Chapter 9
Chapter Nine
“Okay, what’s going on with you?” Emma asked as she adjusted the twinkle lights on the stacked book tree in one corner of the To the Moon Bookstore. “You haven’t stopped smiling since you got here.”
Jolene tried to dim her smile, but it was impossible. She had a lot to smile about. Or maybe just one thing: a secret affair with a hot mechanic who fine tuned her body the same way he fined tuned an engine. Last night, he had revved her up so much that she actually purred.
But it wasn’t just the great sex that had her bubbling over with happiness.
She liked being with Cal.
She had always thought of him as a quiet, serious man.
But in the last couple weeks, she’d discovered a man who laughed easily and loved to talk.
After their passion cooled, he’d pull her into his arms and they’d chat for hours.
She’d tell him about her day at the bank and how frustrating it was to have to deal with her stubborn father and he’d tell her about his day at the garage and how frustrating it was to have to deal with a teenage daughter.
They talked about their late mothers and the strict rules they grew up with.
They talked about their childhoods and growing up in Simple. They talked about cars and books.
When they ran out of things to talk about, they played a game called This or That.
They would ask each other all kinds of questions.
Dog or cat? Waffles or pancakes? Sunrise or sunset?
Summer or winter? Nine times out of ten, they answered differently.
Which confirmed what opposites they were.
Cal preferred dogs, pancakes, and summer.
Jolene preferred cats, waffles, and winter.
Cal liked sunsets while she loved sunrises more .
. . at least she had until one evening when she’d arrived at the pink house early and found Cal upstairs watching the sun set from a bedroom window.
It had been beautiful. Or maybe what had been beautiful was when Cal had pulled her into his arms and they’d watched the sun sink below the horizon together. His chin had rested on her head and his heart had thumped softly against her back and his workman’s hands had rubbed up and down her arms.
For that one beautiful moment, she had pretended that what they had wasn’t just a fleeting affair.
But that was silliness.
Cal wasn’t interested in a long-term relationship.
And neither was she. What they had was just a fleeting affair.
One that would probably end as soon as Cheyenne didn’t have rehearsals anymore.
Jolene needed to remember that. She pushed thoughts of Cal away and tried to answer Emma without lying to her.
“Who wouldn’t smile when they walk into a bookstore? It’s like walking into Disneyland.”
Emma laughed. “It’s true. Everyday I have to pinch myself to make sure this isn’t a dream.”
“I feel the same way. I can’t believe Simple finally has a bookstore.” Jolene glanced around and felt her heart swell at the sight of all the books on the shelves. “It really is a dream come true.”
“One I hope keeps going,” Emma said sadly.
Jolene turned back to her friend with confusion. “What do you mean? I thought sales were good.”
“They have been good. But this is the holidays. Having spent most of my life working at the hardware store, I know sales slow down considerably in January. Books aren’t as much of a necessity as tools and toilet plungers.
And if I can’t make enough to pay off the loan, we risk losing Boone’s grandparents’ house. ”
Boone had gotten the loan from the bank using the small ranch he had inherited from his grandparents as collateral.
At the time, he’d planned on selling the ranch and paying off the loan.
But then he and Emma got married and decided to live in his grandparents’ house.
Besides, not getting the money for the ranch, they had a wedding and house renovations to pay for.
Jolene could understand why money was tight right now.
She reached out and rubbed Emma’s arm. “You aren’t going to lose the house. This bookstore is going to succeed. I can feel it. And if things are slow for a while, I’ll make sure the bank doesn’t pressure you for a payment. That’s a perk of being friends with the banker.”
Emma hugged her. “You are a good friend, Jolene. But I’m not going to let you get in trouble with your daddy.” She drew back. “Hopefully, I can sell the pink house soon. That will give us some extra money and be one less mortgage payment I have to make.”
Jolene hated the thought of Emma’s house being sold.
It had become more than just her and Cal’s secret love nest. It had become a symbol of her independence.
Every time she drove past it, she couldn’t help feeling proud and powerful.
Jolene Applegate wasn’t just a boring conformist. She was a wild rebel.
