22. Jules
Jules
“ O kay, this should be the last of it,” Maggie says, placing a platter of cookies on a stand.
It’s a beautiful Saturday morning, and I am deliciously sore after a night in Cal’s bed.
And deliciously sated after being woken with his talented mouth this morning.
It was hard to drag myself out of his cozy bed, and I missed the heat of him immediately when he pushed me toward the shower with instructions to get my ass moving so I could “slay market day.”
The cherry on top was the way he stopped me on my way out the door, sending me off with the most tender of kisses.
Spring is in full swing. Flowers have emerged from their winter hibernation. The air is cool and brisk, but the sun is already warming. It’s the perfect morning for treats and coffee, and fingers crossed, Main Street will be filled with craft shoppers.
We’ve been wholly focused on setting up our booth for hours, and it’s decorated with a combination of Sticky Sweet and Daily Brew Two branded cups, giveaway goodies, and cutesy decor. It’s cozy and fun and everything I’ve been imagining all these months.
I take a step back and admire everything we’ve accomplished in a few short hours.
“What’s that look for, girlie?”
Maggie has been amazing to work with. We hit it off like long-lost friends.
And all of this hard work coming to fruition feels like an accomplishment. This feels like success.
I grin at her. “Things are finally looking up.”
“Oh yeah? That’s awesome.”
“The construction is finished, and I got the building inspection scheduled.”
“Oh hey, that’s exciting. I’m so stoked we’ll be able to collaborate.”
Icing on the cake? Since Lissette was able to find my replacement, I haven’t had to help cover at her shop anymore. Most days, Cal and I wake up, work alongside each other, and go to bed together. Charlie is happy and healthy. Life feels really good right now.
Our booth is really just a ten-by-ten tent with three tables in a U shape. Maggie has two tables, and I have one. We have banners and business cards. As well as printed copies of both of our menus.
The only thing I’m waiting on is that final certificate of occupation to complete my business license registration, and then I can hang an Open sign on my door.
With the first customers straggling down Main, I step out onto the street to grab a photo for social media.
The street has been closed to allow for maximum foot traffic, and tents line both sides.
Down the road, an ambulance and firetruck line the outer perimeter of the park for the Touch-A-Truck.
Giant blow-up jumpy houses fill the rest of the park, where a DJ has started playing music.
It’s festive and fun. Gratitude fills me because this is my future. And knowing it, I can’t stop the smile that spreads across my face.
“Juju.” Charlie’s little voice has me turning. She and Cal step out to the road. He releases her tiny hand, and she barrels across the street to me.
“Well, that’s new. Good morning, Charlie-Belle.”
I haven’t seen her in a day or two because I was prepping for the festival, and she was asleep by the time I got in from Maggie’s. But whether I haven’t seen her in a few days or a few hours, Charlie will launch herself at me. And the nickname she’s given me melts my heart.
“Looks good, babe.”
Maggie pokes her head around the corner at Cal’s words and then joins us. “Hi, you must be Cal. I’m Maggie. I think you might work with my friend Jackson. And you must be Charlie. Would you like a muffin?”
“Yah,” Charlie screams and launches herself at Maggie.
Cal shakes his head. “She just demolished pancakes and bacon. She can’t be hungry.”
I grin and slip an arm around his waist, leaning up on tiptoe to press a kiss to his jaw.
“It’s about the treat, not about being hungry.”
His arm drapes over my shoulder, tucking me in tight as he surveys the display we’ve put together. “It looks fucking good, Jules. I hope you sell out today.”
Technically, I’m working under Maggie’s business, and she is the one offering Daily Brew coffee since I don’t have all of my permits yet. But I figure it’s not going to hurt to start getting my name out there.
“So, you know Jackson?” Cal asks Maggie .
“Yeah. He’s a mess.”
“He’s a good guy. It’s been fun getting to know him. Makes the long shifts go by quicker.”
I make a mental note to grill Maggie on this Jackson later. Charlie demolishes her muffin, and Cal hoists her onto his shoulders.
“Come on, Belle. Let’s let Juju get to work. We can go see the firetruck.”
Charlie squeals in glee, and they take off. I watch his ass as they stroll down the street, then join Maggie back in our booth.
