Chapter Six #3
“That is so cool!” she cried and curled up her knees to her chest. “I’ve never met someone who could actually trace their history back that far.”
Dominic’s shoulders moved as if to say it wasn’t that big of a deal as he swept the blue paste around the rough edges of the PVC.
“History has always been a big deal for my family, hence the antique shop. My father would make me research every new acquisition, so I’d know all about it.
When I was in high school, he made me sit behind the counter with my homework, and when someone came in, I’d have to answer questions if my father wasn’t there. ”
Erica’s smile failed her. “You didn’t have much of a social life, did you?”
“Oh, I did.” He let out a grunt as he tightened the nuts for the new piping. “But it was a close circle, and most of them were my father’s friends. Ask any old man in this town and they’ll have some stories to tell you about how I’d cause all sorts of trouble when my dad wasn’t around.”
Erica smiled, thinking this man looked nothing like a troublemaker, just as much as he didn’t look like an antique shop owner. “And your mom?”
Dominic’s hands slowed, and sorrow dulled his eyes for a fraction of a second. “She killed herself when I was ten. My father … he raised me, I suppose.”
Erica’s brain stumbled over the casual way he mentioned his mother’s suicide. “That must have been tough.”
Dominic lost his grip on the wrench again, and the tool hit the side wall of the cabinet. “He was either working at the shop or … he was just busy. He just wasn’t very hands-on, I guess. Those family friends I mentioned looked after me most of the time.”
She understood. Her mother worked two jobs to keep them going for the longest time. Though it was technically illegal, Erica was left alone as early as six years old because babysitters and daycare were too expensive.
Erica gave herself a mental shake. “Wait, that’s not what I meant. I meant it must have been tough that your mom killed herself.”
Movement stalled under the sink for only a moment before he continued.
“Honestly, I get why she did it. My dad was always so busy with stuff and hardly home. I think she was lonely. And don’t worry, I’ve been through counseling.
I know it wasn’t because I failed in some way.
It was her choice. I had nothing to do with it.
I resented my dad for a long time, thinking he was to blame.
If he just brought his ass home every once and a while, maybe things would have turned out differently. ”
Erica’s heart ached for the younger version of Dominic that had to go through such grief so early. Maybe he could talk about it so casually, like it didn’t matter anymore, but somehow, she could sense that it did. The subject of his mom wasn’t unlike the subject of her father to her.
“Did you always want to take on the family business?” she asked, hoping to steer the conversation back to something more cheerful.
“You must enjoy it, then.” At that moment, it clicked that there must have been a reason Dominic owned the store now instead of his father, just like there was a reason she had the cash to buy the house. But it was too late to backpedal.
“I do, for the most part. For a long time, I traveled around the country to estate sales and auctions to buy stuff to send back here. That arrangement was for the best. My dad and I never saw eye to eye on business matters. Every conversation devolved into a fight, but it was always the plan that I’d come back here to take over things.
” Dominic gave a mirthless laugh. “Somedays, I wonder if it’s even worth it to keep going. ”
Erica struggled between the decision to pry or keep her mouth shut. What did he mean by that? Was the antique shop not doing well? Was it even her place to ask or had they already crossed the line of too-personal long ago?
“Doesn’t look like you’ve been cooking in here much.” Dominic glanced over his shoulder toward the spotless stove and clear countertops.
Erica gave him a helpless shrug. “I’m not one for cooking. Microwave dinners are my specialty.”
“Didn’t your mom teach you how to cook?”
“She wasn’t one for cooking either. I grew up on Ramen noodles, easy mac ’n’ cheese, and lots of baked chicken that had absolutely no flavor whatsoever.”
He laughed again, such a wonderful sound. “Sounds like my childhood. My dad just bought us a bunch of easy things to fix and told me to follow the instructions if I got hungry.”
“So, your kitchen isn’t used very much either, huh?” The secret desire to be invited over for a meal wiggled its way into her thoughts, but Erica put it down quickly.
