“Tomorrow, I will call Jill and ask her out. If she says no…I will die confidently.”
Shawn shook her head as she opened the fridge and gathered the makings for a salad. No, she would not wallow in the rejection, she would come up with another plan, and another after that until Jill was hers. She was a confident woman after all. Then, she began to question her sanity.
Shawn had turned down a request for a date from a determined woman once, well, a half-dozen women, but one refused to give up. The persistent wannabe paramour sent flowers to Shawn’s office and her home. She left notes on the windshield of Shawn’s car and that of her work truck. She called so much that Shawn blocked her number. Shawn became paranoid and felt like she was being watched everywhere she went, and all the attention did nothing but grate her nerves. She didn’t want to make Jill feel that way, and she didn’t want to stoop to stalker behavior. Suddenly, Shawn didn’t feel so confident anymore.
Vera’s admonition had been haunting her, too. Shawn had constructed the perfect woman in her head, and Jill just happened to favor the imaginary lover that she spent so much of her time with. In reality, Jill was probably not Ms. Perfection, and Shawn knew on some level she was setting herself up for disappointment holding on to the hope that Jill really was all the things she wanted in a mate. Still, she was driven to find out.
Chapter 4
After another sleepless night, Jill went down to the shop and worked on a few new designs. She started to sketch what she saw in her head—a fleur de lis pendant wrapped in a ribbon with musical notes on it. But as she tried to put her imagination on paper, it came out looking more like Theo’s chicken foot. Jill growled, scribbled through the first draft, and began again, but with each try, foot, foot, foot.
“Damn it, Theo!”
Jill drew a heart, and it looked like a foot. She drew a riverboat, the stack was a foot. She was frantically working on a tiny version of the cathedral when Rene walked in.
“Good morning, it’s Christmas Eve’s Eve,” Rene announced joyfully and started to hum Jingle Bells.
“Stop that!” Jill snapped.
“You need coffee,” Rene said with a nod.
“I need sleep, and I need…” Jill shook her head and ran both hands through her hair as Rene moved in close and gazed at her sketches.
“Oh! You’re making a chicken foot, how cute.”
Jill’s face twisted in an ugly scowl. “It is not cute.”
“No, it is,” Rene said with a reassuring pat on Jill’s shoulder. “You’re always too critical of your work. I see Theo all over the cathedral. That’s her face in the shadow. There’s her chicken foot on one of the spires. That’s her little turban on the clock face.”
Jill stared at the clock in horror, the time was 12:07. She jumped off her stool and took a few steps backward. “She did something to me!” Jill didn’t bother with her coat and walked straight out the front door.
Theo already had a customer. The woman wrung her hands nervously as she regarded a pile of things sitting next to the register while she listened to Theo’s instruction. Rudely, Jill pushed past the woman and stuck her finger in Theo’s face. “We need to talk right now!”
“You gon’ have to wait your turn, fool,” Theo said calmly.
“You aunt doesn’t wait in lines. What’s her name? Marie, was it?” Jill started to walk around the store, her gaze to the ceiling. “Oh, Marie, I need a favor. Come out.”
Theo stomped her foot. “Don’t you dare call that heifer!”
Undeterred, Jill continued. “I’d like to meet you, Marie. I hate Theo, too.”
Theo threw all the items her customer was waiting to pay for into a bag. “This is on the house. Merry Christmas, run for yo life!”
“Wait,” the woman said. “Do I sprinkle the potion on my husband or do I make him drink it? How long do I have to wait for him to become nice to me?”
“Pour it in his food! Now get on outta here, that white fool in the corner is callin’ up a demon.”
The customer’s eyes went wide as she grabbed the bag, and she made a dash for the door. “I already have one of those at home, I don’t need another.”
Theo pulled the chicken foot out of her dress and started waving it around. “Marie! Don’t you listen to her. You know you’re not welcome! Get the hell out.”
“Marie, I wouldn’t take that crap from her if I were you.” Jill planted her hands on her hips. “Come on out and whip her ass.”
