Eventually, I noticed she was growing weary of her fashion show. I hadn’t packed a lunch for her and knew she’d be hungry soon, so I called and ordered us some pizza. Weekends were a time to splurge a bit, and pizza was her favorite.
I was actually happy to have Lily with me for the day. She took my mind off Zach. If not for my daughter’s company, he would have occupied my thoughts for all the wrong reasons.
Instead of thinking about how much of an ass he was for showing up to swindle my business out from under me, I would have been thinking about his smile, his green eyes, and those broad shoulders. And I would have wondered what was under that expensive suit of his.
A lot of muscle, I assumed, and a very small heart.
Chapter 9
Zach
Sunday seemed like a bad day to go and talk to Senna and Edith about selling their stores. There were certain things a guy like me could do that would put him in their bad books for eternity. I was already there, and I couldn’t afford to make any missteps on this job.
So I decided to spend the day with Jonah, who insisted on taking me to a food truck he’d found yesterday afternoon when he tired of sitting at the cafe patio.
It was located in a park not too far from the shopping district where Senna’s shop was. The park was crowded with kids and young families who were out enjoying the summer sunshine. Patches of shade were crowded with parents who were slathering their kids in sunscreen before letting them wander off to play in the spray park on the opposite side of the parking lot from where the food truck was located.
I was glad I hadn’t worn my good shoes when we walked from Bob’s Land Rover across the gravel lot to the food truck. The line was a mile long, and I cast a wary glance at Jonah, who peered down the length of the line to the menu plastered on the side of the truck.
“There’s no way you can read that from here,” I said pointedly.
“They have pictures.”
“How old are you?”
He grinned. “Don’t be such a moody prick, Zach. The sun is shining, we’re about to get our hands on some delicious grub, and you don’t have to work today. How could it possibly get any better?”
I could be standing in Senna’s shop, getting her signature and closing this deal so Woodbury promotes my ass.
“You’re right,” I said. “It’s a good way to spend an afternoon.”
“There you go, man. That’s the spirit.” He thumped me hard on the back, nearly knocking me forward a step. “You’re gonna like this stuff. Pulled pork nachos with jalapenos? Sign me the fuck up.”
What sounded like a plate of heaven to him sounded like a terrible aftermath in the bathroom to me. But I held my tongue. Jonah didn’t get to travel and explore as much as I did, and I knew he was having a good time. I wasn’t going to spoil it for him by letting my sour mood get the better of me.
The line inched forward, and we shuffled up behind the young woman in front of us. She was on her phone chatting away to a friend, and Jonah nudged me in the side. He nodded at her and waggled his eyebrows. “Country girls, right?”
“Austin isn’t exactly out in the country, Jonah. And keep it in your pants.”
The line crept a couple more feet ahead. The woman ahead of us ended her call and swept her long blonde hair over her shoulder.
Clearly, Jonah was still enamored by her. He cleared his throat.
I put a hand out to warn him and tell him not to bother, but he tapped the young woman on the shoulder.
She turned halfway around, not fully committing to engaging him in conversation, and gave him one of those well-rehearsed smiles all girls give men when they’re approached in public. “Um, hi.”
Her voice was sweet like honey, and her lips were bright pink and glossy. She had a tan, and the pink straps of her bikini showed under her white cover up.
Jonah nodded at the food truck. “What’s the best thing to order from this joint? My buddy and I are in from out of town, and we aren’t really sure what to start with.”
She glanced back at the food truck, and then she turned fully to face us. I was surprised. Her smile warmed up a bit as she looked at Jonah. Then her eyes flicked toward me, and her brow creased as she looked me up and down. The whole exchange lasted maybe four seconds, and then her attention was back on my hippie best friend.
“Their traditional nacho dish is always a crowd pleaser, but if you’re a bit more adventurous, you might like the pulled pork or Mexican fiesta.”
Jonah clapped his hands and rubbed them together. “What would you choose?”
She shrugged one shoulder and started to turn back toward the truck. “Probably the fiesta.”
“Thank you… uh?” Jonah paused, fishing for a name.
“Brittney.”
“Nice to meet you, Brittney. I’m Jonah. This handsome fella with a pole up his ass is Zach. We’re in from Orlando for a few weeks.”
“That’s nice,” she said, somewhat dismissively.
Jonah knew the jig was up as the line moved forward once more. We were only five people back from ordering, and Brittney had put her back toward us, closing off the conversation.
He shot me a dark look. “That’s your fault, man.”
“What is?” I asked innocently.
“She wants nothing to do with me because of you. And your suit.”
“What? That makes no sense.”
“Sure it does,” Jonah said, sliding his hands into the pockets of his cargo shorts. I’d gone through his closet once and was horrified to discover that he had half a dozen pairs in various shades of beige and army green. Jonah nodded around the park. “Look at the demographic of folks around here. Everyone is out to have a good time. Sun dresses. Shorts. T-shirts. Sandals. And here you are, rolling up to a food truck in a fucking blazer and blue jeans.”
“This is my casualwear,” I said defensively.
“I don’t think you know what casual means, bro.”
I grumbled.