“Actually, my kitchen is always a mess. I got sick of TV dinners, so I learned how to make everything fresh. I bought a cookbook and searched for recipes online.”
Erica grinned. “A little self-taught chef.”
Dominic made a sound of insecurity. “I wouldn’t say I’ve acquired chef status, but I can cook a variety of things.”
Unsure of what came over her, Erica replied, “Well, you can come over and cook for me any time. I’m pretty sure if I tried to use that stove, the whole house would burn down.”
He seemed to ignore her sly invitation and chuckled. “How about I teach you how to use that stove, and you’ll never have to worry about burning down the house in the first place?”
An excited squeal bubbled up in her throat that she fought down. That was even better than him cooking dinner for her. Damn, she was glad he couldn’t see her face. “But then Lunar Lantern would lose some business.”
Dominic paused for a couple of seconds as if in thought, and then went back to work. “You go there every day?”
“Almost every day.” Before she could stop herself, she added, “I pass by your store and the lights are almost always off, otherwise I would—”
Erica had almost told him that she wanted to stop by and say hello, which was only part of the truth. Even if his lights were on when she passed by, she couldn’t summon up the courage to go inside.
When she didn’t continue, he said, “I’ll tell you a secret. Sometimes, I turn off those lights, but I’m really hiding in the back.”
The tension of her near confession eased away. “Why would you do that?”
“So I can have a moment’s peace.” Dominic handled one of the pipes a little roughly, as if suddenly upset about something.
“Is the store really that busy?”
Dominic snorted. “Not really. I just get a lot of visitors.”
“Like Gwen?”
“Yeah,” he mumbled. “I’m a pretty popular guy. I don’t think it helps that everyone knows everyone in Tolstone.”
Erica nodded. “Yeah, it’s definitely got that ‘Stars Hollow’ feel going on.”
“The what?”
She had to contain her eye-roll when the Gilmore Girls reference went completely over his head.
She couldn’t blame him. Erica and her mom adored that show, and they watched it every chance they got.
“Nothing. My point is that Tolstone’s a very nice town.
If everyone knows everyone, that should help me and my business. ”
“I’ve been telling everyone about your business too. I hope it shows.”
Erica wondered how many of the phone calls were his doing. “Yep. It’s going really well. I’ve got several appointments and I’m working something out with the schools to take their photos for the yearbook.”
“Excellent!” At least someone else in this town cared if she did well or not.
“There’s this town event thing this weekend,” he continued.
“Kind of like a spring festival, and a bunch of the local businesses will have booths set up. The registration closed about a month ago, but do you want to have a booth? I could pull some strings. I think there were some spots left that the event coordinator was trying to fill.”
He had said it all so fast that she could hardly form the words to respond quickly enough. “A booth? Like, with a table and tent?”
“Some do that. Others just have a table. I’ve got a spare tent and—”
“Whoa, there.” She threw her hands up. “Slow down, cowboy. How much does a booth cost?”
Dominic sat up and reached for another partially assembled component sitting on the counter. “Don’t worry about it.”
Erica wagged her head and felt a little of her former willfulness bubble up again. “Uh, yeah, I will worry about it. I’m not going to let you pay for the table.”
He shot her a look that made her freeze. For a few seconds, wills clashed in the kitchen, but Erica would not back down. She drew the line at the camera and sofa. No more handouts.
Finally, he backed off. “Okay, how about a loan? I pay for the table, and you pay me back with five percent interest every month until it’s paid off.”
A loan sounded fair, even if she didn’t know how much it was.
Five percent might be steep, but how expensive could a booth at a small-town festival really be?
Fifty dollars? Maybe a hundred? A loan was far better than a freebie, and she could easily make back the cost of the table with new bookings.
She nodded her acceptance of the deal, and Dominic ducked under the counter again. Her mind went into overdrive, thinking of all she’d need for a booth. She’d never done one before, not even at the farmers’ market in Decatur. “I don’t even know what I’d bring.”