“Girl, I know you’re smitten with the both of them. She’s adorable. And there’s just something about a sexy girl dad.”
“Oh, Charlie is his niece.”
Maggie cocks her head, studying them. “Still. Those two are adorable together.”
“Yeah. They really are. I don’t know how Cal is going to handle it when his sister gets her shit together and comes back for Charlie.”
“Comes back?”
I don’t want to divulge all of Cal’s business, so I just nod. Thankfully, customers start milling in. Maggie does a bang-up job of including me, introducing me to people she knows. Pimping me and my coffee shop as much as selling her own goods.
“It’s awfully nice of you to share your booth, Maggie.
” A little blue-haired lady totters in and starts filling her arms with baked goods.
She’s wearing a multicolored top, purple pants, and a ratty old gardening hat.
A luxury brand purse hooked over her elbow is a direct contrast to the gaudy costume jewelry that glints from her ears and fingers.
Her blue hair is a little wild, and hot-pink lipstick bleeds into the wrinkles around her mouth.
She’s the old-lady stereotype that little kids are terrified of.
“Good morning, Mrs. Eversley. It’s good to see you up and about this morning.”
“It’s good to be seen. Did you save me a bran muffin? You know I only like the ones with the cinnamon and brown sugar.”
The corner of Maggie’s lips twitch. “Yes ma’am. I’ve got yours right here. Made especially for you.”
“Mmph.” The older woman snatches the white paper bag that Maggie holds out and trades it for an arm full of cookies and other baked goods.
“Like I was saying, it’s mighty nice.”
I’m confused, but Maggie takes her in stride as she bags up the other baked goods the woman tossed at her.
“I’ll take a cup of that decaf as well.” She turns and levels a watery gaze on me. “The Main Street Committee sure could’ve used the extra revenue for the booth rental instead of you poaching on Maggie’s space.”
She spins on a heel and stalks off.
“Uh.” My head is reeling. I don’t know what to make of what just happened. “Did she just walk off without paying?” I’m stunned that Maggie just let this old woman essentially steal from both of us.
Maggie’s tinkling laughter floats on the morning air.
“Mrs. Eversley has a tab. Don’t worry about it. She’s just a sweet, if not eccentric, little old lady.”
“She reminds me of Ouiser from Steel Magnolias ,” I say, trying to suppress a shudder. “What’d she mean about the table fee? ”
Maggie shrugs. “I’m not sure.”
The event goes by in a flash, and within a few hours, we are sold out of all of Maggie’s treats, and all of my offerings have been claimed.
Maggie hands the last of the cookies to a small kid who cried because he wanted sprinkles, with a promise that if his mom will bring him by, she will make an extra special one just for him.
It’s been a fun event, and we’ve had a constant line of people. I’ve passed out all of my flyers, and I’m more than excited to have met so many friendly people.
“Oh my gosh.” My face hurts from smiling so much. “What a fun day.”
“Yeah, we were a hit.” Maggie beams back at me. “And bonus, now that we’re sold out, we get to enjoy the event ourselves.”
There’s another hour or two for shopping before a late-afternoon dance party at the park. Maggie slips her arm into mine and heads us down Main. We’ve strolled to the top of the hill, and I’m standing in the spot where I had my panic attack and looking back down the street.
“You know, I don’t want to seem like a Debbie Downer, but the event organizers told me they didn’t have space when I tried to apply for my own booth,” I say under my breath, finally voicing the thing that’s been bothering me the whole walk.
Maggie looks back down the street in the direction I’m facing and frowns. “That doesn’t make sense. There were at least two empty stalls,” she says, not bothering to lower her voice.
“We didn’t have quite the turnout we’d hoped for,” says a voice from behind us.
We turn to find a woman with a clipboard staring back at us. She’s wearing an appliquéd floral sweater over polyester slacks. Her pinched expression shifts to a full frown as she gives us the once-over. I’ve never felt so judged and disrespected by a single look.
“But that can’t be true. I know I turned in my application form and was willing to pay the late fee, and I was told the event was full.”
The woman’s chin juts up as she sniffs.
“Juju!” My name is squealed in a little girl’s voice I’d recognize anywhere. I look up to find Cal and Charlie barreling at me from the other side of the crosswalk.
