And Something Blue (Main Street Merchants Book 1)

by Amelia C. Adams

  Her first client of the morning was sheer perfection. She knew what she wanted, she slipped in and out of the dresses quickly, and when she found “the one,” she didn’t dither back and forth for an hour before making her decision. It was so nice to finalize this sale—Laurie felt like she was getting back on track. In her head, she’d stopped counting the sale of Kelly’s dress—it felt like dirty money. No one should get dumped just a week after they got engaged. There should be a law about that or something.

  Coming off the good vibes of her sale, Laurie was primed to meet her second bride of the day. This one . . . well, she was no walk in the park. She had no idea what she wanted, so Laurie did what she always did in a case like that. She sat the bride down in the dressing room with a small plate of cream puffs, and she went in search of dresses in the stock room. She pulled one of each style she thought would suit the bride with the plan that once the bride found something she liked, they’d have a direction to go in.

  This time, however, that actually wasn’t helpful. The bride didn’t like any of the styles Laurie brought in. Laurie was at a bit of a loss after that—if the bride didn’t like any style they carried, they really had nowhere to go from there. They’d have to send her to another shop, but the problem was that nearly all the shops were carrying the same styles, as that’s what was in fashion this season. It was time to get creative.

  The bride had a pretty generous budget, so Laurie knew she had some leeway. “Did you like the top part of any of the dresses you tried on?”

  “Well, I liked the top on this one, but I hate the skirt. Tulle just isn’t me. I’m not a tulle girl at all.”

  “Did you like the skirt on any of these dresses?”

  The bride stood there for a long moment, contemplating. “I guess I liked that one,” she said, pointing at a ball gown, “but it was too poofy.”

  “What if I told you that we could take the top of this gown and attach it to the bottom of that gown, and take out some of the poof in the skirt?”

  The bride looked astonished. “You can do that?”

  “Yes, because they’re made by the same designer. It’s a little bit more expensive, but it will be exactly what you want.”

  A quick call to the designer confirmed that those two dresses could indeed be blended together, and the bride went home happy.

  “Good work,” Millie said, coming up behind Laurie and patting her on the shoulder. “You saved that sale.”

  “I learned from the best,” Laurie said, returning Millie’s pat.

  “Come into my office for a moment, please,” Millie said. She turned to Holly. “Can you hold all my calls?”

  “Sure,” Holly said, and Laurie followed Millie into her small, but nicely decorated office. It was from here that Millie oversaw the operations of the whole shop. She could see all the dressing rooms, and she could tell when one of the consultants needed some backup. She designed the floor plan of this place very cleverly when she built it thirty years ago.

  “Laurie, sit down,” Millie invited. “Can I get you anything?” She motioned toward the mini fridge in the corner.

  “Just a cold water would be great,” Laurie said, and Millie handed her a bottle. Laurie was starting to feel a little nervous. Millie had her “we need to have a serious talk” face on, and Laurie wondered if she was about to get fired over what had happened with Kelly Reese. The law was clearly on the shop’s side and she’d testify to that in any court, but maybe there had been some backlash against the shop and Millie had to do some damage control and let her go.

  “Laurie, we’ve been talking for a little while about making you the assistant manager.”

  “That’s right.” Oh, no. Here it comes. The part where Millie tells me that she’s changed her mind, that she can’t have a loose cannon like me in her shop. I could probably get a job at the bookstore with Regan—I know their inventory almost as well as I know the stock in this place. But they don’t offer commission. And it would break my heart.

  “Over the last few days, I’ve been reassessing your career path.” Yep, it was time to lower the boom.

  “Of course, you know that I never got married. There was one young man who really could have made me happy, but he was killed in the Korean War, and after that, no one else came my way. So I decided to help other young ladies’ dreams come true, and I put all my energies into building up this shop.”

  Laurie had never heard Millie mention a young man. “What was his name?”

