Had she really broken up with Paul? She shook her head, let it sink in. Apparently, yes, she had. But where was the relief? From where she stood, every single thing felt worse.
From behind the counter, Rory looked over her red readers, did a double take and made a weird expression, which contorted her large agape mouth.
“What?” Brynne couldn’t help sounding curt, but seriously, too much was going on. She didn’t need to be looked at as if she’d grown two heads when she had a fiancé giving her an ultimatum and she still needed to arrange everything for the book readings later, due to Rory’s bad back. At least Nate was coming in to help.
Lessons learned from being a nurse—her usual reaction to stress was to focus on one thing at a time, and right now it was the bookstore. Paul was left compartmentalized in the restaurant, with a shocked expression. Let him stew in his little ultimatum scheme. Now she was on the job and needed to focus. These book events drove more people to the store and kept them coming back, which meant more book sales. Bringing in the local students broke the pattern—instead of always making the university bookstore their go-to for reading material, they could come here. The key was to offer them something different, like author readings. Especially by authors of YA, Fantasy, and the occasional romance book. The effort would be worth it.
“Aren’t you in the bathroom?” Rory said with an incredulous tone, still looking as though Brynne had arrived from outer space instead of the front door.
“What?” Brynne knew Rory was still lost without Mom, but had she gone off her rocker?
“Except your hair was down,” Rory uttered, obviously confused and barely audible.
“Have you had a stroke?” Brynne had had it with the day. Things were simply too weird to deal with.
Rory came around the counter to look closer at Brynne just when they heard a loud moan in the bathroom that quickly escalated into a cry. “No!”
“What’s going on in there?” Concerned, Brynne hiked her thumb toward the bathroom.
“You came in asking for the bathroom,” Rory said, clearly not herself.
“I did not.”
“I must be seeing things,” Rory mumbled.
Brynne bolted toward the bathroom door and knocked hard, Rory right behind her. “Are you okay?”
“No,” the quivery voice said. “I think my water just broke.”
What else would happen today? Brynne forced herself into nurse mode, letting every other crazy little thing go. “I’m a labor and delivery nurse.” Or used to be. “Open the door so I can have a look, okay?”
A second or two of silence passed, then the lock clicked, the handle turned and the door slowly opened. Concerned about a pregnant woman just having her water break, Brynne’s first glance was to the floor and the pool of fluid for verification. It wasn’t bloody. Good.
“Holy doppelgänger,” Rory exclaimed from behind her.
Copyright © 2020 by Janet Maarschalk
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ISBN: 9781488069727
Starting Over in Wickham Falls
Copyright © 2020 by Rochelle Alers
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
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Starting Over In Wickham Falls (Wickham Falls Weddings Book 9) Page 22
