Chapter 4
DORIAN
I’d just put away a new shipment of books when Delphine Delacroix strode into my shop.
Hot. Not the pretty kind of hot, but the super angry kind.
She was dressed for work, in a pair of black slacks paired with a sleeveless knitted blouse, and impossibly high black pumps.
Her hair bounced around her shoulders, gleaming under the lights.
That hair was a temptress. My fingers twitched with a desire to run them through the long, silky strands that smelled of lilacs.
I’d been seated next to her at the last dinner party at Gillian and Alex’s.
I’d kept catching whiffs that made me feel a little dizzy.
“Hi, Delphine. What can I do for you?”
She raised one eyebrow as she reached into a large bag hanging on one toned arm.
“What in the world were you thinking? Selling my daughter this book? It’s completely inappropriate.
I want a full refund and an explanation as to your thought process.
” She slammed the book down on the front desk, then turned to glare at me.
I blinked and took a step backward. “I’m sorry. I didn’t realize she’d come in for it. I don’t work in the evenings. That said, I didn’t think it was something I needed your permission for. It’s not like it’s erotica.”
That seemed to anger her further. “You sell erotica in this store?”
“Um, no. That was just an example of what I would consider off-limits for a fifteen year old. This, on the other hand, is a beautifully written book about grief. Which has provided me a lot of comfort. Also, I didn’t suggest the book to her.
I mentioned it in our group.” I stopped myself.
She didn’t know about the group. Great. I’d just betrayed Annie’s trust. She’d specifically said to keep it to myself.
“I know she went to the meeting, so you can stop looking like that,” Delphine said.
Like what?
“I’m sorry.” I pushed the urge to fight with her down deep, even though she had irked me.
She shook her head just slightly in a he’s an idiot type of way. “I would have expected a phone call from you afterward, telling me she’d been there.”
“I didn’t think it was my place. In fact, it’s not my place.”
“Not your place?”
“I mean, I don’t know either of you that well, and it seems kind of …” I trailed off, trying to think of what to say.
“It seems kind of what?” Delphine crossed her arms over her chest, the large bag still hanging from one wrist so that it looked a bit like a shield.
“Like none of my business.” I put a hand up. “Regardless, I am very sorry if I misstepped by not calling you. I had no idea you would react so strongly. Although, I might have guessed, since it was Seraphina who took her.”
I inwardly cringed at the wave of pain I saw at the mention of Seraphina.
“I cannot believe she went to that meeting without telling me or that Seraphina did it behind my back. Do you know what Annie said to me? She knew I would say no. Which is classic.”
“Classic?”
“Classic kid stuff. Do it and beg for forgiveness later.”
“For what it’s worth, Annie was extremely brave at the meeting.”
“Did she talk?” Delphine asked, blinking.
“Yeah. But I can’t tell you what she said, so don’t ask. We’re not allowed to share what we heard in the meeting.”
“How convenient for you.”
I wasn’t sure why that had made her angrier, so I apologized again. “I’m sorry. For everything. I had no idea it would upset you like this, and I’m truly sorry. But I have to say, you have a great kid. She’s special.”
“Special how?” Now the eyes were narrowed, reminding me of a snake before it strikes.
I backed further away, stumbling into Poe, my overly-fed, giant orange cat, who had apparently been sleeping behind me.
Well, he wasn’t really mine. He belonged to the shop, having taken it upon himself to invite himself to live here back when my mother was alive.
Now he acted as if he were the one paying the rent every month.
Poe meowed and shot me a dirty look akin to the one Delphine currently had fixed upon me and jumped onto the desk.
Poe was a nuisance, but the cat had game.
I was amazed how easily he could jump onto surfaces that I would have thought too high.
He often reminded me of Tigger, only grumpy and judgmental instead of joyful.
Poe looked around at the tidy desk, then curled into a ball to watch the show with his head resting on his front white paws.
Right on top of the book that had caused so much fuss.
Not that he fit exactly. There was some overspill.
It wasn’t a hardcover, which meant the entire book was now hidden under his generous girth.
“She’s more mature than I would think most kids that age would be,” I said quickly. “Obviously very emotionally intelligent. And courageous to be seeking help.”
“I had her in therapy, you know. After it happened.”
“Oh, okay.” I had no idea what to say to that.
“I’m a good mother.”
“No one said otherwise.”
