Rarity pointed out the flaw in his idea. “You don’t have any reason to run one, so that wouldn’t be ethical, and you know it.”
Drew’s lips flattened, but then he nodded. “You’re right. There’s a reason I asked you to breakfast. Mostly to talk me off this edge I worked myself onto.”
“Invite him for a beer. Or take him hiking. Maybe doing something with just the two of you would ease your mind.” Rarity squeezed Drew’s hand. “I know all you want is for Sam to be happy.”
“I guess I’ll see him tonight at the party. I’ve got a late shift tomorrow. I’ll ask if he wants to go hiking.” Drew leaned back and rubbed the top of his head. His hair was buzz-cut short this month. It made him look like a GI Joe doll in a police uniform. It wasn’t a bad look for him, but she could see how Marcus and his too-long hair and casual jeans was his total opposite. Hopefully the men could bond over something they both agreed on. Or at least agreed to disagree for Sam’s sake.
They talked about a few other things, but soon, Rarity glanced at her watch. “I need to open the store. Thanks for coffee. I’ll see you tonight?”
“Thanks again for talking me off the ledge about Marcus.” Drew reached down and gave Killer a rub. “I take it Killer’s grounded tonight?”
“Yeah. Darby wouldn’t mind if I brought him, but he doesn’t like to be around a lot of people, so I’ll keep him home.” She stood, and Killer stood with her, ready to follow. “Don’t worry so much, Drew.”
He shook his head as he walked with her toward his truck. “You don’t get it. That’s my job. I’m supposed to worry and see things other people miss.”
As Rarity walked the couple of blocks to the store alone, she wondered about Drew’s last words. Was there something Marcus was hiding from Sam and his new Sedona friends? Why had he decided to move home? Rarity knew there was more to moving than just a breakup. She probably would have stayed in St. Louis if she hadn’t truly felt she didn’t fit in at her job anymore. And without a significant other with her to tie her to the area, she had made the leap. So what was Marcus’s reason for making a life change? That was the question.
Usually, Darby worked on Thursdays, shelving books and entering them into the bookstore inventory. But last week had been Darby’s final days at the bookstore. At least until she came back from Scotland. She needed the time away from Sedona. Time to grow as a person. Time to find out who she wanted to be as an adult. Rarity didn’t begrudge her employee’s new experiences, but she was going to miss having her around. Tonight would be a hard goodbye.
After opening the store, Rarity focused on getting the week’s book order ready for customers. Several books were set aside and not put on the shelves. She called their new owners and let them know the books had arrived. Rarity loved having just the right book tucked away for her customers. And when they ordered the first book in a series, she always ordered a duplicate as well as the rest of the series. Word of mouth could sell a book faster than a good ranking in an online store. She’d found a loyal following for the bookstore after being open for over a year. Now, she just had to continue to cater to what the customers needed.
Like the Mommy and Me readings that would start next week. Janey seemed like the perfect coordinator for the series. They had a starting book already chosen, and Janey was supposed to give her a flyer by the end of the week. She had better digital art skills than either Rarity or Caleb, so Rarity thought Janey might take over those tasks for the bookstore. At least if she wanted the hours.
Working with college students tended to be hit and miss. When she found someone like Darby, Rarity didn’t mind working around their school schedule or activities. If, like Darby, they could commit and show up for a certain number of hours a week. For some she’d interviewed, they’d wanted so few hours, it didn’t make sense for them to drive from Flagstaff or for her to schedule the hours that would change on a weekly basis or, sometimes, on a whim.
She hoped Janey and Caleb really wanted the jobs. She couldn’t pay a lot or give them benefits, so they had to love working with books. Like Rarity did. Typically, she’d been recruiting from the English department, but Janey was a teaching graduate student. She taught for one professor, one class, and needed more to do. She’d explained in the interview that she liked keeping busy, but parties and college dorm activities didn’t fill her well anymore. She’d spent four years in a sorority, but now that she lived off campus, she wanted something more substantial to do. Something that would earn her money as well as teach her new skills.
Rarity wasn’t sure this would fill Janey’s well, but she was willing to give her a chance.
Caleb was a more traditional hire. He was also a graduate student, but his professor didn’t want him teaching; he wanted help with grading the papers and the admin work. So Caleb was excited to be able to work with the book clubs for kids. And he’d also suggested an adult sci-fi club once he’d proven himself.
Rarity shelved the last book and walked through the aisles, wondering what she was missing. She paused at the romance section. It shared shelves with what she called beach reads, and as she scanned through the offerings, she realized she had a lot of contemporary romance but not much in historical or fantasy. Unless she had those shelved in the wrong area.
“Hello? Rarity? Are you in here?” Janey’s voice called from the cashier’s desk.
“I’m here. I was just seeing where we were short in what we offer. And then you arrived. Do you have a few hours to work?” Rarity talked as she walked through the bookshelves to the back of the store.
“That’s why I’m here. I got off class early and thought you might need some help with the store, since the party was tonight.” Janey smiled as Rarity came around a bookshelf. “Although you seem pretty quiet in here.”
“There’s lots to do when it’s quiet. I think you can help me with something.” Rarity took Janey over to the romance section. “I think this needs to be beefed up. Who are some of your favorite authors? Are they here? Am I missing any popular trope or subgenre that we should be stocking?”
Janey’s eyes got wide. “That’s a lot of questions.”
“Well, you hang out here. You’re on the clock from now until five when we close up shop, and then you can come with me to my house while I get ready for the party.” Rarity glanced at Janey’s jeans and college tank. “Did you bring anything to wear?”
Janey’s smile widened. “I found the perfect dress a few weeks ago and bought it on a whim. Now I’m glad I did. It’s in my car.”
“Okay, then you can drive me and Killer home and get ready at my place.” Rarity paused. “If that’s all right? I don’t want to be pushy.”
Janey took a notebook out of her backpack. “You’re my boss. You’re supposed to be pushy.”