10. Brianna
Chapter ten
Brianna
O ne day later…
Brianna moved the stack of bookmarks an inch to the left, shook her head then moved them two inches to the right. They were probably fine, but what if someone came in and needed to find one in a hurry? Maybe they should be further to the left?
“Honestly, woman, if you move those bookmarks one more time, I will take you upstairs and—”
“Rhys!” she whispered, her face flaming at his words. She carefully turned her neck to see if anyone overheard him, but Adelaide and Claire were busy arranging cake pops on the other side of the shop.
“Mo cuishle , I can promise there is no direct correlation between where the bookmarks are placed, and how many people will walk through the doors today.” He smiled gently to remove the sting from his words, even as he continued stamping the store’s logo onto a stack of brown paper bags.
“I know, but I just want it to be perfect.” For a moment, she was gripped by the old anxious feelings.
Rhys put his stamp down and held his arms out towards her. “Look around, Bree. You’ve poured your heart and soul into this place. What on earth could you do now to make it any more perfect?”
He was right, of course, and she was slowly learning that the people of Cantrell wanted to see her succeed. Two phone calls the previous afternoon resulted in a good number of the Cantrell Mountain Rescue team turning up so she could have everything ready in time to open on Valentine’s Day.
Poufy armchairs in various shades of pink were dotted around the store: a last-minute purchase from Caleb, who ran an upholstery business around his mountain rescue duties. Fairy lights crisscrossed the ceiling, and fake indoor plants were placed strategically around the space. She would have loved real ones, but didn’t relish the thought of paying the heating bill needed to keep them alive in a town where the winters were fierce.
And then there were the books. Paranormal romance in a dark corner festooned with plastic bats and a witch’s hat; and historical romance near the front window, complete with ornate framed pictures depicting the Oregon Trail and medieval castles. The spiciest books were tucked on the higher shelves at the back, near a chili pepper stuffed toy.
A knock at the door startled her, and she looked up at Rhys, suddenly gripped by panic.
“Opening time, my love,” he whispered. “Now you sit there while I go get the door; your adoring public awaits.”
Brianna’s eyes scanned the room, trying to work out if she could take a bathroom break. Perhaps it was typical small-town curiosity after her rescue only thirty-six hours earlier, or just the allure of a new store opening, but the place was packed.
“Brianna, honey, have you got ants in your pants?”
She turned around to see Claire standing beside the till, with one eyebrow raised. Rhys was right—it did feel like she was a mind reader at times.
“Go to the bathroom, grab another coffee, take a moment for yourself. I’ll manage the counter for a bit. Are you due for some more pain meds?”
“But what about the cafe?”
“The team can handle that for a while. Besides, most people are in here. Now off you go…”
As she came back from the bathroom—Claire was right, she did need to use the facilities—Brianna spotted a flurry of orange near the giant stuffed chili. Several members of the Cantrell Mountain Rescue team, in their matching jackets, crowded around their team leader Caleb who was holding up a book and looking decidedly embarrassed.
“Oh no you don’t.” Adelaide strode into the middle of the group. “If you’re going to film one of those videos where the whole team reads and reacts to the spicy scenes, at least have the decency to buy the book first.”
Brianna paused next to a stand of greeting cards, curious to see how this would play out. Adelaide was a cool head in a crisis, but there was a fiery temper underneath. Her idea of a reader reaction video with the team was genius, and Brianna made a mental note to ask Rhys about it later.
“I can’t buy this,” one of them whined. “My mom freaked when she discovered I’d read Fifty Shades of Grey!”
“Don’t look at me.” Caleb was still blushing. “This wasn’t my idea.”
Adelaide leaned over and took the book from Caleb. “Well, at least you’ve got good taste. This is one of my favorites, and there’s a few scenes I wouldn’t mind revisiting with Riley. You can borrow it off us later.” Blowing a kiss at her husband, she walked towards the counter, leaving the group of men speechless behind her.
That’s a mic drop moment if I ever saw one…
“Not. One. Word.” Riley’s voice was laced with steel, and Brianna rolled her lips between her teeth so they wouldn’t hear her laughing. “That’s my wife. Whatever image is in your heads right now, scrub it, and go show your support for Brianna with your wallets.”
Six hours later, her face hurt from smiling so much, and her hands were raw from handling so many paper bags. The grazing table put together by Claire and Adelaide was reduced to a few baby carrots and wilting sticks of celery. After locking the front door and sinking into a dark pink chair nearby, Brianna was overcome with gratitude—and grief.
I would give anything to have Nana here, seeing this.
It was there that Rhys found her, coming out of the stockroom with a pile of books in his arms. She barely registered the thud of the books on the counter before he was there, kneeling in front of her.
“What is it, mo cuishle ? What’s wrong? Are you sore? Katerina didn’t come back, did she?”
“It’s nothing—and the sheriff said Katerina won’t be allowed out anytime soon.” She sniffled. It wasn’t nothing, but it wasn’t anything Rhys could fix either, and she knew it would sound petty if she voiced what she was feeling.
“If it was nothing, you’d already be at Fitzgeralds with a drink in your hand, while everyone toasted the very successful opening of Cantrell’s newest business. What is it?”
“I just—” she gulped for air, knowing she was ruining the last of her makeup but not caring anymore. “I just wishing Nana was here to see this.”
“The bookshop?”
“Everything,” she sobbed. “I thought I wanted the bookshop, and I do. But I just wish she could be here to meet you, and Claire, and Adelaide and Riley, and see the home I’ve found here.”
Rhys made a distinctly Scottish noise in his throat before he strode back to the counter and picked up a package.
Once again kneeling in front of her, he placed the wrapped box in her lap.
“I was going to wait to give you this, but maybe now is a better time.”
Opening it, she found a framed photo of her as a toddler, standing on a stool with Nana on one side, and Nana’s old friend Maeve on the other. It was slightly faded from age, and was clearly taken with a film camera. “But… how…”
“Remember the day you went hiking with Adelaide? Claire and I spent the day sorting out some boxes that were out the back in storage, and we found this photo. Claire is Maeve’s daughter, and this was once her store.”
“No…” She breathed, running her fingers across the glass. “What are the odds?”
“Claire recognized you the moment you walked into the cafe. She doesn’t just give anyone free coffees, you know.”
“Why didn’t she say anything?”
“I wanted you to make your own decision to stay,” Claire said from behind her. “Mom hadn’t seen you since you were five and the drive here got too much for your Nana, but she never forgot about you, and she always hoped you would come back one day.”
“It’s incredible. You’re all incredible.” She turned to Rhys. “You know I love you, right?”
“I do recall you declaring that using Valentine’s Day candy, of all things,” he teased, giving her the breathtaking smile she’d come to adore. “And I love you too. Now, how about we go celebrate all the good things in our lives, together?”
THE END.
Thank you for reading Searching for a Valentine! If you loved Rhys and Brianna, then you’ll adore Greg and Shelly in Love by the Slice by Maddie Evans—the next book in the Valentine’s Sweethearts Multi-Author Collaboration!