Just like that, she deflated. It was like watching a human-shaped balloon letting out ten percent of its air. “Well, I feel like I am.”
“You are. Of course you are. Your daughter wouldn’t be so wonderful if it wasn’t for you. Raising her on your own can’t be easy.”
“It’s fine. I don’t need anyone’s help.”
“I was raised by a single mother. She said it was lonely at times, not having anyone to share the responsibilities with. She said the hardest part was not having anyone who loved me as much as she did. No one to share her pride about whatever it was I’d done that day.”
“Yes, well, that is difficult.” She sniffed and lifted one shoulder. “But I have my girlfriends. We’ve practically raised these kids together.”
“Right. Sure. I know how close you all are. It’s really nice, actually.”
She set her bag down by her feet as if realizing she’d been holding it tightly against her chest and now wanted to give the impression of someone loose and relaxed. Which she definitely was not.
Poe rose up from the book and stretched, then hopped lightly from the desk to land in front of her bag.
He then proceeded to nose his way in, nudging it open before crawling inside.
He got himself situated, making the leather bag look like some kind of man-made creature no one wanted to mess with.
Finally, he plopped down with just his tail hanging out one end.
“That’s a big bag,” I said. I’m not sure why.
Delphine looked like she was about to say something defensive but instead started laughing. “Poe’s making himself right at home in my three-hundred dollar bag.”
“Three-hundred?”
She shook her head, gesturing like a traffic cop. “No. You do not get to comment on how I spend my money.”
“I wouldn’t think of it.” I scrambled to think of a way to get her back on the cat and not me.
“Poe’s not good for business. The other day he came running toward me with a dead mouse in his mouth.
I was in the children’s section, helping someone find a book.
There were several kids in there, reading on the floor.
They took one look at the mouse and started screaming.
Their mothers came running over to see what was wrong, took a look at the mouse now lying at my feet, and grabbed their child’s hand.
I heard one of them say to the other as they walked out the door about old buildings and rat infestations.
They’re probably going to order books online from now on. ”
“That’s awful.” But she laughed, covering her mouth with her hand.
“Poe does help with the mice. I’ll give him that. I just don’t know why he finds it necessary to bring them to me.”
“Did he just show up here one day?” Delphine asked, sounding genuinely curious.
“Yes. My mother was still alive then. She said he simply walked in one day and refused to walk out. She was a softie, so soon enough he had his own bed, a kitty condo in the office, and wet food every morning. When she passed away, she left specific instructions that I was to keep Poe in the manner to which he’d grown accustomed. ”
“He does seem to be enjoying his food,” Delphine said. “He’s bigger than the last time I saw him.”
“I need to take him to the vet for a checkup, but I’m afraid of what they’ll say. I mean, how do you put Poe on a diet? He will not be happy, and an unhappy Poe is a frightening thought.”
This won me a smile and a slight softening of her shoulders. “I wonder where he came from?” Delphine asked.
“I’m sure he had some adventures before coming here. If you look closely, you can see a little knick out of his left ear.”
Delphine knelt on the floor next to her bag. “What tales could you tell us, Mr. Poe?”
Poe shifted, poking his head out to look at her. He blinked, as if to tell her something subliminally.
“I always wanted a cat, but my late husband was allergic,” Delphine said, sitting on the floor.
I felt I had no choice but to sit on the floor too. “They say to get two if you’re going to get kittens.”
“Why is that?”
“Something about single kitten syndrome. They can become overly needy and anxious, whereas, if they have a sibling or even a cat close to their age, they’re less lonely.”
“I could see how they’d be lonely if they’re suddenly sent to live with people they’ve never met after being with a litter of their brothers and sisters.”
The wistful tone in her voice surprised me. I hadn’t taken her for someone sentimental or soft-hearted. Maybe I was wrong. Still, she was the scariest woman I’d ever met.
“You could get a pair of kittens,” I said. “They’re low maintenance.”
“I don’t know. I’m pretty busy. And Annie’s always at school or practice.
But wouldn’t it be fun to have a couple of kittens?
Although, with my luck, I’d probably get a pair who hate humans and scratch all my furniture to bits.
” She leaned closer to Poe to stroke the top of his head.
Poe closed his eyes and started purring.
“He hardly ever purrs,” I said. “In general, he’s very grumpy.”
“Maybe he recognizes a fellow grump when he sees one?”