“What the hell is wrong with you?”
“Ticket 1207 and feet—chicken feet. You’ve slipped me some hallucinogenic. I’m getting my blood tested when I leave here, then I’m taking whatever they find to the police.”
Theo covered her mouth with her hand and laughed hysterically.
“Oh, it’s so funny, but you’re not gonna think so when they slap the cuffs on you,” Jill said as her face flushed red.
“You done worked yourself up into a snit. Fool, I ain’t put anything on you. Go ahead, waste your money if you want to, but they ain’t gonna find nothing in yo veins but a bunch of dumbass.” Theo held up a hand. “I swear, I ain’t put nothin’ on you, child.”
Jill’s shoulders dropped, and she covered her face with her hands. “Oh, God, what’s wrong with me?”
Theo waved a hand at the ceiling. “I got this one, Lord.” She started ticking off fingers as she said, “You hardheaded, you don’t want to look inside yoself, you scared of everything, you lonely—”
“Okay, thanks!” Jill wrapped her arms around herself. “I was fine before you came into my store.”
“No, you weren’t. You were the same then as you are now. You just tired of it, and you want to blame all the shit that’s going on inside of you on Theo. Child, you got some donkey in yo blood. Check yo family tree, I’m sure you got a auntie mule in there somewhere.”
Jill gazed at all the little bottles, bags of stuff, and roots sitting on Theo’s shelves. “I know this is bullshit, it’s the power of persuasion. I’ll pay you whatever you want to make me believe that I’m someone else.”
Theo walked over and put her hands on Jill’s shoulders. “You is good, you is—”
“Are you trying to quote lines from The Help? I saw that movie six times, you jackass!”
Theo shrugged. “It was a great movie.”
Jill shook her head slowly and sounded miserable when she said, “You can’t help me.”
“I can get you started, but the rest gon’ be up to you. The most healing thing on this old earth is love, and, child, you don’t love yoself very much. Ol’ Theo knows how to read a person. Someone laid you low, and you believe what they said. Do you use women?”
Jill’s brow furrowed as she met Theo’s gaze. “No.”
“Have you ever hit one?”
“No, not anyone.”
“Have you ever cheated on a woman?”
“Never.”
“Do you take advantage of them for money or things they can provide?”
“I’m way too proud for that.”
Theo nodded as she held Jill’s gaze. “What’s your greatest sin when it comes to loving someone else?”
“I don’t…I don’t know. I can be impatient. I can be jealous, judgmental.” Jill sighed. “Sometimes when things make me angry, I don’t admit it. Over time, it builds, and I kinda…explode. I really hate clutter, there’s no excuse for it. Just put things back where you got them. Farting turns me off. You know those stickers on tomatoes? I really hate to find them on the counter. I don’t like shoes being left in the living room. I trip over them, and that makes me mad. I—”
“How long is this list?”
Jill shrugged. “I could go on for a while.”
“You’re human and good. The person or people that made you feel low are the ones with the problem.”
Jill looked away and nodded.
“Why can’t you believe that?” Theo asked gently.
“It’s taken me a while, but I do.” Jill shru
gged. “Old habits, I guess. I think my issue is I’m afraid to hope. It’s safer not to believe in anything.”
“You change that today, fool. You the one mucking up all yo blessings today by being afraid of yesterday.” Theo poked her on the shoulder. “You know you special, act on it. Now what you want?”
“I wanna fall in love,” Jill mumbled.
“I done told you that ticket—”
“You saw Shawn’s claim ticket, and you saw her in the store.”
Theo folded her arms. “You can think that if you want to, but wouldn’t you rather believe that she is yo heart’s desire?”
Jill snorted. “Have you seen her? Hell yeah, I’d like to believe that.”
“Then do it. Have a seat. Ol’ Theo’s gonna work on you.”
Jill sank down with a sigh and watched as Theo pulled a small tin from beneath the couch. “What is that?”
“Special powder to enhance the spell.”
