Chapter 9
Belle
Maverick texted me a few times on Sunday and then nothing. He'd done exactly what I expected he'd do. He'd gone back to ignoring me like he had before.
I rationalized it because his boots were probably muddy, and he wouldn't want to trail dirt through my new store. But he didn't text me or ask to meet to discuss the progress.
I should have been happy that work was progressing, and I was closer to my dream every day. The store was nice, but it was going to be so much more with the patio and four-seasons room.
On Friday, I met with Eve to discuss the possibility of a fireplace. She wanted to multitask and meet at Merry's Diner for lunch.
"How are things going with the construction?" Eve asked after we ordered and tucked our menus into the stand on the side of the table.
"It can be loud, but no one seems to mind. The kids love watching the trucks work." And I enjoyed watching Maverick work.
Her nose wrinkled. "I was worried about the dust and noise."
"We could have waited to open, but I didn't want to. It's going to be amazing once the work is completed."
"You said you wanted to add something."
I nodded eagerly, pulling out the rendering I'd drawn. It was the four-seasons room with holiday decorations and the fireplace.
"You're a good artist."
I stiffened. "Oh, this is just something I drew quickly to show you what I was thinking about."
Eve gave me a look. "You framed the other rendering you did. That's art."
"Maverick told me to frame it." I wouldn't have otherwise. It was one of the few compliments he'd given me. In the past, it was mainly heated looks and flirty encounters. We hadn't talked about much that meant anything to us, and now I was seeing that might have been where we went wrong.
We'd both made assumptions about each other that didn't bear out in real life.
She raised a brow. "Maverick agrees with me."
I did get a lot of compliments on the drawing. When I had downtime, I sketched characters in a little book I kept beneath the counter. I had no plans for anyone ever seeing them though. "I wanted you to see how it would look. It's cozy and inviting. We can have meetings in this room year-round."
Eve nodded. "It is nice."
"The bookstore will be the place to congregate. We can host town meetings there, book clubs, and other interest groups."
"Everything you've thought of is amazing. I'll see if we have it in the budget to add the fireplace right now. We're still replacing the pipes and finishing up renovations on the inn." She sighed. "I have a feeling we're always going to be working on one project or another."
"You're constantly evolving, making everything better," I said.
She nodded. "We want things to run smoothly, but we also want a place that people can gather."
"Our bookstore will be the obvious choice over the one in Telluride." That store was a tight space, overfilled with books, were stacked on the floor and the tables. It couldn't compete with our new and enlarged space.
Our food came, and we ate for a few seconds without speaking. Then Eve asked, "Has Maverick kept you updated on his progress?"
I frowned. "Not as much as I would have hoped."
"He's quiet, and he doesn't like a lot of input on his work. But he's the best for this job. Don't be afraid to ask for updates. My hands are full with the pipe repairs and other issues and complaints."
I shuddered at the memory of the last town hall when one of the shop owners tried to shut down the lingerie store because he thought Angela's shop was inappropriate. "I wouldn't want your job."
"It can be a lot sometimes. Maddox pulls me away and insists that I take breaks."
"That's nice that you have someone," I said, the words feeling empty in my mouth because I'd never been in a relationship where I'd move in with them and their daughter. What she had with Maddox was special.
"They're everything to me. I adore his daughter, and I love spending time with them. I highly recommend finding that guy that's right for you."
"I just opened the store. I don't have any plans to meet anyone." Except I'd just thought about that the other day, before Maverick took care of me.
She raised a brow. "You're staring at Maverick all day, every day, and you aren't having any naughty thoughts?"
My cheeks flushed. "He is attractive."
Eve fanned herself with a napkin. "Especially with those muscles and tattoos, and he has that whole broody thing going for him."
"He's so closed off and grouchy most of the time."
"I'm sure he'll soften for the right woman," Eve said as she buttered her toast.
"Probably," I agreed, thinking about how concerned he'd been when I was sick. How he'd taken care of me. But it had nothing to do with me per se. He'd do that for anyone who needed help. I wasn't special.
"Natasha reunited with Ford during the inn's renovation, and Hudson and Angela got to know each other better when her pipe burst. I just assumed that we'd have ourselves another little love story at the bookstore."
I shook my head before she even finished speaking. "We're total opposites."
Her eyes lit up. "Those are the best relationships. When I met Maddox, he was all grumpy, and the fire chief thought I could soften him. It wasn't easy, but he came around for me."
"This is a different situation. We had a little thing in high school, and it ended badly."
Her eyes lit up. "Tell me everything."
I leaned close and lowered my voice. "You know how you flirt with the bad boy in school?
Her eyes widened. "I can't say I've ever experienced that. But continue. This sounds juicy."
I laughed at her reaction despite the familiar pain that I felt when I thought back to that time.
"We flirted here and there and kissed under the bleachers.
" I rolled my eyes. "So cliché. I know. Then he asked me out, and I was so excited.
My first real date. He was going to pick me up in his sports car and take me somewhere.
I spent forever deciding what to wear, and then I waited for him to come. "
Her face fell. "He stood you up?"
"He recently apologized, saying he'd thought we were too different.
I told myself I'd never be in that position again and certainly not with the same person.
" My parents had been particularly caustic that night, making me feel like there was something wrong with me. They hadn't been supportive at all.
"So Maverick isn't the right man for you. But he has one more brother, Morgan," she said with glee.
I shook my head. "I'm focused on the store and the renovation. I'll worry about finding someone later."
She frowned. "I was so hopeful that our town relationship streak would continue with you two."
"Sorry to disappoint you, but we have a past and not a good one.
" I didn't want to revisit that time in my life or repeat a mistake.
He'd already shown me the kind of man he was.
Hadn't he? A voice in my head asked about how he'd taken care of me when I was sick, and he'd apologized for his actions as a teenager.
