Chapter 58
The following morning, Aurelia called Oliver and asked him to meet for a coffee.
He was his old standoffish self again, but she held firm, determined to get back the Oliver she’d gotten to know over the past few months.
Although he tried a few excuses, she didn’t give up until he agreed to meet her at a café that was just a few minutes from the shop.
Knowing his preference for hard copies when he was editing, Aurelia carefully wrapped the manuscript in one of the shop’s canvas bags and carried it with her to the café, feeling protective of this final draft now that it was truly finished and had Vronsky’s blessing.
Just like their first meeting to discuss the book all those months ago, Oliver sat waiting for her when she arrived, wearing his usual buttoned-up shirt and a light linen jacket.
He was at a table at the back of the café, looking cool and collected when she felt the exact opposite.
Still, Aurelia squared her shoulders and held fast to her resolve to thaw his icy demeanor all over again.
“I know I promised to get you the final chapter on Monday, but I had a bit of a breakthrough,” she said as she sat down.
“Oh?”
“When we first started talking about the book, you told me it needed a love interest and I said no. Then I said no again, and maybe I even said it a third time.”
“Yes, you made it very clear.”
There was a slight edge to his voice that Aurelia understood had more to do with how they’d left things on Saturday than her writing.
“Well, I was wrong. You were right,” she added with a deferential nod. “I’ve been writing nonstop these past few days to add some new sections and chapters. Here,” she said, handing over the bag with her manuscript.
He reached out to take it from her. Holding it in his hands, he asked, “Are you sure? You seemed quite determined about that.”
“I was. But time and some perspective opened my eyes.”
“And what about Vronsky? Did you run it past him?”
There was a hint of their familiar teasing there and Aurelia loved to hear it.
“I did—it’s Vronsky approved.”
Oliver opened the bag and began flipping through the pages. He stopped, as if something had caught his eye, and read a few lines before looking up at her.
“There’s a new character—Vivienne?”
“There is.”
“And she’s… Is she the love interest?”
“Mm-hmm. It’s a lovely name—it seemed a waste not to use it for an important character.”
Oliver’s face softened and she thought this could work, that she just might be able to convince him to give her another try. But once they finished their coffees and were standing outside the café, they faced another tense moment.
“Usually I walk you back,” Oliver began.
Aurelia knew another excuse was coming and cut him off, saying “That would be lovely, thanks.”
He closed his mouth, and they started walking. Aurelia was thinking back to the last time they’d walked to the shop, just days ago, and was certain Oliver was thinking about it too.
When they were at her doorstep, he attempted a quick retreat, saying, “Well, best be off.”
“Oliver, wait. Please?”
He drew in a breath, blinking slowly to signal his impatience.
“It’s alright, Aurelia. We don’t have to talk about it. I really am sorry—let’s just move on.”
But Aurelia wasn’t ready to move on.
“Do you know what?” she asked suddenly.
Oliver’s eyebrows drew up a fraction as he waited for her to tell him what.
“I didn’t like it when you didn’t wave goodbye on Saturday.”
“Pardon?”
His face was a giant question mark staring back at her.
“You always turn and wave goodbye—just there—when you leave the shop, but not on Saturday.”
“Oh. I must have forgotten.”
“Well, I didn’t like it.”
“Okay… I’ll try to remember to wave next time.”
He spoke slowly, as if he were responding to a question in school and wasn’t sure he had the right answer.
Aurelia took a step forward, moving closer to him.
She hesitated, then reached out and felt for the lapels on his jacket.
Emboldened, she pulled him a step closer and rested her hands against his chest. She felt the quickening rise and fall under her palms, then realized she was breathing just as quickly as they now stood inches apart from one another.
Something in his jacket pocket distracted her as she felt it through the fabric under her fingers—a business card, perhaps, or a credit card? She ran her thumb along the edge of it as she tried to think of what to say next, unable to meet his eyes just yet.
Oliver reached up and gently took her hand in his as his other hand disappeared into his jacket.
She watched as he pulled out one of the shop’s bookmarks—not just any bookmark, in fact, but the one she’d given him on their date all those months ago.
The edges were worn away and the printed words were hardly legible.
She looked up and into his eyes, then, and saw that his reserve was gone. His face was soft and kind, back to the Oliver she’d come to love.
“This is the bookmark I gave you?”
He nodded.
“But… This isn’t the jacket you were wearing that night, when we had our date.”
“No.”
“So you put it in your pocket today—on purpose?”
“Not just today. Not just this jacket.”
She looked at the bookmark again. He’d been carrying it with him all this time, from jacket to jacket. He had spent days, weeks, and months keeping her close to him, in spite of her occasional sadness over her aunt and mother, in spite of her preoccupation with the shop and her book.
Taking the bookmark from him, she carefully tucked it back into his pocket and patted the spot where it lay.
“I’m thinking of all sorts of clichés about bookmarks and saving a place for me.”
Aurelia smiled and looked to his face again. He held her eyes and, unlike just a few nights ago, she didn’t feel the urge to look away.
“I’m glad you did,” she added, running her fingers over his pocket again.
“Are you, really?” Oliver asked.
His voice was almost a whisper as his eyes searched her face, like he was looking for a crack in her sudden resolve. She nodded and he leaned in to close the last few inches between them.
The pressure of his lips against hers, his palm brushing her cheek, his arm around the small of her back—for a moment the world around them disappeared and Aurelia’s whole being was focused on each part of her that was touching him.
When he pulled away to catch his breath, she held fast to him, not wanting to let him go just yet. Something behind her caught his eye and he gave a soft chuckle. Turning, she spotted the sign she’d hung on the door on Monday, alerting customers to her urgent writing agenda.
“Lucky for you I put that sign up,” she teased him. “It would have taken me a few extra days to get here otherwise.”
“I don’t suppose the sign could stay up for a bit longer?” he asked, leaning in to kiss her again.
Without answering, Aurelia stood back to unlock the door and, holding his hand in hers, led him inside.