First Edition Romance

by Shannon M Harris

  “I’m glad I caught you,” A.J. said. “I planned to call later, but I have an opening for tomorrow morning. I’ve already cleared it with Leo, and she’ll bring someone with her so I can get the shoots of the exterior I need without pedestrians marring the photos. All she asked for was money for pizza and beer. I’m working it into your bill.”

  Leo, Lauren knew, was a friend of A.J.’s and a police officer that helped her with photo shoots from time to time. “Of course. Is there anything you need me to do?”

  “No, we’ll be here at around eight thirty. That way I can get plenty of photos without anyone in the store. I’ll take all the exterior ones, then the interior, your office, and the kitchens. I’ve got a few projects ahead of yours to finalize, but I should have everything ready by the end of the month. You worked it out with Noe, yes?”

  “Yes, I did. Tomorrow would be wonderful.” Noe acted like a bear when Lauren had asked him to be in a few pictures. He had agreed when Lauren said he wouldn’t have to give any on stage demonstrations at the Garriety food festival. C and C was one of the platinum sponsors and would have a booth set up with a menu of not only their usual offerings, but also a few Puerto Rican staples. It was important to her for others to get a taste of her heritage, no matter how small.

  “If you have a minute to spare, I’ll have someone put together a bag for Rosy.”

  A.J. chuckled. “I see how it is,” she said as she guided Lauren across the street to C and C. “All for Rosy, none for me.”

  Lauren arched her brow. “She is my favorite.”

  “She’s mine too.”

  Once inside, Lauren instructed George, an employee, to get A.J. a bag together, then climbed the stairs to her second-floor office where Ollie should be waiting for their lunch date. She’d known Olivia Markinson for close to twenty years. Lauren loved Ollie’s three children like they were her own and spoiled them rotten. She would do just about anything for all four of them. Including paying an exuberant amount for Colin’s birthday present. He still hadn’t taken the Lego set she gave him for Christmas out of the box and she knew he would take care of the book. She’d also bought him some art supplies for his newly shown talent.

  Lauren walked into her office, shut the door, and noticed Olivia in her office chair.

  “You know,” Olivia said, looking up from a magazine. “When you said lunch at twelve thirty, that’s what time I expected you here.”

  Lauren rolled her eyes and set her purse on the floor by her desk before picking up a small box and placing it on the desk next to Ollie. “Really, Ollie? I’m only,” she glanced at her watch, a gift from her grandma, “two minutes late.” She sat in one of the chairs in front of her desk.

  “You better have a good reason.” She stopped mid-flip in her magazine, pushed it to the corner of the desk, then picked up the box, gently opening the lid. “He’ll love it. He’s been practicing with the book you left him.”

  “Good.” For the past three months, Lauren had taught Ralph, Ollie’s eldest son, the art of Origami. She first took up the practice in college. It brought her satisfaction to finish a piece and taught her patience. “As for why I’m late, I stopped by Turn the Page for Colin’s birthday present.”

  Ollie stopped unpacking their food and sent a disbelieving look her way. “Just now? I told you about that store months ago.” She tsked and kept unpacking the food.

  “Yes, well, could you blame me? One of Turn the Page’s display windows is ducks and the other one is dragons.” Lauren fidgeted in her seat. “The other stores looked more reputable, but they couldn’t find the book I wanted. People’s incompetence never fails to astound me. These people are supposed to be professionals. Ainslon promised to endeavor to find the book I want before Colin’s birthday.”

  Ollie pushed a sandwich her way. “You’re really cutting it short. She may not be able to find it.”

  “She said she would give it her best shot.”

  “Really?” Ollie smirked.

  “Don’t start.” Lauren took a bite of her turkey and Swiss on rye with honey mustard. Lauren wouldn’t be surprised if Ollie had roasted the turkey herself instead of buying it already pre-packaged. Ollie really did make the best sandwiches. Owning one of the largest real estate companies in Garriety afforded Ollie the means to hire the best nannies and cooks, but Ollie took her children’s well-being seriously and tried to be there in every aspect of their lives. Including making their lunches.

