Chapter Three
Business always started to pick up in the fall.
People buying Christmas gifts for others or for themselves, or simply stocking up on books to read once the weather turned and the snow fell, and being home, all tucked up and warm with something to read, was the best thing in the world.
Jenna switched hours with Delia every other Saturday, and this weekend was her turn to open.
Normal hours were ten to seven, but she tended to go in early.
Her favorite time in BookLove—aside from when it was packed full of customers—was when she was there alone.
The smell of the books, being surrounded by all that sexy love and desire just spilling off the pages…
it did things to her. Good things. Most of those early mornings were spent doing paperwork, placing orders, reading reviews and notes on upcoming releases, but once in a while, she’d simply wander.
Stroll around her little bookshop slowly, run her fingertips along the spines of the books.
Sometimes, she’d even pull one off the shelf, sit in the little lounge area, and read a chapter or two.
Could be a brand-new novel. Could be an old classic.
She’d lost track of how many times she’d read Pride and Prejudice.
BookLove was definitely her happy place. She could think of no other place where she felt more alive, more like herself, than at her little bookshop, and she knew just how very lucky that made her.
A look at her watch told her the date, and she realized she hadn’t called her parents in over a week. With a sigh, she headed back up to the counter, found her cell, and dialed. It rang three times before her mom answered with what sounded like an irritated “Yes? Hello?”
“Hi, Mom. It’s Jenna.”
“Hello.”
“Just calling to say hi, see how you and Dad are doing.”
“Your father is coming down with a cold.” As if on cue, she heard the trumpeting sound from her youth that was her dad blowing his nose.
“Oh no. Do you need anything?”
“Nathan is going to the store for us.” Her brother was taking care of it; she wasn’t needed. Simple and to the point.
Jenna stifled a sigh. “Okay, that’s good. Just remember that I’m closer, and because I’m the boss here, I can leave more easily than Nate can.” She kept a smile in her voice so her mom wouldn’t think she was trying to tell her what to do.
“Yes.”
Yes? What does that mean? “Things are good here,” she said, because if she waited for prompting, she’d turn old and wrinkled on this call. “Business is good. Got some signings coming up. You should stop by next time you and Dad are out and about.”
“We don’t leave the house much anymore, you know.”
“Yeah, well. Just an idea.”
She stretched out the painful call for another minute or two before telling her mom she loved her, asking her to say hello to her father for her, and then hanging up.
She set the phone down, then mimed shooting herself in the head.
It had sucked—it usually did—but she could now check that box and be free for another week.
Delia arrived at two forty-five for her three to seven shift.
Jenna filled her in on any happenings from the morning, then bid her farewell, left her with half a dozen customers, and headed home.
She loved to cook, but tonight seemed like a good night to order in, and she was trying to decide between Thai and empanadas when she turned onto her street.
The day was gorgeous—sunny and bright and rather warm for fall—and it was only in that moment she remembered that her new neighbors were moving in today.
That reminder came in the form of three cars filling up the driveway so she couldn’t get to her usual spot or her garage door.
She sighed and muttered to herself, “Sure. Park wherever you want. Who cares?” Then she chastised herself.
“It’s fine. They’ve probably got friends helping.
Chill out, Jen.” She found a parking spot on the street a couple houses down, then walked back.
The right side of the house was bustling, if the sounds drifting out through the screen door were any indication.
No moving truck—or truck of any kind—was there, so the big stuff probably got delivered earlier, while she was away.
But music was playing inside, something smooth and jazzy, and peals of laughter from a couple of women carried out into the air.
Jenna smiled as she slid her key into her own lock.
Maybe her new neighbors would be fun. Friendly. People to hang out with.
Once inside, two little critters came running, and she bent to give them love.
“Well, hello there, my kitties. How was the day? Everything go okay? No parties, right?” She turned to the tabby rubbing against her knee.
“Wallace? You kept things calm, yes? Kept Gromit away from the internet? You know how he loves to shop.” She spent another moment loving up her cats, then headed into the living room where Arnold lay curled up in the donut bed on the floor.
His hearing was barely there, so he rarely heard her come in the door, but as she got closer, she was pretty sure he could feel her footsteps through the floor, and he cracked an eye open.
