Chapter 11
CHAPTER 11
LAUREL
I t was Black Friday, one of my favorite days of the whole year. To kick it off, I was on a Zoom call with Grace, going over the sales we would be having at the bookstore.
“How’s it been going over there?” I asked as I stared at her and Doodle on my screen. “I hope you guys are being good to each other.”
Doodle licked Grace’s arm as if to assure me that she was being a good girl, and I laughed. Grace squealed with laughter of her own, draping her hand over Doodle’s shoulders. “We’re fine. Everything is going really well and I’m all set for today.”
“Are you sure?” I asked, feeling a stabbing sensation in my chest over the fact that she would be alone at the store today. “I can really still try to get you some extra help.”
“I’m willing and able to manage it,” she said. “Bringing in someone else will only slow me down.”
“It’s the biggest shopping day of the year. If you’re at all apprehensive about it, I completely understand. You don’t have to be brave now only to feel like you’re drowning later.”
She pursed her lips. “Laurel, I’m fine. I promise. I appreciate that you care about my well-being, but I’m going to be totally fine. We’re going to have a great day at the store and my neighbor’s son is going to take Doodle for a nice long run this morning.”
“You’re an angel,” I said earnestly. “What would I have done without you?”
“Perished,” she joked, her gaze sweeping across my face before she frowned. “You have a new glow about you. What did you do? Is it a guy? Who is he?”
“Texas will do that to you,” I said, playing it off for now. “It’s also eighty degrees outside. Some of this might actually be sweat.”
Soon enough, Leif would be visiting me in Franklin and Grace would meet him, but for right this minute, I needed some time to get my own head wrapped around the commitment we’d both made. While I’d never experienced it myself, I knew long-distance relationships could be brutal.
I really wanted to believe that Leif and I would beat the odds, but it was going to be hard work. It would require devout dedication from us both. Until I knew how to explain that we were both intent on making it work without garnering looks of pity, I would rather keep it to myself.
“I’m really so grateful for this time at home,” I said honestly. “Austin has been good for my soul, so thank you for standing in for me while I’ve been here.”
“No problem,” she said, smiling. “What are your plans for today?”
“I’ll be going on a girls’ shopping trip with my mom and my two best girlfriends, but I’ll be available on my phone if you need me.”
“I won’t need you,” she said decisively. “You work too much. Go shopping, have fun, and don’t worry about a thing. Doodle is the good, happy girl that she is and I’m going to go and make this our best Black Friday yet.”
“You’re amazing,” I said. “Good luck, Grace. Let me know how it goes.”
She waved goodbye after promising she’d keep me in the loop, and I stood up, disconnecting our call and ready to get started with my day. Our annual girls’ Black Friday shopping trip was legendary, and I could already hear the girls and my mom downstairs, excitedly talking about all the deals they’d seen advertised.
When I joined them, Gemma quickly drained her coffee before shooting me a sassy smile. “There she is. Can we go now?”
“We can,” I said, batting my eyelashes at her. I crossed the room to grab my handbag. “Should we go grab some yummy holiday drinks before we start, or do you want to get some shopping done before the drinks?”
“Both,” Mariam said, grinning like a Cheshire cat when I lifted an eyebrow at her. “What? I meant a coffee and then alcoholic drinks later.”
I laughed. “Yeah, okay. Let’s just get going.”
We piled into my mom’s car and took off to brave the crazy crowds to shop the sales that were too good to be true. It was a tradition for us, and as always, it was a really good time.
“How did the pranking go last night?” Mom asked once we were fortified with our coffees, ready to fight if we had to. “Did you enjoy it?”
“We had a blast,” I said happily, still unable to stop smiling. The last few days, I’d woken up with this dopey smile on my face and I’d gone to sleep with it right there too. It was impossible to get rid of, and I really didn’t care. “Leif says he likes Noah, by the way.”
I said the last part to Gemma, who flashed me a dazzling smile in response and fanned her face. “Oh, my gosh. How hot is he? And you see, I told you he was an old soul. He got along with everybody and he isn’t like one of those teenybopper boy-banders.”
“Well, I’ve never met a teenybopper boy-bander so I wouldn’t know, but I like him too. I thought you should know.”
“He’s very sweet,” Mom agreed. “Very polite too. I’ve met a few celebrities in my day, but he’s one of the only one’s whose fame hasn’t made his head swell to ten times the normal size.”