  “It’s all right to be attracted to someone. She’s beautiful with a killer accent and the sharpest jawline I’ve ever seen.”

  “Then why don’t you ask her out?” Lauren took a sip of her water.

  “Don’t be silly. When would I have the time?” Ollie waved off the suggestion.

  “Of course. Silly me.” Ollie’s life revolved around her children and her career, but Lauren wished she would spend some time on her own love life.

  “When she finds your book—”

  “If.”

  Ollie pursed her lips. “When. Ask her out. No harm done.”

  “You only mentioned the place in passing. How do you know it so well?” In fact, she’d mentioned it a lot in passing.

  “Ralph and Colin compete in their game nights and Heidi enjoys the book readings. I always make it a point to speak with Ainslon and Justin when we go. I believe I’ve told you that before.”

  “I don’t know.” She patted her lips clean with a napkin. “I’m too old for her and don’t even know if she’s a lesbian.”

  “Thirty-four and she is. Her last name is O’Neil, in case you were wondering. I was at the festival’s board meeting when she gave her presentation and stated in said presentation that she was a lesbian.”

  “Huh. Thirty-four?” Lauren raised an eyebrow.

  “Thirty-four is only a ten-year difference. Completely doable. Stop trying to get out of it. You’ll make some woman a fantastic partner.”

  “I suppose.”

  Lauren glanced at the sign above the door to her office. The original C and C sign. When her great-great grandparents had immigrated from Puerto Rico, her great-great-grandfather had opened the first C and C. It lasted fifteen years before business slowed and they had to close shop. Thirty years later, her great-grandfather opened the second C and C and used the sign, but a short ten years later he had to close shop also. Her grandpa tried a third time and opened C and C again, but it too failed. When she decided to open the latest incarnation, her grandmother had taken her into the attic and had uncovered the original sign. Weathered over the years by the elements, Lauren had the sign preserved. The sign hanging outside the store was an exact replica of the original one she had in her office.

  “Earth to Lauren.”

  “Sorry.” She shook her thoughts away. “If the book doesn’t come in time, I have a back-up-plan. No worries.”

  “I’m not worried.” Ollie gathered her trash up and threw it in the nearby small trashcan before picking up her purse and walking to the door. “In all honesty, Lauren, if the woman has you this out of sorts, after only meeting her once, you need to think about why. By the way, I love it when you wear your hair like that.” Ollie blew her a kiss, then walked out the door.

  Today, rather than straighten her hair, she’d decided to style her natural curls before leaving the house. If Ainslon’s reaction was anything to go by, she would let her curls out more often. Lauren stood and plopped herself down in her office chair. She would take Ollie’s words to heart, as always. If, upon their second meeting, the pesky feelings continued, she would, maybe, do something about them. Maybe.

  She enjoyed being in a relationship and her last one had ended on a good note, but she hadn’t wanted to get back out there. Casual dating had its moments but turned stale after a while. Settling down with someone and planning a future together filled her with warmth, but the thought of putting herself out there held no appeal.

  She opened her laptop and did a quick search of Ainslon O’Neil. There wasn’t much. S
eemed like Ainslon stayed out of the limelight, considering her business partner, Justin Bishop, did most of their PR. She clicked on one of Ainslon’s pictures found on their store’s Instagram page. In it, she was sprawled out in a picture window with a scarf around her neck and wearing glasses. Lauren didn’t think she could get any more attractive. She was wrong. The glasses added a whole other dimension. Ainslon certainly was photogenic.

  Lauren exited out and shut the screen. There would be time for pointless daydreaming later. Right now, she had a business to run. Ollie had asked her to sit in on the board for the food festival, but due to the demands of her business, Lauren had turned down the invitation. However, she had donated a substantial amount of money to become a platinum sponsor.

  The festival board projected at least forty thousand visitors for their third year. Feedback on how well festival goers received their new recipes would determine if they converted part of the store into a coffee bar. Besides her family, her heritage meant the most to her, but at the heart of everything, she was a businesswoman and wouldn’t do anything to jeopardize her business. She vowed to not fail where her ancestors had.

