Edith
Your book is here!!
Nothing has me rushing through getting ready for work faster than a text from , the owner of Hollow Bookstore, saying I got my book order in. Hollow Bookstore just so happens to be one of my favorite places in the world.
I throw on a pink Sugar t-shirt and the same denim shorts I wore yesterday morning to the support group meeting and tug on my tennis shoes once more. My hair is still damp and hanging down my back, so I grab a claw clip and hook it to the strap of my bag then practically run down the stairs so fast I slip and see my life flash before my eyes before I catch myself.
Slow down, Winnie.
I grab my hat from the counter and stuff it in my bag just in case I can’t decide what I want to do with my hair later to tame it.
“Can’t get your book from if you’re dead from knocking yourself out on the stairs, idiot,” I mutter as I lock the door behind me.
Jetting off in my usual route to Main Street, I pause in front of the Hale house for a second before continuing on my sprint. There’s no point in wondering if he’s home when I know he never comes home anymore.
Once I hit the sidewalk, I slow down and try to catch my breath as I take in the literal square of old, brick buildings lining the main streets of town. It’s beautiful in a rustic, cliche kind of way, and I enjoy working in one of the buildings, slinging coffee and making pastries.
Most of the shops leave their doors propped open in the summer months, and I wave at a few other shop owners and employees as I pass. Jon Hamilton’s law office is beside Hollow Bookstore and Sugar is on the other side. Quite the dynamic we have going on in The Hollow.
Jon is actually really cool. I guess he’d have to be a chill, laid back kind of man at heart to be in a long-term committed relationship with Tootsie. I just know she’s a lot to put up with at the end of a long day defending literal criminals.
As expected, Hollow Bookstore’s doors are wide open, a large potted plant sitting in front of the glass doors as a stopper, and I can hear Patsy Cline playing softly as I enter the shop. is humming along with the music behind the counter with nose buried in a book, and I smile as I walk to the counter.
“Hey, . I got your text.”
She snaps her head up and yelps, hands clutching her heart. “Oh, my! Winnie!” She taps the counter firmly and scolds me, “You can’t sneak up on the elderly, sweetie.”
“It won’t happen again. Promise.” I say as I cross my heart with my finger.
She huffs with a roll of her eye and grins, leaning over the counter. She looks left and right then beckons me closer. “I got your book in, and this cover… There’s tentacles on this thing, Winifred!”
“!” I look around and lean closer, whispering, “What did you think was going to be on the cover of Wrapped in Tentacles ?”
“I didn’t think that far ahead, I guess.”
I make grabby hands at her. “Well, give it here. I’m so excited.”
She laughs and pulls a rather large rectangle wrapped in butcher paper out and slides it across the glossy counter to me. “You and Gwen need to have your heads checked after reading this thing.”
“We’re just fine, thank you. ”
She points toward the classic literature section and purses her lips. “What ever happened to reading Jane Austen and Charlotte Bronte?”
I lift a brow and tap my chin. “Do they write about werewolf mates or something?”
“Ugh!” throws a paperclip at me, and I can’t stop my laughter. “Get out of here, girl. Go on!”
“I’m leaving! I’m leaving!” I shout through my laughter as I run away and dodge her paperclip assault. “Thanks, !”
She waves me out with a grin on her face, and I walk the ten steps next door to Sugar, where Gwen, my boss, is wiping down the display case with the most intense look of concentration on her face. Her nose scrunches, mouth twisting as she inspects her handiwork.
I crouch beside her and inspect the case. She pulls back and watches with me, frowning when I hum disparagingly.
“What? What do you see?”
“Nothing,” I sigh. “It’s perfect. I could eat a cupcake off this glass.”
Gwen smacks my arm with her rag, and I laugh as I set my things in the backroom.
“Come look what just gave me!”
“ Wrapped in Tentacles ?” Gwen shouts, already stomping toward the back, and I’m nodding rapidly when she hurls herself into the room and makes grabby hands at me and the brown paper package.
She squeals, “Ah! Open it already, Winnie! ”
“Okay, okay!”
I rip open the butcher paper wrapped it in just to make sure no one saw it and pull out the blue and green book. Sure enough, on the cover purple tentacles wrap seductively around a brunette woman in a ripped white gown as she looks to be in the throes of passion.
Flipping the book around, I show Gwen.
“It’s beautiful…” I say in awe.
She runs the tips of her fingers down the cover and nods. “How can a cartoon cover be so good? How do people draw like this?”
“I know. Look at the detail on his tentacles!”
Gwen clicks her tongue and points to the woman. “Her belly button is pierced! Look! Just barely there between his tentacles.”
“I see it!” I look up at her and smack my mouth. “Tentacle is starting to feel like a nonsense word.”
She snorts. “Take a shot every time one of us says tentacles.”
