Chapter 24
CHAPTER 24
Within just a couple of days the town was buzzing about Book Lovers. Gabby had put up posters everywhere, even on telephone poles all over town. It was also the hot topic on everyone’s mind at Sea Coast and yoga class. Lizzie had even heard of mother’s insisting their single sons and daughters who lived off-Cape come visit for the event.
“I’m getting worried we’re not going to have room for everyone!” Anika says, when Lizzie stops into Tall Tales. “I’m not complaining though, it’s a very good problem to have!”
“Who knew the town was so hungry for a fun singles event?” Lizzie asks, looking around the shop, wondering how many people could comfortably fit in the small store.
“Jay is thinking of moving some of the shelves over,” Anika says, coming out from behind the counter and showing Lizzie their ideas. “And the community center said we could borrow some tables and chairs. Oh! Jay was thinking it might be a nice ice breaker to have some book trivia too. Or maybe some other good book games as well. Any ideas?”
Lizzie is walking around, thinking as she looks at the titles. “Yeah, I’ve been trying to think of ways to get people to interact, to work together on something. Maybe you could have everyone put their name in a hat when they arrive and create a few teams? Or…” Suddenly she has a flash of an idea. “What about doing something like a speed dating thing, where people can sit with someone and ask them three questions?”
Anika is curious, “Okay, and what are the three questions?”
Lizzie is a little stymied. “Okay, I am thinking we hand people a card with the questions printed on them to ask each other, and they are…” Lizzie is stuck.
Anika is waiting for something genius to be forthcoming.
“Okay, hmmm, it can’t be something pedestrian like, ‘what’s your favorite book,’ it’s got to be more thoughtful, something that would create a conversation. Something more like, ‘What’s a book you’ve read more than once and why?’”
“Okay, that’s pretty good. I’ve got an idea, as someone who sells books, and it could be a good question for this event; ‘Do you judge a book by its cover?’”
“Oh, I like that!” Lizzie says. “It has so many meanings, right? Especially at an event like this. It’s so easy to judge people out of hand for something as shallow as their, I don’t know, shoes.”
“Shoes?” Ankia laughs.
Lizzie blushes a little. “Yes, I once decided a guy was not for me when he showed up in all-white sneakers that looked like his grandfather should be wearing them.” She puts her face in her hands and shakes her head. “I know that makes me sound like such a shallow jerk, but he was maybe twenty-nine, this was a few years ago, and I took one look and knew he was not the guy for me.”
Anika can’t stop laughing. “I will say I’ve noticed that Jack wears very cool shoes. “Lots of Vans, or other cool sneakers, and when he dresses up, the style is kind of vintage-y and cool.” She pauses. “You’re right, shoes do matter!”
“Right?!” Lizzie says, emphatically. “Okay, so is it boring to ask what book they’re reading now, and what they plan to read next? Will they feel bad if they aren’t currently reading a book?”
“I don’t think it’s bad to ask, I mean it is an event at a bookstore, you’d sort of assume they’re a reader if they’ve come here, right?” Anika adds.
“True, what would you want to know about someone that you could learn from a book they’re reading?” Lizzie asks her. “I’m sure you learn a lot about people owning this store, right?”
“Oh yeah, sometimes the special orders in particular are a bit of a surprise!” Anika says. “Jay and I often joke that we feel like there should be privacy laws covering people’s book purchases. It can be so personal, especially the politics. It can be surprising to see where some people land. Shocking actually. We tell everyone who works for us that they are not to discuss customer’s purchases outside the store. But boy, it’s tempting to spill the beans sometimes!”
“You’re so right, what we read is so personal, books help make us who we are, especially the books we read as kids, as teenagers. Maybe that’s a good question, ‘What was your favorite book you read as a teen, and as an addendum, is there any book you pretended to read but never have?’”
“Oh, I like that!” Anika says. She gets a legal pad from the counter and starts writing them down. “One, ‘What book have you read more than once and why? Two, ‘What book are you reading right now, and what do you want to read next, and for three, I don’t know, but I’m kind of liking the ‘What book have you never read, but have pretended you did?’”