  “Arthur. Arthur Haskell.” Millie’s eyes grew dreamy. “He was tall and handsome—well, I’ll just show you.” She opened up her desk drawer and pulled out a picture. Wow. He really was a looker in his Army uniform. Sort of like Gregory Peck.

  “So you never had another boyfriend?” Laurie asked.

  “I had a few dates, but the whole time, I wished I was with Arthur. That wasn’t fair to the boy I was with, and I think my disinterest showed. Then, later, the offers just stopped coming. But never mind about that,” Millie said, seeming to pull herself out of whatever flashback she was having. “The point I’m trying to make is that I never had any children, and the odds of that happening now?” She chuckled. “I’m certainly not getting any younger, and I’ve been worried about the future of the shop. Laurie, I trust you. You’ve really proven yourself to me over and over again, and the way you handled this situation with Kelly Reese’s broken engagement just made my decision that much easier. I’m making you the assistant manager right now, as of this minute, and I’d like to extend an additional offer.”

  “Really?” Laurie blinked a few times. She hadn’t expected this promotion until early fall.

  “Now, I don’t want your answer right away. I know it’s a big decision. But I’d like you to buy me out when I’m ready to retire.”

  Laurie froze. “Um . . . You want this shop to be mine?”

  “Yes. I think I’ll stick around for another two years, but at that point, how would you feel about becoming the new owner?”

  “I’d love it,” Laurie said, trying to keep from squealing. Owning her own shop had been her dream for years, but she’d always thought she’d be starting from scratch. If she took over Millicent’s Bridal, an established business with a positive reputation, she’d be miles ahead of the game from day one. “How would it work? I don’t have a lot in savings right now, but I could work on that more faithfully.”

  Millie chuckled again. “I’ve been talking to my lawyer, and he suggests that we withhold a certain percentage of your paycheck to go toward the buyout. I’m giving you a raise of twelve percent to go along with your promotion, and if we withheld ten percent toward the buyout, it’s not a lot, but think of it as earnest money. Then, when I retire, you’d give me a percentage of your profits each month until I was paid in full. If you went for more than three months without a profit—which is unlikely, because the store is up and running—I’d cosign a bank loan for you.”

  “Are you sure? It really sounds like I’m getting the better end of the bargain here.” Laurie was pretty convinced this was all a cheesecake-induced dream.

  “I really have no one else to take over for me, Laurie. Now, of course, who knows what might happen in the future. We’ll have my lawyer draw up a contract that gives us each a loophole in case one of us decides to do a dirty on the other one—not that I think that would ever happen, but we need to be prepared for all eventualities. And of course I’ll have him send you over a copy to peruse before he finalizes anything so you can have input as well.” Millie paused. “Have you ever regretted your decision to change your major and come back here to Aspen Ridge?”

  “I thought I would, but I haven’t. This is where I want to be—this is where my heart is. And I’d love to take over for you, Millie. I really would.”

  Millie leaned forward and gave Laurie a hug. “Thank you. This is a huge weight off my shoulders. Now, I think it’s time for your lunch. Why don’t you take an hour today? Two good sales this morning—I think you deserve
a little reward.”

  “I think you’re right.” Laurie flashed Millie a grin and then headed to the break room to grab her purse and lunch sack. It was all she could do not to dance across the shop. She was going to have her own bridal business after all, and much more easily than she could have imagined. She wasn’t kidding herself that there wouldn’t be challenges, but she was ready to face those challenges when they came. And knowing Millie had so much faith in her was a giant shot in the arm.

  Tucked in her sack was a sandwich from home, but Laurie was in the mood to celebrate. She headed across the street to the bakery and got a double chocolate donut.

  “Are you sure you just want one?” Quinn behind the counter teased her. “Last time you got a double chocolate donut, you ordered three. But as I recall, that was a bad day.”

  “The worst. No, I have not just been dumped. This is a celebration donut. But I can’t tell you what for yet.”

