8. Chapter Eight
Chapter Eight
Alazy summer afternoon.
Simon knew he should be at the beach house, pounding out words, but when Jenna asked to make one more stop, he couldn’t refuse her. There was just something about her that had him wanting to make her happy.
She hadn’t mentioned where they were going. But she kept a smile on her face as she drove the short distance. And then she pulled to a stop in front of the Seaside Bookshop.
Simon stared at the bookshop with big windows. To the right were shelves and shelves of books. To the left was a seating area for people to read. He liked the way it was laid out.
“I can see by the way you’re looking at the bookshop that you’re intrigued.” Jenna smiled. “I thought you might be. A friend of mine owns the shop.”
He turned his head until their gazes met. “Is there a business in town where you don’t have friends?”
“I don’t know.” Her forehead crinkled as she gave his question some serious thought.
“You can stop mentally reviewing every business on the island. The question was meant to be rhetorical.”
“Oh.” Pink bloomed on her cheeks. “Well, come on. Let’s go inside. I have a book to pick up.”
His gaze returned to the bookshop. And this time his attention zeroed in on the book display. One by one, he took in the titles until he saw: Time’s Up.
The breath stilled in his lungs. There was his last release—the book that literally changed his world—the book that had many of his fans turning against him because he had the audacity to kill off the hero, but not before saving his son—a son he’d just found out about—a son who would grow up and one day walk in his father’s footsteps.
Because there was supposed to be a spin-off series that had the son as the hero.
However, even though Time’s Up had gone back to print the same week it released, and even though it was to date, his bestselling release, there was a backlash from readers that not only scored a mention on the morning news shows but was also spotlighted on the evening news.
And it wasn’t him the reporters were interviewing—it was the angry readers.
Now his publisher wanted him to set aside the plans he’d had for the spin-off series. They wanted something new—something a little different. And that was how his idea for a man from another world—a superhero—was born.
“Simon, are you coming?” Jenna stood on the sidewalk and sent him a puzzled look.
His gaze moved back to the book in the window. His gaze returned to Jenna. Did she know who he was? Was this trip to the bookstore some kind of gotcha moment?
Even though he loved bookstores and could spend hours meandering through the rows and rows of books, he couldn’t go inside this one.
Jenna sent him a puzzled look. “Come on.”
Maybe she didn’t know who he really was, and if so, that was the way he wanted it to remain. “I think I’ll just go explore the block while you get your book.”
When he got out of the cart, she said, “Are you sure?”
He nodded. “I’ll just do some window shopping.”
Confusion shone in her eyes. “Okay.” She flashed him a smile. “I won’t be long.”
His gaze returned to his hardback book in the window.
And for the first time ever, he wished he wasn’t an international bestselling author because then he could go into the bookshop with Jenna and spend more time with her.
It was like the more time he spent with her, the more he wanted to be around her.
He enjoyed the warmth of her smiles, the sound of her voice, and he even enjoyed when she was giving him a hard time.
What was up with him?
It was the question Jenna asked herself as she entered the bookshop. Simon was acting a little off, but she didn’t know why. Maybe he didn’t want people to get the wrong idea about them spending time together because he wasn’t into her. The thought dimmed her smile.
The bell above the door jingled, announcing her entrance. Jenna loved this place. There was the aroma of coffee that mingled with the hint of mustiness that came from the vintage leather-bound books Melinda had along the back wall.
Just then a little boy, probably not more than seven, came charging out of a row of bookshelves with a book in his hand. His face was lit up as though he’d just found gold.
“Mom.” He ran up to the woman at the checkout counter. “I found it. Can I have it? Please...”
The woman turned to her son. “If I get it for you, you have to clean up your room as soon as we get home. Only then can you read it. Deal?”
The little boy worried his bottom lip. It seemed that cleaning his room was not something he enjoyed. Jenna wondered how big of a task awaited him.
The boy nodded his head as he placed the book on the checkout counter. Jenna couldn’t help but smile. It seemed he was a bit of a bookworm just like herself.
After mother and son completed their purchases, they moved along. Jenna stepped up to the checkout counter. She smiled at Melinda. “It looks like you have a new lifelong customer.”