“When I was a kid, I took A Brief History of Time out of the library. I think I was in fifth grade. It was thick and looked so serious and grown up that I took it out and carried it around for two weeks, and I never got past the first page,” Lizzie says laughing. “And while I know Hawking was brilliant, I’ve still never read it. Don’t tell Jack, he loves it, and I just nod a lot when he talks about it. I’m more of a fiction reader.”
“The things we do to impress others, huh? Your secret is safe with me.” Anika says.
“So we’ve got the questions, has Ben been in touch about the food and drinks?”
Just then the door opens, and it’s Ben, “Hey! Fancy meeting you here,” he says, giving Lizzie a big hug with baby Ollie, who is happily munching on a banana while strapped to his back.
“Hey, Ollie!” Lizzie says, rescuing a piece of banana from sliding down Ben’s neck. She takes a tissue from a box on the counter and wipes her sticky, fruity fingers.
“Thank you, I knew that was probably not a good idea, but I needed something to keep him happy while I came in here,” Ben says.
Lizzie takes a stuffed hedgehog out of the basket of toys in the kids play area for him to hold, and takes what’s left of the banana.
“That should be a little less gooey,” she says to Ben. “So, thank you for doing this! We know how busy you are.”
“Are you kidding? I love town events like this. I live for all the festivals and town stuff. We’re happy to help.” He has a file folder in his hands, puts it on the counter and opens it up. “So since people will probably for the most part be standing and eating, and are meeting people they kind of want to impress, I was thinking nothing very messy, smelly or hard to eat standing up, and nothing with spinach for people to worry about getting in their teeth.”
“Very good thoughts,” Anika says. “Thank you so much for doing all this,” she says, looking over his notes. “I love the baked brie, oh, and all these different cookies - macarons, madeleines, brownies, …”
Lizzie is looking over her shoulder. “Oh yum, I love the Asian dumplings and Spanish tapas.”
“My idea was, if this is okay, to have foods and wines from different regions, with books on the table, like at the tapas area, have books about or which take place in Spain, and the same with the Asian, and French foods. Is that too much? Have I over-thought this?” Ben says, suddenly worried that he went too artsy.
“Are you kidding me? I love it,” Anika says. “I never would have thought of that. If this had been up to me it would have been some cheese and crackers from Bradfords and a few bottles of wine. This is amazing, Ben, thank you so much!
“Phew, I’m so glad you like it,” he says. “And for the dessert table I thought we could have coffee, a nice dark roast, some decaf, and a few different kinds of tea. That sound good?”
“That’s perfect,” Lizzie says, as she continues to amuse Ollie in his carrier. “I’d say let him out and I will gladly play with him, but I’ve got the feeling you are not planning to stay for too long.”
“Yeah, I have to meet Sean at Sea Coast to go over our coffee order with Leah, we get all our coffee from her now,” Ben says. “She’s just taken off with her roasting, she’s doing so much, it is really incredible. She was telling me she might even be doing some roasting at Terra Marique? Jack is going to make sure she has a place for her roasters because the place where she’s been going is hiking up her rent.”
“He hadn’t told me, that’s wonderful!” Lizzie says. “Seriously, in a few years Leah is going to be running this town, she is a force.”
Anika is looking over the menus and plans one more time. “Ben, let me pay you today, I don’t want all the food purchases coming out of your pocket. Please, just let me know what I should give you. I can send it via my phone, or give you a check, whichever works best for you.”
“I still need to price out the wines, but I’m giving you those at cost, so that will be easy, I can do that when I get home,” Ben says. “Half of what’s on page three would be great, and yeah, just send it to me through our Venmo. I think you have our Marshview account, right?”
“I do,” and in a flash she has sent him the payment. “And none of this only charging us what it costs you for the wine, this is your business, you need to make a profit. So charge us what you would any person off the street.”