“What’s in it?” Jill asked warily.
Theo sat back on her haunches. “To tell you the truth, I have no idea. It was here when I moved in. Power of suggestion, right?”
Jill’s brow shot up. “Do not put that on me.”
Theo blew out an explosive breath. “Give me a minute to mix up the real deal.”
*******
Shawn waited until after the lunch hour, then dialed the number to the jewelry shop. She closed her eyes and leaned her forehead against the wall of her office as she waited for an answer. “Searcy Jewelers, this is Rene, how may I help you?”
“Hi, Rene, this is Shawn, is Jill available?”
“Your watch isn’t ready. I know this because the part for it arrived this morning, and it wasn’t the right one. Jill called our supplier, and a vein stood out in her forehead while she talked to someone. It wasn’t pretty.”
Shawn licked her lips. “Thanks for the update, but if Jill is available, I’d like to speak to her for a moment.”
“She is, let me put you on hold for a sec.”
“I am a confident woman,” Shawn chanted while she waited for Jill to pick up. The more she said it, the stronger she felt it. She was practically yelling when Jill picked up the line. “I am a con—hey, Jill.”
“Hey, how’re you today?”
“Good. Real good.”
“Did Rene tell you what happened with the crystal I ordered?”
“She did. Jill, you know what?”
Jill sounded a tad hesitant when she asked, “What?”
“The Christmas lights in the Quarter are really pretty at night, even for someone who doesn’t like this holiday.” Shawn began to pace. “The carriages are the perfect way to see them. You should join me—tonight. I’ll bring a blanket, you’ll be warm. I can pick you up at seven.”
“Okay.”
Shawn stopped in her tracks and had no clue what to say next. “All right then.”
“I’ll see you at seven.”
“Okay, bye.” Shawn hung up the phone and jumped when it immediately rang again. “Hello?”
“I didn’t tell you where I live, which is above the store. There’s parking and a private entrance around back. If you’ve got something to write with, I’ll give you the gate code.”
“I do.” Shawn jotted the numbers down as Jill gave them to her.
“Just ring the doorbell once you’re inside.”
“I will.”
“I’m looking forward to seeing you,” Jill said, sounding a bit nervous.
Shawn smiled. “I’m really glad to hear that. See you soon.”
Rene was on Jill the second she hung up the phone. “You’ve got a date. You’ve got a date with Shawn! Where are you going?”
“For a carriage ride to look at the Christmas lights,” Jill said with a silly smile.
Rene held up a hand like she was swearing an oath. “So romantic. A moonlight ride under the stars, it’s cold so you’ll have to sit close together, probably under a blanket.”
“She’s bringing one.”
Rene closed her eyes and wrapped her arms around herself. “Your shoulders will brush, and that first contact will cause little pinpricks of excitement to flare up on your arm. Invariably, your hands will touch, and she’ll entwine her fingers with yours. The heat of her body will warm you while the cold nips at your face. In the darkness beyond the streetlights, you’ll have your first kiss.” Rene’s hands slowly rose up to clasp her face; her eyes remained closed as she spoke. “Then, you’ll get carried away to the point that the carriage driver has to threaten to report you to the police for public indecency, and he’ll let you off on a corner, well before the ride is supposed to end. Your bra will be up in your armpits, and you suddenly realize that you’re freezing to death.”
Jill cleared her throat. “Was that a fantasy?”
“No, it really happened. That’s the closet I’ve ever come to the four-foot club.”
Jill narrowed her eyes. “Is that like the mile-high club?”
Rene nodded as she patted her upper lip with a tissue. “The carriage is only like four feet off the ground…or do they call it that because the mule has four hooves?”
The bell on the door jingled and continued to do so until the end of the business day.
Chapter 5
At ten till seven, Shawn pulled up to the keypad behind Jill’s building and punched in the code. The solid gate slid open to reveal a long alley that held a few Dumpsters and a little red Mazda Miata parked directly behind the jewelry store. “Sporty, I like it,” she said as she parked her Camaro beside it. Their mutual admiration of sports cars was noted on Shawn’s mental “things in common” list.