I shove the book into my bag and shoot her a grin. “We’d be drunk by now, Gwen.”
“True,” she agrees, and we both lift our heads when the bell dings above the door. “I’ll go take care of it while you finish getting settled.”
“Thanks, boss.”
She scowls at me. “You know I hate that.”
“You are literally the boss, Gwen. Better get used to it. ”
She’s grumbling under her breath as she walks out, and I shake my head.
While ’s bookstore is a bit drab in decor and all dark, muted colors, Sugar is the opposite. Spruced up with greenery and wildflowers that Gwen buys in pre-made bouquets from Bluebird Ranch every couple of weeks, the shop is tranquil and homey. There’s macrame hanging from the ceiling and a neon pink sign that reads SUGAR in pretty cursive writing on the back wall. The windows have twinkling lights around the frame that give the coziest atmosphere especially when the sun begins to set, and Gwen dims the harsh overhead lights.
I know Gwen has a lot of pressure on her shoulders to be successful in Magnolia Hollow thanks to Mrs. Betty, her grandmother, being equal to a royal figure in our small town. That’s a big legacy to try to follow up.
Fortunately, it’s all worked out in Gwen’s favor. She’s been able to renovate the shop and draw in enough customers to not only make a livable wage but also to pay back her loans to the bank and her grandmother. All because of her family name.
She’d rather know she made it on her own through hard work and determination, and her delicious cupcakes, than feel like she’s piggybacking off of her namesake.
Sometimes I don’t think Gwen’s even realized just how much she’s benefited from her last name though. She’s drawn in new faces through her social media page and good ass cupcakes, but people three towns over who have become loyal customers have done so simply because they know Mrs. Betty Rigby is a wonderful, generous woman.
Other reasons too, obviously, but that’s the gist.
Peeking my head around the corner, I watch Gwen hand a coffee and a small, pink box to a tall, light-haired, broad shouldered man with a rosy hue to her cheeks.
It’s strange to see people coming in and out of the shop that we don’t intimately know considering how small Magnolia Hollow is, but it happens especially in the summer months. He looks entirely too sullen to be traveling from out of state just for the cupcakes.
It actually looks a little comical to see him standing next to Gwen of all people.
There’s no better way to describe Gwendolyn Rigby other than cute. Couldn’t think of a better word for her if I tried.
Her medium length, brown hair is in two, shiny braids with pale pink bows tied on the ends, and her bangs flip perfectly off her face like you have your hairstylist do for you at the salon but can never actually manage to recreate at home. Well, Gwen can. Her makeup looks similar to how it does every day–pink eyeliner, rosy cheeks, pink tinted lip balm, and mascara. All of it just accentuates her slanted, upturned eyes and button nose.
She’s wearing a hot pink Sugar tank top and denim overalls she’s cuffed at the bottom to show off her pink platform sandals, and I genuinely cannot think of a single word beyond cute to describe Gwen’s style .
She takes her love for the color pink to a whole new level, and I love that about her.
She’s unapologetically herself in all aspects of life.
“Hey, want to help me replace the flowers?” Gwen asks after she spots me watching her. Her soft voice snaps me out of my thoughts, and I make my way over to where she’s standing at the counter. Grabbing an apron off the wall, I tie it around my waist and pick up one of the dead petals from the floor.
“I guess it’s time, huh?” I say then flick the petal back to the floor and watch it fall slowly. “Did you already get new flowers?”
“No, so if you think you can hold down the fort, I’ll go grab some from Beth. Shouldn’t be gone too long.”
I roll my eyes and gesture toward the door. “Please go. I can manage without you for an hour.”
“It will not take me an hour to go to Bluebird and back.”
Snorting, I push at her shoulder again. “Yeah, right. You and I both know how much Beth loves to chit chat.”
She winces and looks at me hopefully. “Hey… You wouldn’t want to go to Bluebird and grab flowers, would you?”
“No.”
“As your boss–”
“Fine.”
Gwen sighs, overdramatic and drawn out as she yanks her apron off and hangs it. “No, no. I’m going. I should go.”
I grin. “You should. You are the boss after all.”
“I’ll be back.” She points a manicured finger at me. “Don’t burn my shop down in the meantime, Winnie.”
“Wait, so I should leave the stove on and play with matches while you’re gone?” I frown, biting my nail as I stare at her wide eyed. “Instructions unclear…”
“La, la, laaaa! I’m ignoring that! Behave.”
My laughter follows her out of the doors, and I wait until she’s fully out of the building and let the door swing shut before I get started on cleaning up a bit and frosting cupcakes. I make an iced cinnamon latte to sip on while I work quietly.
Thirty minutes later, there were no customers coming inside, and I’m sitting around bored.
I send a quick text to Gwen.
Did you take all of the customers with you when you left??
Hahah you could frost the cupcakes if you’re bored?