“Try the cucumber,” he said.
“Thank you, I will,” she said. Having him serve her tea was too much. She was positively dying inside.
Destiny smiled fondly at them and Savy bit into the tiny sandwich, hoping to calm her nerves. Freshly baked bread, thinly sliced, with slivers of cucumber swabbed with cream cheese infused with dill—it was perfection. Quino’s love of the tiny sandwiches was understandable to her.
“Amazing,” she said.
He nodded and grinned. “Told you so.”
Genevieve handed her a cup of black tea, so Savy put her sandwiches on the coffee table so she could add a little cream and sugar. Destiny seemed happy to bask in the glow of watching her guests enjoy their food, but Savy was very aware that this was her one shot to get her to come to the bookstore.
She decided the direct approach was too blunt, so she went for the soft sell instead.
“You are a wonderful rider, Destiny,” she said. “How long have you been taking lessons with Quino?”
“Oh, I don’t know,” Destiny said. She looked at Quino. “Several years now, yes?”
“He tells me you’re his favorite student,” Savy said.
Destiny looked pleased but she waved a dismissive hand and said, “That’s just because he loves high tea.”
Quino laughed. He was devouring his sandwiches with gusto. “But I never would have learned to love high tea if I hadn’t met you.”
“There is that,” Destiny agreed. She took her tea from Genevieve. She didn’t drink right away. Instead, she asked, “So, how did you two become a couple? You must tell the story and inspire another novel in me.”
“We—” Savy paused. Having Destiny look at her with her pretty blue eyes and wide smile, she was suddenly racked with guilt. She didn’t want to lie to her. As if sensing her quandary, Quino took over.
“It was fate,” he said. He gave Savy a meaningful look and she resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Fine. She wouldn’t go for full disclosure but she wasn’t going to pretend it was something it wasn’t. She decided to talk it down.
“It was through friends,” she said. “My best friend is engaged to his best friend, so we met through them.”
“Which was fate. Right, Red?” Quino asked. Savy felt her face get hot at the nickname, but she refused to look at him because he’d probably wink at her and she’d combust on the spot.
“How wonderful,” Destiny cried. “Quino, I think this lady is going to keep you on your toes.”
“She has from the moment I first laid on eyes on her,” he said. “I was talking to my friend Ryder, and this sassy redhead walked into the room, ignoring me as she reamed my buddy out for how he’d treated his girl.”
“He deserved it,” Savy said
“Of course he did, dear.” Destiny smiled. She turned to Quino and said, “Go on.”
Savy turned to Quino to get him to stop but he ignored her pointed look.
“And as I watched this feisty woman stand up for her friend, I was completely captivated by her. Her red hair crackled with sparks and her green eyes flashed with fire, and when I butted in to ask her out, because it felt imperative that I get this woman to go out with me, she put me soundly in my place.”
“You deserved it, too,” Savy said.
“Of course he did, dear, go on,” Destiny said.
“Yes, tell us what she said,” Genevieve chimed in. She was sitting on the edge of her seat, completely enthralled.
Savy tried not to roll her eyes and reached for a tiny blueberry macaron instead. Mostly, to keep herself from talking.
“I took one look at her in her spiky heels and pencil skirt and I knew she wasn’t from around here, so I said, ‘You’re a city girl, aren’t you?’ And what do you think she said?”
“No idea,” Destiny said. She leaned her chin in her hand and her eyes twinkled as if she couldn’t wait to hear it.
“She said, ‘Woman. I am a woman, not a girl. And, yes, I’m from Manhattan, or as we like to call it, civilization.’”
Destiny whooped with laughter and Genevieve hooted, too. Savy felt her face get warm. She had said that.
“What did you say?” Genevieve asked him.
“I said, ‘Well, woman, since we’ve established that I lack manners, I’m going to say exactly what I’m thinking,’” he said. “And then she said, ‘That should be a short sentence.’”