I release Maggie’s arm as Charlie jumps into mine and gives me a giant hug as Cal slips his arm around my shoulders.
The sight of the two of them is quickly becoming one of my favorite things.
He gives me a lingering kiss on the temple, and it all feels so right, it almost dampens the sting of rejection from the old biddy with the clipboard.
A sniff interrupts our happy glow.
“Oh, hi, Mrs. Pembrook. You might not remember me, but we met at the public safety luncheon last week. I’m Cal Johnson. This is my girlfriend, Jules. She’s opening the new coffee shop.”
I’m standing there stunned, and I can’t decide if it’s from the shock of being introduced as his girlfriend or because he actually knows people in this town when I thought he was a loner.
The biddy, Mrs. Pembrook, sniffs again. “Yes, well. It’s nice to see one of our finest civil servants out enjoying the event.”
“It’s been a great day. Hasn’t it, Charlie-Belle?” he says, tickling Charlie.
“Yah.”
“Are you a happy girl?”
“Hap-py,” Charlie says, clear as day. I’m grinning from ear to ear because her language skills have improved so much over the few short weeks we’ve been together. Every day, she’s trying new words and becoming a confident little toddler.
“She’s adorable,” Maggie says, trying to get in a tickle with Charlie. “You come to my shop anytime, sweetie. Auntie Maggie has special treats for good little girls like you.”
“Well.” Mrs. Pembrook sniffs and looks between me, Cal, and Charlie. “This is quite unfortunate.” She busies herself with flipping through the paperwork in her hand. “Had I known that you belonged to one of our firemen, I would’ve certainly made sure you had a booth of your own.”
The flipping stops, and she bestows us with a condescending smile. “But I suppose it all worked out for the best. You and Miss Simmons had one of the most successful booths, from what I could tell. I’m certain you can pay your dues to the community once you join the town chamber.”
I blink at the woman as she nods briskly and stamps away.
“Did that just happen? Did she really just tell me that they blackballed me but wouldn’t have if they’d known my boyfriend was a firefighter?”
“Welcome to small-town Senoma.” Maggie is still staring after the retreating woman. Her shoulders lift on a sigh.
“Come on, ladies, you’ve worked all day. What do you say to a cheeseburger and fries?” Cal tries to defuse the tension. I reluctantly agree. But the entire trek down Main, the whole time we stand in line for burgers, my anger simmers into a rage.
Maggie inhales her cheeseburger and swoops Charlie out to the open area where kids are dancing, leaving me and Cal alone for the first time all day.
“You seem upset. Did I cross a line with the title?” His voice is low, and it makes me think of all the dirty things that come out of his mouth when we’re in his bed.
“No. I’m not upset about that. I’m upset because that woman didn’t give me and my business a second thought until they knew you and I were a thing.
Like, why? Why does it matter if I’m a single woman or if I’m dating a hero?
” I do air quotes around the last. “Why am I an automatic extension of you?”
Cal lifts a shoulder. “I don’t know. But I can tell you that’s not an abnormal response. People are put at ease because of what I do. I’ve never really understood it, but I’ve seen it time and again.”
I toss my napkin down, not hungry anymore.
“It just sucks. I am a businesswoman, and I’ve always prided myself on being a professional.
I know I can be successful here. I want to be successful here.
On my own. I’ve always been the little sister or my parents’ daughter or my ex’s wife.
I wanted one thing of my own. I know I can do it if given the chance.
But after that whole deal, I guess I’ve got a bad taste in my mouth, and I’m wondering if I’ll even get a fair shot in this town. ”
Cal reaches across the table and lays his hand over mine. “It’s fine if you use me to get ahead. I kinda like the idea of being used when it comes to you.” He gives me a playful wink.
The song changes to one that I know and love, and Cal stands, pulling me up with him.
“Come on. Let’s go have a dance party and see if we can turn this evening around.”
I follow reluctantly and halfway join him and Maggie in twirling Charlie around. I want to be successful on my own. It’s not until he goes up to the DJ and requests ABBA that I finally decide to let the interaction go and enjoy the last of the festival.
I will do this. I will make my dreams come true. But it may not be on the terms I expected.