Ben laughs, “You and Jay are hardly anyone off the street,” he says. “We’re all friends, and I am not taking no for an answer.” It’s clear from the look on his face that he is not fooling around.
“I wouldn’t waste your time arguing with him, Anika. I’ve known him since I was in elementary school. He is firm on his moral stances. I once tried to give him a box of Girl Scout cookies that Mrs. Lanahan had paid for, then decided she didn’t want them. He would not take them, he said it felt wrong, even though they were already paid for.,” Lizzie says, looking at her friend.
“Oh my god, I’d forgotten all about that. I was really a bit over the top, wasn’t I?” he laughs. “I would not turn those cookies down now, just so you know.”
“Well, clearly your moral compass has gone awry,” Lizzie teases. “I’m quite disappointed in you, Ben.” Baby Ollie begins to show his boredom with his present situation by whacking Ben on the head with his hands, and starting to whine. “Okay, well, that’s my signal to get out of here and continue on to meet Sean.”
Lizzie gives both him and Ollie a kiss. “Thank you so much for all of this, you are the best. As are you, Ollie.”
“Thanks, Ben, I’ll see you the day after tomorrow,” Anika says. “Thank you!”
“No problem, I’ll be here with everything a little after five to set up. See you then,” and with that they are out the door.
“Yikes, when you said the day after tomorrow it suddenly seemed very real,” Lizzie says. “But I think we’re good. Right? You think we’re good?” She's starting to get a little panicky.
“Yeah, we’re good, thanks to you and your mom and Alexis,” Anika says. “She’s coming, right? She hasn’t said anything, so I wondered.”
“Last I talked to her she was planning on it, but good point, I should check in with her and ask her. Or you know what, she doesn’t need her friend bugging her, so I’m going to just let it be.” Lizzie gets her coat from the couch, and puts it on. “Okay, I am out of here.” Her phone rings. “Hey, I was just leaving Tall Tales, where are you at?” She walks to the door and waves goodbye to Anika who mouths, ‘thank you,’ as Lizzie goes outside.
“I just needed to hear your voice,” Jack says. “It’s been a long day.”
Lizzie is walking down Main Street toward her car. “Yeah? What’s going on?” She unlocks her car door and gets in, turns it on and starts it to warm it up.
“I’m trying to not get spooked, but Billy and Bud were out here wandering around about an hour ago. I went out and asked them what was up and if I could show them around and they just seemed weird,” he says.
“What else is new, they’re always weird,” Lizzie says, trying to reassure him.
“Probably, but I’m just wondering if I’m going to show up here tomorrow and find them both chained to trees? Or they’ve destroyed something? I don’t trust them.”
“They may be dumb, but they’re not stupid,” Lizzie says. She has put him on speaker and started to drive.
Jack laughs, ‘dumb but not stupid,’ I like that. Okay.”
“I mean they do dumb stuff, like the tree thing, but they also don’t want to end up getting arrested either, you know? Dumb, not stupid.”
“You’re probably right, and I’m just worrying about nothing.” He sighs. “So, how was your day? Everything going okay for the singles thing? Which is, wow, the day after tomorrow.”
“I know, I just had a similar epiphany, yeah, it seems to all be falling into place. I’m not sure if Alexis is coming, and I sure wish I knew if Ian MacFayden was planning to come,” Lizzie says as she drives toward her parent’s house.
“He had scheduled with me to come out here tomorrow to see what we’ve done so far, maybe I can find a way to bring it up? If he comes. He hasn’t confirmed, which is kind of odd,” Jack says.
Jack sometimes has all the subtlety of a leaf blower, so Lizzie isn’t so sure that’s the best idea. She didn’t want Alexis mad at her.
“Well, maybe if he does come and it somehow naturally comes up, don’t–”
“Be my usual self?” he says laughing. “Hey, I can be cool, I really can.”
“Okay, as long as you’re really, really cool,” Lizzie isn’t so sure how this could go, but at some point she has to let go of trying to control everything, and this seems like a good time to do just that.