Destiny and Genevieve both laughed even harder and glanced at Savy as if to verify if this was true. It was. Savy nodded and they laughed louder.
“Then I said, ‘I think you should go on a date with me,’” he continued. “And she said, ‘That is never going to happen, but thanks for the offer.’ It then took me exactly one hundred and twenty-three days to get her to go on a date with me, but she was worth every second of the wait.”
The warm smile he sent her way made Savy’s heart hammer hard in her chest. Had he really waited for her for all of those days?
“Yes, I waited,” he said. “I’ve never felt about anyone the way that I feel about you.”
Oh, wow. She couldn’t believe he had remembered their first conversation verbatim, and she really couldn’t believe that he’d stayed interested in her after that. But he was, and the tender way he was looking at her right now told her he was still interested. Oh, man, after that speech, she was more than half in love with him. Any more speeches like that and she was done for.
“So, you’ve only recently gotten together?” Destiny asked.
“Yes,” Savy said. “But we don’t get to go out much with work and all.”
She could feel Quino watching her and she was suddenly overly self-conscious. She put down her tea in case she spilled.
“That’s a shame. What is it that you do, Savannah?” Destiny asked.
From her tone, Savy could tell she was asking out of genuine interest and not to ascertain whether Savy was good enough for Quino or not. Although, even Savy would argue that he was definitely a better person than she was. This was not something she wanted to think too much about right now. In fact, she really had to stop thinking about him at all. She needed to focus. This was her chance to segue into the entire point of this visit.
“I’m in publicity,” Savy said. “In fact, I am working for my best friend right now.”
“What do you publicize?” Destiny was so polite, Savy felt as if she’d sprung a trap for the woman. Still, she answered.
“A romance bookstore in Fairdale,” she said. “It’s called the Happily Ever After Bookshop.”
Destiny’s eyes widened. “I’m sorry, what?”
“A romance bookstore,” Genevieve repeated. “Doesn’t that sound nice?”
“I wasn’t aware that there was a bookstore in Fairdale,” Destiny said. She frowned and glared at Savy. “Wait, are you the one who’s been asking me to come for a signing?”
Savannah glanced at Genevieve, who nodded her head almost imperceptibly. Savannah met Destiny’s gaze and said, “Yes.”
She didn’t say anything else. She didn’t take the opportunity to try to convince Destiny to come to the bookstore. Honestly, she didn’t know what to say. She liked Destiny and she didn’t want to damage the fragile connection they seemed to have made.
“I see,” Destiny said. She glanced from Savannah to Quino. “Forgive me, but it seems awfully convenient that you two are a couple.” She looked hurt and distrustful, and Savannah felt her insides twist with guilt.
“I’d say it’s more coincidental,” Quino said.
“I don’t trust coincidences,” Destiny said. Her face was set in hard lines and she smoothed her skirts as if trying to smooth her own turbulent emotions. “I also don’t do book signings—ever.”
“So, this is going to go well,” Savy said as an aside to Quino.
He snorted. Good man.
“De
stiny, I’ve been your friend for years,” he said. He waited for her to look up at him and acknowledge the truth of his statement with a nod. “I’m going to ask you as a friend, why don’t you do book signings? Why have you made yourself inaccessible to your readers?”
Destiny didn’t answer but lifted her teacup with shaking fingers and sipped her tea. She looked rattled and Savy felt sorry for her. They were intruding on Destiny’s private life. It was crossing a line.
“We don’t have to talk about it,” Savy said. “This tea is delicious; what kind is it?”
Several seconds ticked by where no one spoke.
“I’m sorry,” Destiny said. “You must think I’m horribly rude, because I was. Of course you’re my friend, one of my dearest, and I shouldn’t doubt you.”
Savy couldn’t look at Quino. They’d made a tactical mistake by letting Destiny think they were together. Now she felt like a bottom-feeding, manipulative liar. And telling herself it was for the greater good, saving Maisy’s bookstore, didn’t really help at the moment.