“It’s on Saturday, so you really don’t have long to think about it,” Dominic said as he snatched up the last washer and seal. “I think it’d be a good promotional tool for you. All of Tolstone usually turns out for it.”
Erica blinked and let her mouth hang open as she tried to order her thoughts.
She’d need a table, a printed banner, and she was pretty sure she had enough business cards, but a few flyers or pamphlets seemed like a good idea.
She’d be up all night on the computer to design something to take to the print shop.
Wait, did Tolstone even have a print shop?
A harsh rap on the door made her jump.
“That’s probably for me,” Dominic sighed. “I’m almost done with this.”
“How do you know it’s for you?” she questioned as she pushed herself to her feet.
“Just a guess. I might have been expecting company at my place.”
Though she wondered how anyone might have guessed he was at her place instead, Erica hurried down the foyer hall. Her eyes went wide when she opened the front door to find a police officer, complete in uniform with the gun on his hip and badge. He seemed to be just as alarmed as she was.
“Can I help you, Officer?”
It sounded so corny once it came out her mouth, but Erica didn’t quite know what else to say. She’d never had to deal with the police, never been pulled over for a traffic ticket, and certainly never made her mother worry by showing up on her doorstep with one.
His lips minutely parted before he recovered and cleared his throat. “I’m looking for Dominic.”
She jerked her thumb down the hall. “He’s fixing my sink.”
There was something insanely familiar about the cop, but she couldn’t place it.
He must have been a stunner in his younger years.
Silver foxes, her mother called them. He had to be in his mid-to-late fifties and she could see a few peeping strands of gray in the brown hair around his ears.
Despite his age, he was well built, and by the way he carried himself, he must have been in the force for a long time.
Donuts certainly weren’t in his diet at all because there couldn’t have been a bit of fat on him underneath his clean, pressed uniform shirt.
If her mom were there, she would have been making eyes at the cop and probably flirting.
“Sheriff Cole Spradley,” he introduced himself and offered out his thick hand.
She took it and, as habit dictated, shook it firmly enough so he would know she wasn’t a frail, helpless girl. “Erica Barrett.”
Dominic’s footsteps sounded down the hall as she saw the officer’s face go pale. Something compelled her to ask if he was all right, but she quickly thought better of it and kept her lips shut. Their hands dropped, and she turned to face Dominic as he joined them at the door.
“Thanks for the help,” she said to her neighbor.
Something had come over Dominic in the last two minutes.
He was no longer the approachable man who was easy to talk to.
A mask of severity fell into place, and he gave the officer a less-than-pleased look.
Not only that, but a certain energy seemed to hum around him that made her shrink back a step.
In response to this sudden change in the chemistry between them, Erica threw up her emotional shield and tried not to feel wounded by his abrupt coldness.
She fought the instinct to question herself in order to account for his behavior.
This had nothing to do with her, and she refused to believe otherwise.
Erica’s gaze shifted from one man to the other, and she tried to make sense of it so her heart would stop screaming for a Band-Aid.
“Anytime,” Dominic replied curtly. “If it gives you any trouble, just let me know.”
Though it was unlikely she’d do it, she nodded, and the two men turned to leave. She would have called out a nice to meet you to Officer Spradley, but by the way he looked just as they stepped off her porch, she knew the cop wasn’t too happy either. What the hell was that about?
She closed the front door and plunged into the silence of the big, empty house. It hadn’t been more than ten seconds, and she missed him already, regardless of the way he left.
Erica wouldn’t have thought it possible that she could feel so much for anyone ever again.
The way he looked at her, the way he opened up to her, how vulnerable she had allowed herself to be in front of him, all of it pressed in, trying to tell her something, but she wouldn’t listen.
He was just a friendly neighbor looking to give her a helping hand.
If that was true, why did it hurt so much to see him walk away?
Their conversation meant nothing. At least, she didn’t want it to mean anything.