“Although it might be a while before we can get the house on the market,” Emma continued. “According to Cal, there are still a lot of little jobs that need to be done. And he flat refuses to let Boone help him. He says it’s his wedding gift to us.” She sighed. “He’s such a good man.”
And a wee bit of a liar. Cal hadn’t done one thing in the house . . . except satisfy Jolene. Which made her feel a little guilty. Maybe she could help Cal get the house ready . . . in between satisfying each other.
She glanced at her watch. “I better get to work. My lunch break was over fifteen minutes ago.” She placed the books she’d picked out on the counter so Emma could ring them up.
“You already have this one.” Emma held up one of the books. “I saw it in your library.”
“It’s not for me. It’s a gift.”
Emma scanned the copy of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. “Excellent choice. Whoever gets it will love it.”
Once the books were bagged and paid for, Jolene gave Emma a hug and headed back to work. The cold front had left behind temperatures in the mid-seventies. The sweat collecting beneath her tweed jacket took away any hopes Jolene had of a white Christmas.
But even without snow, this was the best holiday season ever.
The First Bank of Simple was located on the corner right across from the town hall. It was an impressive building made out of pale Austin stone with tall arched windows that gleamed in the late afternoon sun.
The lobby was just as impressive with marble floors and deep maple wood furnishings.
It was a beautiful bank. And Jolene had to admit that she might hate working for her stubborn father, but she loved her job.
She loved helping people get a loan and realize their dreams. She just wished her father’s rules for approving loans weren’t so stringent.
Why did he have to be so unbendable?
He hadn’t always been that way. Before he had taken over as president of the bank, he had been much more easygoing.
He’d laughed more and loved to be home and spend time with his family.
He’d even played with her and Charlotte whenever they asked.
Their favorite game had been Big Hibernating Bear.
Her father would lie on the floor and pretend like he was sleeping and Jolene and Charlotte would try to sneak past him without waking him up.
But he always woke and caught them, then he’d tickle them until they cried.
Once he took over the bank from her grandfather, Big Bear never came out to play again. He was replaced by Grumpy Banker who didn’t have time for games. Or daughters.
“Where have you been?”
Her father’s voice caused Jolene to freeze in her tracks. Busted.
She pinned on a smile and turned to find him standing in the door of his office. “Sorry I’m late, Mr. Applegate.” It was one of his many rules. At the bank, she was to address him by his proper name. She held up the To the Moon shopping bag. “I needed to get some Christmas shopping done.”
“You need to do that on your time. Not the bank’s. Now come into my office. There’s something we need to discuss.”
Usually when he called her into his office, she felt like a guilty kid getting ready to go before the principal.
But today, she was too happy to feel guilty.
With the thoughts of Big Hibernating Bear still fresh in her mind, as soon as he closed the door, she did something she hadn’t done in a long time.
She gave him a hug.
“Sorry I’m late, Dad. I know you think it sets a bad example for our employees, but I don’t think anyone at this bank is keeping track of my lunch break besides you.
” She drew back. “If they are, I’ll be happy to point out all the overtime I put in.
I’m here early and leave late every day.
” He started to say something, but she held up a hand.
“Yes, I know. You work even longer hours. But that’s your choice.
If you wanted to take a long lunch break, you’d certainly deserve it.
In fact, why don’t you? Why don’t you head over to the pharmacy soda fountain and get yourself the pastrami and rye you love and just sit there and enjoy it for as long as you want.
I’d be happy to finish anything you’re working on. ”
Her father’s eyes didn’t soften one iota. “What I’m working on? What I’m working on is the loans for this past year.”
Jolene’s happy mood dissolved, and she realized that her father hadn’t called her into his office to get after her about being late.
He’d called her here because he’d discovered Cal’s loan.
That explained the thunderous look in his eyes and the tight clench of his jaw.
He got perturbed when she was late. He never got this angry.
She knew he would discover the loan eventually.
But she’d hoped it would be after the holidays.
“By the expression on your face, you obviously know what I’m angry about,” her father said in a soft voice. The madder he was the more softly he spoke.
Since there was no way to lie her way out of it, she nodded. “You found the loan I gave to Cal Daily.”