“Actually—” Savy began, but Quino interrupted her.
“What happened, Destiny?” he asked. His voice was gentle. “Talk to us.”
Destiny gave a heartfelt sigh. “I don’t like to think about that time.”
“So, don’t think, just talk,” he said. She raised one eyebrow in a look that was meant to quell, but Quino wasn’t having it. “Maybe you’ll feel better if you do.”
“I think you should talk about it,” Genevieve said. “I’ve never asked, but I do wonder. Why have you chosen to live such a solitary life?”
Destiny studied them. She glanced at her tea. She took a petit four off the sweet tier and nibbled the corner. Savy thought this was her way of saying no without actually saying no, and she was disappointed because she found she really wanted to know what had driven Destiny into seclusion.
“I’m sorry,” Destiny said. “It’s so much easier to lose myself in the trials and tribulations of my characters than to look too closely at my own.”
“I know,” Genevieve said. Her voice was full of sympathy.
Destiny sighed. She finished her petit four. “I don’t want you to think I’m being ridiculous.”
“I’ve been with you for five years,” Genevieve said. “I see you work from sunup to sundown, I watch you personally answer every letter from your readers, and I know you help those less fortunate than you as much as you can. I would never think you’re being ridiculous.”
Destiny reached across their seats and patted Genevieve’s knee. “Thank you, my dear.”
Then she took a sip of tea. Savy looked at Quino and he shrugged. Would Destiny share? There was simply no way to tell. It was maddening!
Savy nibbled her own tiny sandwich, the cucumber really was delicious, and watched as Quino and Genevieve did the same. No one spoke until Destiny put her plate back on the tray and dabbed the corners of her mouth with her napkin.
“It was ten years ago,” she said. “I was doing a book tour, something like twenty-one cities in fourteen days. It was grueling. I had one book due, copyedits on another book that were late, and page proofs for yet another book coming up fast. I was wrung out, dead tired, and fighting off a case of walking pneumonia. My agent and publisher wanted to cancel the tour, but I refused. I felt I owed it to my readers to be there, be present, and thank them—you can never thank your readers enough for their support—and so I pushed myself to the absolute limit. Why? Because I was addicted to the limelight. I soaked up the love from my readers as if it could fix me. When I landed in the hospital, a shallow breath from death, I realized it couldn’t.
“The truth was, I was addicted to the adulation I got from my readers and I knew if I started back on the circuit of signings and appearances, I’d fall into the same trap again. Like a junkie giving up their drug of choice, I had to walk away from the limelight—for good.”
“Destiny, this is simply unacceptable,” Quino said.
“What do you mean?” she asked.
“Ten years have passed,” he said. “You’re not the same person you were then.”
“Maybe, but now I’m afraid,” Destiny said. “I’m afraid of getting hooked again and it’s made me paranoid about getting back out there.” She looked at Genevieve. “Tell them about the time I tried to do a TV interview last year.”
“She threw up for three days beforehand,” Genevieve said. “We had to cancel.”
“And the time I tried to do a live reading online,” Destiny said.
“A rash,” Genevieve said. “She was covered head to toe.”
“I simply can’t put myself out there,” Destiny said. “I can’t shake the feeling that I’ll lose control and get swept up in the fandom and something bad will happen. It’s like a full-on phobia now.”
“But your fans would be so happy to see you again,” Savy said. “And you have Genevieve, who I can attest from personal experience is one heck of a gatekeeper.”
“I know,” Destiny said. “My readers are wonderful, and I read every letter and e-mail I receive and I write back, but I just can’t manage to get myself back out there.”
“Isn’t there any way we can help you?” Savy asked.
“No, I’m sorry,” Destiny said. “And I apologize for not being able to do a signing at your friend’s bookstore.”
“I’ll only forgive you if you promise to just consider it,” Savy teased.
Destiny looked at her with wide eyes and then she looked at Quino. “She’s a bold one. Are you sure you can handle her?”