It was something, but I shouldn't discount everything that came before.
"Aspen said something about covering the store when you were sick the other day. She mentioned that Maverick found you and took care of you."
I nodded. "He did."
"That sounds like something a nice guy would do."
"It was."
She sighed. "If you say he's not for you, then he's not for you. We'll find you someone."
I shook my head. "I don't need to find anyone. I'm good on my own."
She waved her hand. "I want everyone to find the happiness that I have with Maddox."
I sighed, suspecting that she was a force that was difficult to stop once she got going. "I promise I'm happy being alone. My parents were so controlling for years, and now I finally feel free."
Eve nodded and changed topic. "Everyone seems to love the bookstore. I'm constantly seeing people going in and out when I walk by."
"We have the morning story times, and I'm booking the lounge area for various groups. It's only going to increase when I have the additional space."
"To think that Rob was against any new shops. He said that we had everything we needed."
I frowned. "Every town needs a bookstore."
"I agree, but Rob is set in his ways. Hopefully, he'll keep his opinions to himself from now on. Since none of his dire predictions have come true."
"What are your plans for bringing in offseason customers?" I asked, knowing it would distract her from my love life.
"I'm planning seasonal festivals and events to bring people in. Maybe a cocoa crawl, a chili cook-off, or even a brewfest."
"Those sound like good options."
"We always have to balance the event with parking and the crowd. We don't want to overwhelm the town. If people think they can't get parking, or get to their favorite stores, they won't come. It will be seen as a problem, not an event they'll want to go to."
"That's a fine balance. I don't envy you your job."
"I'd rather escape to your store and find a good book to read away the afternoon.
But this is what I've always wanted, to run a town, to drive customers to the main street and away from strip malls and box stores.
Towns are natural gathering places. You feel good when you're walking on a cobblestone street.
There's an ambiance in a small town that you can't find anywhere else. "
"I think you're right." After talking to her, I felt more confident that I'd chosen the right place to open my store.
We finished our meal and paid, then headed outside into the cool air. "I'll let you know about the fireplace soon."
"Thanks, Eve." It was pleasant to talk with her about the town, not necessarily my love life. But the women here were nice. They wanted to be friends, and for the first time, I was starting to think I should let my guard down.
I opened the door to the bookstore, turning the sign from Closed to Open. I didn't go out to lunch that often. I usually only took a quick break, eating in the break room. But it was nice to get out and talk to another woman.
She'd made me think about Maverick and whether he was different now. I didn't want to forget the lessons of the past, but at the same time, I couldn't help but think nothing had changed. He still thought we were too different.
The shop was quiet, and I pulled out my sketch pad, looking through the pages of drawings I'd made since the store opened. I wondered what they would look like if I framed them and placed them on the wall. It would give the shop a cozy feel.
The French doors in the back opened, and Maverick stepped inside. It must have started to rain. The sky was dark, and I heard the drops on the windows.
He toed off his boots. "Do you mind if I wash my hands in the sink? I promise I won't make a mess."
I shrugged. "Of course not."
"I didn't want to drag dirt through your store."
"No worries." They had a port-a-potty placed outside for the workers, so no one had come inside since construction started.
I turned to a blank page and drew another character from a movie I enjoyed. These pictures of princesses would look nice in the children's section. I was so absorbed in my work that I jumped when Maverick said, "That's great."
I startled. "I forgot you were here."
He raised a brow, standing much too close to me, probably to see over my shoulder. I resisted the urge to close the notebook and hide my drawing from him. "You should be aware of your surroundings when the store is open."
I scanned the room so I wouldn't have to look at him. "No one else has come in. Probably because of the rain."
"We're cleaning up outside for the day."
I nodded and turned slightly on my stool which placed me inches from the heat of his body.
He inclined his head toward my sketch pad. "Do you have more of those?"
I flipped through the other pages, showing numerous princesses and other storybook characters. "It's something to do when the shop is quiet."
"You should frame those too. The kids will love them."
"I don't know if they're good enough for that."
"I think business succeeds when the owners show themselves in their product. This is you. This is your store. It shows your heart. Your love. Your desire."
I looked up at him. "A simple sketch can do all of that?"
"Yeah, it's what makes your store unique. It's you."
I wasn't sure that I believed what he was telling me. "I'll think about it."
"You're talented."
I laughed at that, closing the sketch book and tucking it under the counter. "I'm not an artist. There was another girl in school who was much better than me."
"You don't think there's room in the world for both of you? Or can only one person be an artist, and you'll never be good enough?"
I shrugged, feeling a little foolish. I'd never thought of it like that. "My parents didn't like that I drew. They didn't want me to take art in high school. They didn't see it as a money-making endeavor."
"Not everything is going to make you money, but I think your sketches are insights into you and your heart. It will make your shop personal, and that's what customers connect with. You. Not the books or the ambiance."
"I don't know about that." Why would people shop here because I owned the store? I couldn't believe people would be more willing to shop in my store because of a few rudimentary drawings.
He took a step back, and I finally drew in a deep breath.
"I'm going to make sure everything's put away. Then I'll head home. Thanks for letting me wash up."
"You can use the bathrooms whenever you need to."
He raised a brow. "Trust me, you don't want me in your bathroom. I'll just dirty it up."
I kind of wanted him to dirty me up. It was a dark, rainy day, and no customers were coming in. I could kiss him, and no one would know. But I remembered what happened last time. He'd rejected me, and that memory was too fresh in my mind.
"See you tomorrow," he said before he walked out.
It was the first time I'd really seen him since I was sick. He was large and potent up close. It was something I couldn't fully appreciate when I'd been up all night puking. But now? He was dangerous to my heart.
I wasn't any more capable of protecting myself now than I'd been when we were teens.