  A week after her meeting with Lauren, Ainslon wasn’t any closer to finding the book than on the first day. Justin had tried to be encouraging but failed in his usual epic way. She forbade him from helping and exiled him to the back room sorting through the several boxes of action figures delivered the previous day.

  Even keeping her nose to the grindstone, she’d still exhausted almost all her resources. It didn’t help that her mind always wandered toward Lauren with her perfect hair, amazing smile, and her killer sense of style.

  Out of curiosity, she had googled Lauren, with her cat, Shady, curled up next to her. She didn’t want to be a creeper but couldn’t bring herself to care when looking through all the pictures of the striking and dynamic businesswoman. As closely as the Garriety Gossip website followed Lauren’s life, no mention of a significant other ever appeared or was even hinted about. Most of the photos revolved around Lauren at business functions or with her family.

  Ainslon had refrained from telling Easton, her sister, about everything that happened the previous week. Easton owned Brew and Bake, a bakery, located only a block away from her store. She loved Easton dearly but knew she would hound her if she found out about her crush. Easton was having trouble in the love department and liked to live through Ainslon’s dating life, but lately, Ainslon’s was as non-existent as her sister’s. They had made plans to have dinner together the following night.

  Easton wasn’t her sister by blood. When Ainslon was fifteen, her parents caught her making out with her best friend Deirdre. She confessed to her parents she was gay, and they refused to accept her. A few months later, her grandmother, Edna, had flown across the world to pick her up from Ireland.

  Edna was born in Ireland but had immigrated to the United States when she was twenty, where she met, fell in love with, and married Clive, another Irish immigrant. Greg, Ainslon’s dad, and mom, Eileen, were born in the United States, but when Ainslon was almost two, her parents decided to move to Ireland to learn and live the culture.

  It wasn’t until Ainslon and Edna were back in the states that Ainslon found out Edna had also taken in another girl. Easton was a year younger than her, and both of her parents had died in a car crash. Edna had known Easton’s parents and when CPS couldn’t find a placement for her, because of Easton’s age, Edna was granted custody. They’d grown up together and their bond was unshakeable. Ainslon didn’t know what she would do without Easton by her side and hoped to never find out.

  They were opposites in looks with Ainslon’s black hair and green eyes compared to Easton’s blond hair and brown eyes. For some reason, no one ever had a problem seeing them as sisters. It didn’t matter that Ainslon had an accent and Easton didn’t.

  She scooped up a handful of sunflower seeds, mini chocolate chips, and peanuts to eat. While chewing, she searched her mind for any other leads for the book but drew a blank. When her cellphone rang a familiar tune, a grin split her face and she hopped off the couch, grabbed her phone, and swiped it before her nana could hang up. If it wasn’t an emergency, Edna would only call once and would refuse any calls after the fact.

  “Hi, Nana.”

  “Ainslon, would you like to have dinner with me tonight? I’m making your favorite.”

  Ainslon leaned back against the counter and counted to ten quietly in Irish. When she’d moved in, Edna had made sure Ainslon never lost sight of her heritage and one of those things was keeping up with her Irish. They only used the language from time to time, but Ainslon was thankful Edna had kept up with it.

  “Ainslon, I can hear your breathing over the phone. You know, I’m an old woman. No telling how much time I have left on this earth. You could at least pretend to want to talk to me.”

  Ainslon groaned. “Nana, don’t be silly. I always enjoy talking to you and I would love to have dinner with you.”

  It always amazed her how such a sweet, frail looking, eighty-eight-year-old woman could be so manipulative. Her Irish stew was the stuff of legends. Ainslon may have left Ireland behind but Edna made sure she always had a piece of it with her. Either in the language or the family dinners. Ainslon’s favorite meal was bacon with cabbage and turnips and mash. No matter how many times Ainslon made it, she never could match Edna’s.

  “That’s the spirit, dear. Dinner’s at seven sharp. Grá gheal mo chroí thú.”