“ You are a celebrity,” I said to my mom, chuckling as I pointed at her poster in the window of a bookstore we were coincidentally passing. “Sure, you don’t get mobbed by crowds in the mall, but you have legions of fans online.”
She rolled her eyes. “Next thing I know, you’re going to be telling me I have a swollen head.”
“Only some days,” I joked. “All those that end with a ‘y’.”
“Aren’t you sweet? My loving daughter, everybody,” Mom teased, pretending to take a bow just as a woman in the bookstore glanced at her poster and sent her a curious stare.
“Here we go,” I said under my breath, ready for the moment she was recognized, but the woman’s gaze swept over the three of us and she settled for simply smiling and nodding at my mom.
“Have you ever been recognized?” Gemma asked as we continued on our merry way toward the boutique we were all dying to get into.
I shrugged. “Once or twice. Always only at book events that I sign up for, though. Never in the wild.”
“The wild.” Mom chuckled. “I love that, but you’ll get there, darling. The key is good sunglasses and a wide-brimmed hat.”
She winked at me, pointing a finger at the large sunglasses sitting on top of her head. I scoffed. “I’m miles away from needing those, Mom. You’re a legend. I’m just your daughter, and that’s not me being sensitive about it. It’s just true.”
I did well enough. My books sold to a loyal fanbase and the occasional readers who were looking to branch out. I was one of the lucky few who was able to make a full-time living that way, so I had nothing to complain about, but Mom?
She was ranked up there among the greats. Everyone who had ever read a romance novel had picked up a Deb Guntry at some point in their youths, and her books had no doubt sparked several new generations of romance readers. She’d also written hit series in a handful of other genres and had even had one of them turned into a TV show.
Mom reached out and slid her arms around my shoulders, pulling me in for a sideways hug as we walked, but when we made it to the boutique, all our attention focused on the shopping that lay ahead. Between the crowds, the sales, and the mountains of shopping bags between us, we were exhausted by the time we got home, but we’d had a successful day.
The next morning, Mom and I gathered in the living room to put up our Christmas tree. Today, it would just be us. Our tradition for the Saturday after Black Friday was to decorate Mom’s house for Christmas.
It had been bittersweet ever since my father had passed, but we did it together every year, revisiting memories as we pulled out boxes of ornaments they had collected over the years. Mom had already brought the boxes in from the garage when I walked into the room, and she was sitting cross-legged on her butt on the carpet.
“Do you remember Mickey?” She showed me a mouse ornament we’d once bought on a holiday trip to Disney. “You were so attached to this little guy. Daddy and I tried everything to get you to leave the store without him, but you refused. It was one of the few tantrums you ever had in public.”
Tears filled my eyes. “I don’t remember it clearly, but I do remember snippets. He is pretty cute, though.”
I made us both coffees before I joined her on the floor. “Hey, Mom?”
“Yes, baby?” She glanced up at me, her fingers lovingly tracing the outline of a picture in a plastic ball.
“I want you to know that I’m okay with it if you are seeing Doug,” I said, drawing in a deep breath. “I know he’ll never be able to replace Daddy, but you don’t have to worry about me getting upset about it. I’m a big girl now and you deserve to be happy.”
A wobbly smile lifted her lips, her eyes suddenly glistening with tears. “No one will ever replace your daddy, honey. But thanks. I think I might finally be ready to try.”
“Good.” I gave her a watery smile of my own, knowing that losing my dad so early hadn’t been part of her plan, but I hoped that she would open herself up to new opportunities now if she really felt ready. “I like him. Plus, he knew Daddy and Daddy knew him. That could make it easier during the times when you get sad. I also think Daddy would’ve approved. An appropriate amount of time has definitely passed.”
Mom glanced up at the ceiling as if she was waiting for him to send her a sign, but finally, she simply exhaled and smiled at me again. “Thanks, honey. We’ll see how it goes. I’m trying not to get ahead of myself.”
“Of course.”
She and I spent the day quietly reminiscing and talking, bonding a bit. Late in the afternoon, I spoke to Grace again after she’d closed up shop, and I was struck dumb over the amount of sales she’d had.
By the time I climbed into my bed that night, I was happy and filled with a sense of nostalgia. My phone pinged beside me, Leif’s name appearing on the screen. I smiled. How did he know I needed to hear from him right now?
Leif: Can I see you one last time before I have to head back to Denver?
Me: Yes, please.
Although he would only be going back to Colorado for a few days before our long weekend together in Franklin, I already knew we were going to have to make the most of any time we could get together. And I didn’t plan on missing a single opportunity I would have to see him.