Melinda smiled back. “Tommy loves to read. Every couple of weeks, his mother brings him in, and he’s allowed to pick out one book. However, this time he had the hardest time narrowing down his choices to one.”
“I understand. I have that problem sometimes too,” Jenna said. “Did our book club order come in yet?”
Melinda nodded. “Showed up yesterday. I have them in the back. Let me grab you a copy.”
While Jenna waited, she looked around the bookshop.
It seemed like every time she was in there, Melinda had changed something.
This time it appeared she’d set up a small section of the reading nook for the younger readers.
There was a table and chairs that were painted white and had cartoon characters painted on them. It was really cute.
“Here we are.” Melinda’s voice drew Jenna’s attention. As she rang up the book, she said, “So, where’s your really hot neighbor?”
Jenna was in the middle of swallowing and nearly choked. My hot neighbor? Ugh!
She swallowed hard and then tried to sound casual. “How did you hear about him?”
“When a good-looking, single man moves to the island, it is major gossip. So, spill the tea. What’s he like?”
“Well, he’s nice, and he has the cutest dog. His name is Gus.”
Melinda’s brows scrunched together. “I thought his name was Simon.”
Jenna let out a nervous laugh. “No. The dog’s name is Gus. The man’s name is Simon.”
“Oh. I see. You should have brought him with you.”
Jenna almost blurted out that he was waiting for her outside, but she bit back the words just in time. Telling her that Simon was outside would only make this awkward conversation worse.
Instead, she decided a change of topic was in order. “Did you hear about the storm that’s headed our way?”
Melinda nodded. “You’re the third person to mention it. I hope it misses us.”
“Wouldn’t that be nice?” Jenna paid for the book and then picked up the bag. “I almost forgot to give you the title for next month.”
Melinda held up a finger for her to wait while she grabbed pen and paper. Jenna told her the name of a romance. Melinda jotted it down. “I’ll be sure to get those for you.”
“Thanks, Melinda.” Jenna headed for the door.
When she stepped outside, she squinted until her eyes adjusted to the bright sunshine. It was a beautiful summer day. And since it was her day off, she had absolutely nothing she had to do. The thought brought a smile to her face.
She looked up and down the street for Simon but didn’t spot him. Instead of continuing to stand on the sidewalk, she went and sat down in the cart. She would call Simon, but she didn’t have his phone number.
She wondered what had caught his attention. She told herself it was a good sign. The more comfortable he got on the island, the more likely he was to stay longer. Not that she cared if he stayed or left. Okay. Maybe she cared a little bit...but just as a friend.
A few minutes later, Simon strolled up to the cart. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to make you wait.”
“I don’t mind. It’s my day off.” She started the cart.
“Where did you say you work?”
“The Island Market. It’s a family business handed down through the generations.
My dad ran it until...” Her thoughts rewound to the dark day last year when Myra had called her.
Her sister had been crying. Before her sister had been able to get the words out of her mouth, Jenna had known it was bad. Real bad.
Myra had sobbed in between telling her that their father had passed. It was so sudden—so unexpected—that it had caught everyone off guard. Jenna couldn’t help but think the shock of it had made the loss worse for them.
They all thought they still had many years to spend with their father—to learn from him—to hear his stories about the good old days. And then poof, he was gone—taking with him those stories of his childhood and his insightful advice.
Jenna would swear each time her father regaled a story, it would become more embellished. Not that it mattered, they all hung on his every word. She missed the deep timbre of his voice. She missed so much about him.
“Jenna?” Simon’s voice drew her from her thoughts. She blinked and glanced his way. “Are you okay?”
“Um...yeah.” No. Not really. The loss of her father still left a gaping hole in her heart. “Why?”
“Because we’ve been sitting at this stop sign for a while now.”
Without a word, she punched the accelerator. It jerked them both in their seats.
“If you ever want to talk,” he said, “I’ve been told I’m a pretty good listener.”
“Talking about the market made me think of my father. He, um...he passed away a little bit ago. Ever since then, things just aren’t the same at the market.”
“I’m sorry to hear that.”
“Thanks. You would have liked him. He was a people person. He could talk to anyone.” She was surprised to find it felt good to talk about him.