  Ainslon let the words wash over her, ‘you are the bright love of my heart,’ then she came back to reality. Edna only spoke Irish when she felt sentimental. “I love you too.”

  If dinner was at seven that meant she would have to be there by six thirty at the latest. When Justin came back with lunch, she filled him in on her conversation and he agreed to lock up for the night.

  Lauren pushed the flatbed shopping cart through the aisles of Sadlers, Garriety’s one big box store, as Patricia, her mother, kept piling items on it. Lauren eyed the cart, overflowing with supplies, to make sure nothing fell off. Once a month, Lauren accompanied Patricia on her grocery shopping to load up on necessities. One, because Lauren didn’t want her mother loading and lifting so many heavy items, and two, because she loved spending time with her. Though, she never understood why her mother bought so much. It was only her, Callie, Jeffrey, her brother-in-law, and nephew, Charlie. Lauren had a feeling her mother bought so much so she could make meals for her neighbors that didn’t get around as well as they used to.

  Patricia still lived in the small three-bedroom home Lauren had grown up in. The house, located in a modest neighborhood on the outskirts of the city, didn’t have any of the hustle or bustle of the city. It was a wonderful place to grow up and Lauren wouldn’t trade her memories of it for anything. She loved vacationing around the world, but Garriety was and would always be her home. Not every child grew up in a loving family, and Lauren knew how lucky she was. It still pained her to walk into the home and not see her papa sitting in his recliner in the living room.

  Eleven years ago, he’d died unexpectedly, and the hole he’d left in their lives still ached from time to time. Her parents had almost reached their fiftieth wedding anniversary. After her mother’s grieving process, she’d started living again, like her papa would have wanted. Between cooking and gardening, Patricia liked to visit with her neighbors and had a weekly appointment for bridge and chess at the community center. Just like her mother, Lauren liked to keep busy. Where she learned love and patience from her papa, she learned passion and drive from her mother.

  Lauren nodded at a few people she knew but kept pushing the cart per Patricia’s instructions. They stopped at the produce section, where Lauren would be picking up some items for herself. She had a visit to the farmers market with her sister planned for Saturday, but, as much as she liked the farmers market, the prices on the produce here were too good to pass up.

  “Grab a box of the plantains and a bag of mangoes,” Patrici
a said, as she surveyed the berries. “And a container of strawberries and a bag of grapes.” At her last check up, Patricia’s cholesterol readings were a little high, so she added more fruits and vegetables and less meat into her diet.

  Patricia deposited her picks on top of the largest box. “How have you been, little duck? We haven’t talked much this week.” She eyed the cart, even though Lauren had carefully packed as they went along.

  Lauren smiled at the term of endearment her mother had always used for her. She laid her bounty beside her mother’s as they made their way to the vegetables. “Good. Revenue was up three percent last quarter and we’re almost done with the planning for the food festival. I’m still looking into purchasing the empty building beside ours, but the owner is being stubborn.” She plucked a package of zucchini and a bag of green beans up but stopped when Patricia placed a hand on her arm. “Momma?”

  “I’m happy your business is doing so well, but how are you doing?”

  “Fine. You know I’m a creature of habit.” Lauren turned away from her mother’s penetrating gaze.

  “I know. There isn’t anything else?”

  “Why? Is there something specific you want to know?” Patricia had a sixth sense for this stuff.

  “Well, Ollie and I talked, and a certain name came up in the conversation. Ainslon.” Patricia lifted her eyebrows in question.

  Lauren should have known Ollie would say something. Before answering, she surveyed around to make sure no one lurked nearby to overhear. “There is nothing to tell, Momma.” Lauren grasped her mother’s hand. “Honestly, there is nothing to tell. If, and that’s a big if, she finds the book I’m looking for, I might, I might consider asking her out.”

  “Good.” They went about their shopping. “I want you to be happy. That’s all. You’ll never make it the fifty years your father and I did, but I’m sure there is someone out there for you.”

  Lauren stopped in the middle of the aisle, her tone dry and a bit hurt. “Thanks, Momma, for putting everything into perspective for me. Way to make your daughter feel good.”