The line moved ahead another person. Jonah sighed and gazed sadly at Brittney’s rear end. “I should have left you back at the hotel.”
“I can leave your ass here if you’d like. I’m not committed to food truck nachos. I’m sure I can live without anything on that truck.”
“No, you can’t. Trust me. This shit is worth the wait. Besides, I can catch more tail back at the hotel pool.”
“Will you lower your voice?” I hissed, sparing a glance at Brittney who had distracted herself by scrolling through her social media feeds.
“What? It’s true. Didn’t you see all those babes yesterday morning? I know where I’m heading after we eat. I’m gonna park my ass in a pool chair and admire the view.”
“You’re a dog.”
“So you’re saying you’re not going to join me?”
“I didn’t say that,” I muttered.
Jonah snickered at my expense, and we carried on up the line as the food truck employees made their way through the orders ahead of us. We finally arrived at the window, and I ordered us two plates of nachos—one fiesta and one pulled pork. I couldn’t decide between the two of the, so I figured just get both, right?
We stood off to the side, finding ourselves alongside Brittney once more, and waited for our food to be ready.
I was impatient. All I felt like I was doing was waiting.
Waiting for food. For a promotion. For the business owners of Lily Living and Something New. Always waiting for the next thing.
Jonah had been telling me for years to slow down, but I couldn’t. The hustle of my job and the corporate world was in my blood now, and there was no escaping it. Working hard was the only way to get ahead, and getting ahead was the only thing I knew how to do.
A food truck employee called out our order. Jonah collected the trays, and I scooped up a bunch of napkins and straws for our sodas. Then we walked across the park to find a picnic table.
We picked one in the shade and took our seats. Jonah didn’t hesitate to take a gia
nt bite of nachos. Cheese, peppers, and onions dangled out of the corner of his mouth as he tried to cram too much in all at once. He used his tongue to draw it all in and then chewed like a squirrel, his cheeks stuffed to max capacity.
“Don’t choke yourself to death,” I said before taking a sip of soda and digging into the pulled pork nachos.
I had to admit they were pretty fucking good.
When I told Jonah how tasty they were, he nodded and licked his fingers clean. “We don’t have this back in Orlando. That’s for sure.”
When we finished eating, Jonah sat beside me on my side of the picnic table. He sat facing outward, resting his back and elbows on the edge of the table behind him. He gazed out at the park, all green grass and playing children. “Austin is a nice place.”
“It’s not bad.”
“Of course you don’t like it.”
“I never said I didn’t like it. It’s just different than what I’m used to. And parks aren’t really my scene. You know that.”
“Yeah I do. Not enough metal and concrete and shit.”
I laughed. “Why the hell do I have to be best friends with a hippie?”
“Beats the shit outta me, man.”
We finished our sodas in silence.
Then Jonah asked, “So what’s your game plan with these chicks who own the stores?”
I assumed the same position as my friend and rested my back on the edge of the table. “Well, Senna is going to be the biggest obstacle. She’s a hard woman, and she’s gone through this several times over. She’s dealt with a lot of guys who look like me, and that means I’m not going to have the chance to use my silver tongue to talk to her.”
“Con her, you mean?”
I glowered at him.
Jonah chuckled. “Sorry. Carry on. If you can’t talk to her, what will you do?”
I licked my lips. “I’ll start with the business next door. There’s only the two of them left on the strip. If I can narrow it down to Senna’s shop being the last one standing, it will double my odds for success.”
“How do you figure that?”
It was simple, really. A straightforward and easy calculation that worked every time without fail.
I shrugged. “People are bad at being alone. If she’s the last one left—she’ll bend. Eventually.”
Chapter 10
Senna
“Bunny, could you pass me a pen please?”
Lily was sitting at my desk in the back room. She had her head down as she pored over a piece of paper, filling it up with streaks of her red and blue crayons. She scanned the desk, spotted a blue pen, and slid off the chair to bring it over to me.
“Thank you,” I said, taking the pen from her and scrawling on the label I’d just slapped on a box of items I was donating. They’d been in my shop for almost two full seasons and hadn’t moved, so it was time to get rid of them.
It stung a bit to get rid of product and take a loss on them, but I took comfort in the fact that other women who didn’t have the means to own such nice things would be able to have them.
“Momma?”
I finished writing my signature on the shipping label, popped the lid back on the pen, and turned to Lily, who had taken her seat back at my desk and was sitting with her crayon poised over the paper. “What’s up?”
“Is Auntie Edi going to be okay?”
I felt my frown pull all my features down, and I hurried to correct my expression. I went over to my daughter and crouched down in front of her. “Of course she will. Why are you asking me that, bunny?”
Lily rubbed her lips together, a nervous habit she’d inherited from me. “I don’t know. Nobody comes here anymore. And she is nervous all the time. And you’re angry all the time. And I know it’s because of the mall.”
My heart fell into my stomach. “Oh, sweetheart. No, I’m not angry. And Auntie Edi is only nervous because her business is very new and she’s still learning. You remember how you felt on the first day of school?”
Lily nodded.