She ate a breath mint and kept an eye on her clock. The second it showed seven o’ clock, Shawn climbed out of her car, grabbed the two towels she’d been loaned, and rang the doorbell. Jill appeared a minute or two later with a smile.
Shawn held out the towels. “I’m sorry I haven’t returned these sooner.”
“I only remember you taking one,” Jill said as she opened the door wider and gazed at them.
“I came by one day when you weren’t here, and I was…a mess. It’s kind of a long story,” Shawn said, averting her gaze. “I had some stuff stuck in my hair.”
“Ah, that would explain why my shampoo was in the downstairs bathroom. Rene raids my apartment often. Come on up, would you like a drink?” Jill asked as she climbed the stairs.
“Sure.” Shawn’s knees were knocking, and she hoped that maybe a glass of wine would keep her from blurting out something stupid.
At the top of the stairs, they went through another door and stepped into Jill’s living room. It was spacious but also had a cozy feel to it with soft lighting and French doors that led out to the balcony. One wall was brick and painted white like the ones downstairs in the store. The opposing wall was sheetrock and was painted deep lavender. The dark color offset the bamboo flooring.
“This is very nice,” Shawn said as she admired the L-shaped couch that seemed to close off the seating area around the TV.
“Thank you. It’s been renovated a half-dozen times. My great-grandfather bought part of this building, he was in real estate. His oldest daughter married a jeweler, who taught my grandfather the trade. It became the family business when my dad and his brother got into it. Dad left me his part of the business, and Rene’s did the same, that’s how we became partners. How’d you get into botany?”
“It was easier than becoming a chemist,” Shawn said as she followed Jill into the kitchen.
“Would you like wine? I have vodka, too, and I think maybe some bourbon.” Jill dug into the refrigerator, giving Shawn a nice view of her rear end.
“Um…wine sounds great.”
“I have cabernet and white.”
“I’ll go with the cabernet.” Shawn swallowed hard and whispered, “I am a confident woman.”
Jill stood up straight and turned suddenly. “I missed what you just said.”
“I…I was just musing that
you like that cleaner, too.” Shawn pointed at the bottle on the counter by the sink. “I’m always confident that everything is clean when I use it.”
Jill picked up the corkscrew and froze for a second. “I haven’t dated anyone in a long time, I feel kind of clumsy. I’m tense, but please don’t interpret my behavior as disinterest.”
“Thank you for that,” Shawn said with a sigh. “I feel like that most of the time. It’s really nice to know I’m not alone right now.”
Jill’s gaze rose from the bottle in front of her. “You feel goofy and out of sorts?”
Shawn shrugged. “Everyone seems so surprised when I say that, but it’s the truth. I’ve always been painfully shy. People I work with think I’m arrogant or aloof until they take the time to get to know me. Some never do. I’m not very good at small talk. I can’t walk up to a group of people and join in on their conversations. It’s like a handicap.”
Jill worked the opener into the cork and pulled it out. “That explains a lot. The first few times you came into the store, the only thing you said was, ‘Hello, I broke this.’”
“And I applauded myself for getting that much out. You thought I was snooty, didn’t you?”
Jill returned her gaze to the wine and poured it into two glasses.
“You did,” Shawn said with a soft laugh.
“I did.” Jill handed Shawn a glass. “But just at first.”
“It’s okay.”
“What did you…think of me?” Jill asked before she took a drink.
“You were very businesslike, but polite. Rene kind of put me at ease because she talks a lot.”
Jill smiled. “That’s why she handles sales and we work so well together. She’ll talk to anyone about anything. One time, she broke a toe, and everyone that came into the store had to hear the whole saga about her tripping on the steps and how bad it hurt. Then she would whip it out and show how it was taped to another toe. Customers either ran out or bought something just to shut her up.” Jill blinked. “I just realized that we’re standing here when we could be sitting on the couch.”
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