“There’s a crystal shop next door.” Mattie looped her arm through mine and led me back outside. She handed me the bag since she was already holding a few in her other hand. Even though this retail therapy was supposed to be for me, Mattie was doing most of the spending. I was financially responsible, and my savings were great. But not dropping money on clothes and random little trinkets was exactly how I’d be able to keep it great, especially when I had no idea when my next paycheck would be coming in.
“Crystals?” I shot her a puzzled look.
“Right. Like energy and manifestation and all that jazz.” She wiggled her fingers .
I raised an eyebrow. “You don’t believe in all that, do you?”
“It’s fun,” Mattie said as we walked outside, lingering in the crisp air for only a second before approaching the shop next door. Inside, the smell of incense overwhelmed all of my senses. The whole place was lined with shelves, crystals of all different sizes and colors scattered everywhere.
“Welcome in.” The owner sat behind the counter. At least I assumed he was the owner. He had long hair and half-moon spectacles pushed down the bridge of his nose. He looked exactly like the type of person who would own a crystal shop in a mountain town.
The crystals were grouped by type, and each section had a piece of paper taped to the shelf, describing what the crystal was and what it was good for.
“This is silly,” I whispered.
“Fun,” Mattie repeated, picking up a purple and green crystal the size of a golf ball and turning it over in her hands. “Besides, if anyone could use some positive energy right now, it’s you.”
“Thanks for that.” I lightly shoved her, but we were both smiling. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d spent a whole day with just my sister. We’d always been close, but living on opposite sides of the country meant significantly less time together.
“I’m happy you’re finally out of that dark basement. I can practically see the color returning to your face,” she said.
“I’m hardly down there,” I insisted, even though I knew for a fact that yesterday, I only came up to the main floor once to down a slice of pizza Giles had picked up.
“Any leads?” Mattie asked, setting back down the crystal and moving on to a collection of pink ones.
“Not really,” I sighed, deflated. “Hardly anyone is hiring. ”
“Something will happen eventually. It hasn’t even been a week.” Mattie offered me a sympathetic smile. “At least you’re here and not stuck in your condo in Atlanta. I’m so happy I get to finally show you around and spend time with you. It seriously feels like it’s been ages.”
“It has been too long.” Guilt crept into my voice.
Mattie had offered to buy me a plane ticket out here a number of times, but I’d always had an excuse not to come. And all of those excuses revolved around being busy with something or other at work. It was strange to think back on it. What had I thought was so important that I couldn’t take time off? Clearly, I was wrong because they had let me go without a second thought. They didn’t even ask me any questions about the projects that were on my plate—the same ones I thought were so vital—as I was on my way out the door. I had let them run my life, and to them, I was completely expendable.
“I’m glad I’m here too,” I admitted. “But it’s still weird to see you so at home here.”
“Really?” Mattie scrunched her nose. “I’m so used to it by now.”
“You’re different here,” I concluded. My sister had this glow about her that she’d never had before. The glow of being utterly content and happy. This town—and Giles—had brought this newfound life into her eyes that she hadn’t had before.
“Different good?” she asked.
“Very good.”
Her expression softened. “I hope some of that can rub off on you too. I know you’re only here for now, but enjoy it.”
“I am,” I said, holding up a charcoal-gray crystal as if to prove my point .
“No, I mean really enjoy it. More than just trekking out once in a blue moon because I practically begged you.”
“You didn’t beg me,” I said.
We continued shuffling through the shelves, reading about the different crystals.
“I saw Oliver yesterday,” she offered casually.
“Oh?” I said, feigning indifference.
“Uh-huh. He asked about you.”
“He did not.” I set down the crystal I was examining and moved to the other side of the shop.
“He really did.” Mattie followed me. “I ran into him at the lodge. He asked how you were doing.”
“He was being polite,” I said. But just talking about him spiked my heart rate.
“You should get his number from Giles. You’re both single…new to town…” She said it in a singsong voice.
“Mattie,” I hissed. “Nothing will be happening between us.”
“You mean happening again ,” she corrected.
“Right, whatever. That kiss was a temporary lapse in judgment.”
One I had thought about repeating many times since it happened.
Mattie smirked as if she knew exactly the thought going through my head. “Fine, whatever. I still think you should do it. Oliver screams fun. And let’s face it, you could use fun.”
I raised both hands. “Why does everyone keep saying that?”
“Because it’s true.”
Irritated, I marched away from her to a different display. People could see through me like tissue paper. I’d never realized how un-fun I was. Or at least, I hadn’t cared in the past. My fingers traced over a yellowy-white crystal on the shelf in front of me.
“Citrine,” the owner said. I hadn’t even heard him approach.
“Sorry.” I yanked my hand away, but he shook his head.
“No, feel free to touch. That’s how you transfer the energy.”
“Right,” I said, wanting to be polite, but also still not believing any of this in the slightest.