“You were nervous, right? Well, that’s exactly how Auntie Edi feels right now. She’s in new territory, and it takes a little while to adjust to all the changes. Just like starting a new year at school. Or daycare.”
Lily fidgeted with the hem of her shirt. “You’re sure you’re not mad, Momma?”
“No,” I said calmly. “I’m not mad. I promise. I’m just stressed.”
“Stressed?”
“Mm hmm.”
“What does that mean?”
“Well.” I paused, trying to think of a way to explain stress to a six-year-old. “I suppose it’s also really similar to a first day at school. There are a lot of nerves. It’s like when you’re running behind for school. You know how Momma gets all flustered and runs around the house like a crazy lady when we’re running behind?”
“Yes, every morning.”
“Well, not every morning, but—”
“It feels like every morning, Momma.”
A smile tugged at the corners of my mouth. One of the best parts of being Lily’s mother was her uncanny ability to effortlessly point out my flaws. She was better at it than my own mother had been—and more comedic, which I appreciated.
“You’re right. It’s every morning. But that’s kind of how I feel with work right now. Like I’m falling behind and everything is moving forward without me. Which stresses me out. Which sometimes makes Momma look angry. But I’m not. I’m okay. And you’re okay. And everything is going to be okay.”
Lily nodded slowly.
“Do you believe me, bunny?”
“Yes.”
“You promise?”
“Yes,” she said more firmly this time.
I patted her cheek and smiled. “That’s my girl. Now, I have to bring all these boxes out to the front, and I don’t think I can carry them on my own. Can you handle that one there?” I pointed at the smallest box of the three. It only had some shirts and smaller accessories inside, like beanies and bralettes, so it weighed next to nothing.
Lily hopped off her chair and padded over to the box. She tested the weight like I’d taught her to and then picked it up. “I can handle it.”
“Excellent. You’re the best helper, you know that?”
Lily blushed and smiled, and I held open the back door for her to shuffle through. I kept it open with my hip as I reached over and picked up the other two boxes for donations. Then I followed her out to the front of the shop.
It was close to two in the afternoon. Sunshine streamed in through the windows and made the place glow.
Lily and I put the boxes behind the counter to hand off to my shipping guy when he showed up close to closing.
I was about to ask if Lily wanted a snack when movement out the window on the sidewalk caught my eye.
I lifted my head and narrowed my eyes.
Suit. Zach Hammel. Dick.
He was talking to someone I couldn’t see. They were just out of range of the view through my window. His body language was lively, almost animated, and he threw his head back with laughter as I watched and seethed, thinking of a bunch of terrible things that I hoped would happen to him.
Maybe he would spontaneously combust or turn into a toad.
There I was again, thinking things that only happened in cartoons and playing them out in my mind like they could become reality.
“What are you looking at, Momma?” Lily asked from behind the sales counter.
“Nothing, sweetheart. That man from the other day is back.”
“The one who wanted to buy a bow?”
“That’s the one,” I said dryly.
Lily giggled. “He was funny.”
I peered down at her and lifted my nose. “I thought he was only a little bit funny.”
Lily shook her head. “Uh, he was really funny. Like Charles.”
“Who’s Charles?”
“The boy I sit beside in daycare during coloring hour.”
“Ah, right. Charles. Ho
w could I have forgotten him?”
“I don’t know, Momma. He’s super funny. Like the suit man.”
I made an unimpressed sound in the back of my throat. More movement outside the window drew my attention, and I looked up just in time to see Zach jogging toward the other side of the street, where he got into a shiny black Land Rover.
Then Edith appeared at the edge of my window.
“Hey, Lily?” I called. “How about you go in the back and finish that drawing you were working on? Momma has to go talk to Auntie Edi, and I want to hang that picture on the fridge when we get home.”
“Okay!” Lily shot off between the racks of clothes and disappeared into the back room.
I marched out through the front door and caught Edith right before she closed her shop door. She came back outside and nodded down the street where the Land Rover was taking a righthand turn out onto the busier street that led away from the shopping district. “You just missed him if you wanted to chew him out.”
“No, I didn’t. I don’t want to talk to him if I can avoid it. What did he say to you?”
Edith shrugged and leaned up against her shop door. “Not much, really. He just asked me about my business and how long I’ve had it.”
“And you told him?”
Edith stared at me blankly. “Yes. Guys like him already know the answer before they ask anyway, don’t they?”
I scratched the back of my neck. “I suppose so.”
“If he’s good at what he does, he’d have already known. I assumed as much anyway. And…” She trailed off and gave a miniscule shake of her head.
“And what?”
“I don’t know.” She shrugged. She looked at her feet and then back at me. “He was kind of nice.”
I rolled my eyes. “Oh God. Don’t tell me you’ve fallen for his, ‘I’m actually a good guy’ shtick so quickly!”
“I haven’t fallen for anything.”
“Sure sounds like you have. Hook, line, and sinker. This is what these guys do, Edith. They roll up in their fancy cars and flashy suits, then sweet talk you until they get you right where they want you. Then, when you think you’re friends, they slap you with a payout and then pressure you into folding. You have to be careful.”
Good Luck Charm: A Single Mother Romance Page 6