Quino grinned. “Yeah, I’ve got that down.”
Savy felt her face get hot and she glowered at him, which only made him deepen his grin.
He turned back to Destiny and said, “Here’s the thing, Destiny. If you come to the Happily Ever After Bookstore—”
“Oh, I do like that name,” she said.
Savy smiled. Wouldn’t Maisy flip her lid if she knew Destiny Swann liked the name of her bookstore?
“Yeah, it’s a good one and the place is spectacular,” Quino said. “It’s an old Victorian in the middle of Fairdale that’s been converted to a romance-specific bookstore. Maisy Kelly, the owner, is one of your biggest fans.”
Destiny perked up at that and Savy nodded in agreement. “She really is. In fact, the architect she hired to redo the house to make it into a bookstore is a ringer for your hero Jake Sinclair on the cover of One Last Chance. I’m pretty sure that’s why they’re a couple now.”
“Well, that and he built her a turret,” Quino said.
“Wait, are you telling me that the owner found a man who looks like one of my heroes?” Destiny asked.
“It’s uncanny,” Savy said.
“And the store’s new?” Destiny asked.
“Brand-new,” Quino said. “In fact, we’re concerned that it’s in trouble.”
“Oh, no,” Destiny said. “I hate it when bookstores close. It always feels like having a friend move out of town.”
“But just think what a famous author coming out of seclusion could do for the place,” Savy said. “Why, I bet she could single-handedly save the joint.”
“You do, huh?” Destiny asked. Savy could tell by the arch in her eyebrows, she was onto her. Savy didn’t care. This was hugely important for Maisy’s success and her own. She had to go for it.
“I do,” Savy said.
“I wish I had your confidence,” Destiny said. She glanced past them out the window. “Writing isn’t the simple act of putting words on paper. It’s so much more. It’s taking your own life experience and putting it in a blender with your observations about the world and then spitting them out into a new format that you then share so that your readers can use your story as a compass point to navigate their own lives.
“Frankly, it feels more like slitting open a vein and bleeding
onto the page. It’s one thing to put your work out there, that’s hard enough, but to do publicity for your work is a whole new level of vulnerability, and a person can get swept up and lose their way.” She smiled. “Maybe that’s just me. I just don’t know if I can risk putting myself out there again.”
“But what about the readers who adore you?” Quino asked. “You know, the ones who get you? Surely, you want to meet them.”
“I do,” Destiny said. “But what if I start to overcommit myself again? I don’t mean to be a wimp, but after that bout with pneumonia, I couldn’t write for months. I can’t risk that happening again.” She looked at Savy. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s all right. I understand,” Savy said. She was disappointed, no doubt, but she couldn’t fault Destiny for not wanting to risk her health again.
“Destiny, do you remember the very first time I came here for your riding lesson?” Quino asked.
“Of course,” she said. She smiled at him. “It was a lovely day in May, and the horses were frisky and I was so nervous.”
“Yes, you were,” he agreed. “You were scared because you hadn’t ridden in years.”
Destiny turned her head and gave him side-eye. It was pretty clear what he was doing. “But I did it.”
“Yes, you did,” he said. “And the very first time your horse started to gallop, you bounced right off its rump into the dirt.”
This surprised a laugh out of Destiny. “I did!”
Quino smiled. “I thought for sure I was fired and you’d never ride again, but you brushed yourself off and climbed right back up in the saddle. I was so proud of you.”
They were all quiet as Destiny processed Quino’s words. Then Genevieve chimed in. Her voice was soft, as if she didn’t want to heap more reasons to do the signing on Destiny but felt compelled to say what she had to say.
“Destiny, your readers need you,” she said. “The world can be a powerfully sad place, and just like your readers need your stories, they need you, too. They need to meet you and tell you how much they value the stories you give them. And not to put too fine a point on it, but you need them, too.”
The Christmas Keeper Page 21