“You’re drawn to that one?” he asked, tapping at the paper.
“Oh, I don’t know. Maybe?”
He chuckled, as if sensing my skepticism. “Citrine is known as the merchant’s stone. It’s good for wealth and success. Some say it helps attract money and abundance.”
Mattie snorted from the other side of the small store. “Of course that’s the one that drew you in.”
My fingers moved back to the crystal I had been originally tracing, and I closed my hand around it.
Her forehead wrinkled in confusion. “You’re actually getting it?”
“Why not? I could use all the help I can get,” I said, moving toward the checkout counter.
Mattie followed me, and the owner stepped back behind the counter to ring me up.
“Just this one?” he asked.
“Yep.” I fished around in my purse for my wallet. Mattie stood next to me, reading the crystal display perched in front of the register.
“And this one,” she said, picking up a green crystal and setting it next to the one I’d already picked out.
“What’s that one for?” I asked, grabbing the small stone to examine it .
“Malachite,” she said, reading off the paper next to the display. “It’s supposed to absorb negative energy and help you embrace change and step out of your comfort zone.”
I let out a sigh and placed it back on the counter. “Fine. I’ll take both of these.”
“We’ve been shopping for hours, if you don’t let me consume a coffee and a pastry, I’m going to pass out.”
I pushed open the door to the café Mattie had deemed her favorite. When I asked if there were other options in town, she’d admitted there were not. But she still insisted this would be the best regardless.
The intense aroma of coffee beans wafted through the air, and I almost moaned in pleasure. Maybe she was right, after all. The café oozed charm, with cozy armchairs and mismatched tables spread across a vintage checkered tile floor. For mid-afternoon, it was busier than I’d expected. Back in Atlanta, the crowd would have been glued to their laptops or juggling work calls, but here, people lingered over quiet conversations or lost themselves in the pages of a worn book. Small-town charm, I supposed.
Mattie and I picked up our orders before settling into one of the only empty tables in the place.
“Don’t fill up on pastries. I got us a reservation at this great little Italian place. You’re going to love it. It has views of the mountains and the whole place is lit by candlelight.”
“I got one scone. I think I’ll be okay,” I said through a bite.
My scarf snagged on one of my earrings as I pulled it over my head and sat back in my chair. I hardly got settled before feeling a presence approach our table. When I glanced up, Oliver was there, hovering. He looked infuriatingly adorable in his navy-blue Key Ridge employee jacket.
“Ladies. Fancy running into you two here,” he said, his mega-watt smile directed right at me.
“Hey, Oliver,” Mattie greeted.
“Hi,” I said, mentally cursing myself for sounding so breathless.
“Done with lessons for the day?” Mattie asked. “You’re welcome to join us.”
I shot my sister a subtle glare, but she pretended to be oblivious.
He perched on the edge of the empty chair. “Appreciate the offer, but I have one more. Just needed a little pick-me-up.” He held up his to-go coffee cup. “I was hoping to run into you again, Frankie, but I never seem to see you around town.”
“She hasn’t gotten out much,” Mattie said, to which I elbowed her sharply in the rib cage. “Ouch!” she exclaimed, glaring at me.
Oliver chuckled at our exchange. “That’s a shame,” he said.
“I’ve been trying to resolve my whole unemployment predicament,” I added hurriedly.
“Right.” His eyes glimmered as he assessed me.
“It’s a lot of work,” I insisted, taking a sip of my too-hot coffee. I forced my face into one of neutrality so he wouldn’t know I’d completely scalded the roof of my mouth.
“I bet,” he said, checking his phone. “I’ve got to get going.” Oliver stood and gave me a little salute before backing away toward the door. “Bye, Mattie. Bye, Frankie.” He winked at only me as he said my name, and then left through the front door.
“Ugh.” I slumped into my seat and stuck my tongue out, fanning it to try and quell the burning sensation. “He’s insufferable,” I said, my voice sounding funny due to my tongue still sticking out.
“He’s cute.” Mattie sighed. Knowing her, she was already envisioning some fairy tale romance between the two of us.
“He thinks he knows me.” I took another bite of my scone.
“That’s the worst you can say about the guy?”
“He thinks I’m uptight.”
“You are uptight,” Mattie said easily.
I frowned. “Not all the time.”
Mattie sighed. “Look, I can’t force you to stop freaking out about finding a new job, but can you at least have a little fun while you’re at it.” She gestured at the door Oliver had walked out of. “He’s cute. He’s clearly flirting with you. The best way to make him think you’re not uptight is to show him.”
I blew on my coffee before taking another tentative sip, stewing over her words. The truth was, I did think Oliver was cute. And I did enjoy our kiss…a lot, in fact.
But even if I wanted Oliver to see me as more than some neurotic city girl, I realized that would be impossible. Because as the days here stretched on, I’d become abundantly aware that there wasn’t more to me than that.