His tail began to wag, thumping against his bed, and she got down on the floor so she was face-to-face with him.
“Hello, my handsome man,” she whispered, kissing his head about twenty-seven times. “How was your day? Did you nap the whole time I was gone, you lazy man?” A few more kisses and then she stood and motioned for him to follow her. “Come on. Outside.”
He pushed himself up, taking his time, stretching and yawning, and she laughed at his slow pace.
“No, no, it’s fine. Take all the time you need. I don’t have anything to do in life besides wait to open the door for you.”
He finally meandered to the sliding glass door, and she let him out into the back yard.
A few books were in her bag, and she pulled them out, fresh copies of some new releases she wanted to read.
She spread them out on the kitchen counter, trying to decide which to read first. They were nothing alike.
One had the illustrated cover of a rom-com, with two characters dressed in colorful clothing next to a food truck.
One was clearly a romantasy, with a dragon and a sword on the front.
The third was a sapphic romance, the hands of two women entwined together in what was unmistakably a grip of passion.
Making a selection, she decided the sapphic book and a glass of wine on the front porch would be the perfect way to spend her Saturday afternoon. She was just pouring the wine when there was a knock on her front door.
Not expecting anyone, she opened it to a pretty brunette holding Arnold in her arms.
“Is this handsome guy yours?” the woman asked. She was smiling and dressed in joggers and a long-sleeve shirt with the sleeves pushed up.
“Oh my God, yes. What—?” She reached out for her dog, confused.
“We left the sliding glass door open, and all of a sudden, we noticed this dog in the living room.” The woman’s laugh was soft and her eyes held kindness. Jenna liked her immediately.
“I’m so sorry. He’s pretty much deaf, and sometimes, he wanders without paying attention.” She dropped a kiss on Arnold’s head. “Are you my new neighbor?”
“That’d be my sister. I’m just here pretending to help.” She gave Jenna a conspiratorial look. “I’ll get her.” She held up a finger. “Hang on.” She scooted back inside, then returned a moment later, tugging another woman by the arm. “This is your new neighbor.”
Jenna could do nothing but stare.
“Hi,” the new neighbor said, holding out a hand, still just as gorgeous as the other day when Jenna had literally run into her on the street.
“Sawyer Hall. It’s so nice to meet you. I swear I’m quiet.
No kids or pets. I’m not into death metal music, nor do I have a penchant for construction or power tools.
” Her voice trailed off a bit as Jenna stared at her. “Meaning I won’t be loud. Promise.”
It took another beat or two, but Jenna managed to pull herself out of it and nod. “Okay. Great. Hi.” She shifted Arnold to one arm and finally took Sawyer Hall’s still outstretched hand, shook it quickly. “Jenna Murphy.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Jenna.” Looking mildly uncomfortable now, Sawyer pushed her glasses up her nose with a finger, then jerked a thumb over her shoulder. “Well, I’d better get back to it. Those boxes aren’t going to unpack themselves, am I right?”
Jenna managed another nod.
“Okay. Cool. Um…” Then she and the sister both went back inside.
Arnold still in her arms, Jenna watched their retreat, then stepped into her own house, shut the door, and leaned back against it as she released a slow breath that had the word “fuck” on it, stretched into one long sound.
This had to be a joke, right? Her eyes were deceiving her.
That had to be it. Sawyer Hall. The book blogger who had just trashed her romance bookshop—and the romance genre as a whole—could not be her new neighbor, could she?
Could she?
“Seriously, what are the fucking odds?” she whispered.
“Well, that was just fucking weird,” Sawyer said quietly as she shut the front door.
“Maybe she’s shy,” Courtney said, giving her a half shrug. “Or maybe she was worried about her dog.” She picked up a lamp, moved it to an end table in the corner, and set it there. “Which, by the way, was the cutest dog I’ve ever seen.”
Sawyer thought about the little brown and white animal that had simply wandered in through the open back door without a care in the world, and she couldn’t help a small smile. “He was pretty cute.”
“His collar said his name is Arnold, which also might be the best name ever.”
“You are easily impressed today.” She grinned at her sister.