  “I’ll just have to be patient, then.” Quinn smiled as she handed Laurie her change. “And thank you for shopping at D’Angelo’s.”

  Laurie wiggled her two remaining free fingers in a wave and left the bakery, making the chime over the door ring.

  It was a gorgeous day, and with a whole hour to kill, Laurie decided to walk to the park on the east end of Main Street and eat her lunch there. She hummed again as she walked, wondering what people would think if she suddenly start singing. She could always claim she was a flash mob of one.

  After choosing the perfect shady bench, Laurie pulled out her sandwich and began to eat. She’d been out of tomatoes, but otherwise, it was pretty good—the honey mustard she’d thrown on there gave it the perfect touch. But then it turned to sawdust in her mouth. Logan was walking toward her across the grass. What part of wishing him well with his life had been so hard to understand? That was “good-bye,” not “see you later” or, gracious no, “come interrupt my lunch at the park.”

  Laurie’s good mood evaporated like water on a hot iron. She slammed her sandwich down on the sack and hopped off the bench, putting her hands on her hips as Logan approached. He looked good. Really good. He was wearing a sage-green button-down shirt and gray slacks, no tie, his hair rumpled just enough to where she wasn’t sure if it was on purpose or not. But it didn’t matter what he looked like—she’d had enough.

  “Why do you keep coming back? You’re like . . . an infectious disease. Every time I think I’ve gotten rid of you, you just show up again. Honestly, what do you want from me?”

  “An infectious disease?” He quirked an eyebrow.

  “Or bedbugs. I haven’t decided yet.”

  Logan’s mouth twitched. She figured that was an attempt at a smile. “That’s a little harsh, don’t you think?”

  “Under normal circumstances, maybe, but you’re not getting the message. I don’t want to do this anymore. I was having a really good day and now you just showed up to ruin it for me. Can’t we just say good-bye and mean it? Why are you even here?”

  “I got your e-mail and wanted to thank you for it.”

  “So you drove here from Denver?” Who does that? Besides him, that is.

  “I did.” He put his hands in his pockets and turned, surveying the park. “This is a very nice town. It grows on you.”

  And this after his disparaging remarks about small towns during dinner the other night? Laurie sat down and took another bite of sandwich so she wouldn’t retort. She could tell he was trying to be nice. She didn’t know why, but she found it highly suspicious.

  “May I sit down?”

  “It’s a public park—I can’t really stop you unless I call the chief of police. And I have him on speed dial, just so you know.”

  Logan sat down on the other end of the bench, tugging a little at the knees of his slacks. “Can we talk?”

  Laurie sighed. “Listen. It’s true that I think you’re good-looking. I mean, really good-looking. And it’s true that you make me nervous and I do really clumsy things when I’m around you.” Why was she telling him this? She needed to shut up—right now—but her mouth wouldn’t close. Stupid mouth. “But all you do is make me mad. I’m not even myself when you’re around. You’re just so . . .” She took a deep breath. “I wasn’t going to tell you this because it’s a part of my life that’s over and done with, okay? But I’m the one who wrote the contract for the sales agreement. I’m the lawyer who somehow managed to string two coherent sentences together even though I’m from a small town. So you weren’t just belittling where I live—you were belittling me. And I’m done with whatever this is.”

  Logan looked at her in astonishment. “You wrote that contract?”

  “Yes, I did.”

  “But you’re not a lawyer.”

  “I took one year of contract law at Harvard before I changed my major to business. I loved it—I was sure I was going to go all the way, but I kept running into this.” She flapped her hand between the two of them. “The law is a cutthroat profession, and I didn’t want to cut any throats. So I quit law school.”

  “I have to say, I think that’s a shame. You would have made one whale of a good lawyer.” He shook his head. “I really should have guessed, the way you’ve been arguing with me. I could see you in court, going up against the big guys.”

  “Well, I decided that I didn’t want to spend my entire life arguing. After I got my business degree, I came back home to Aspen Ridge, got a job with Millie, and I’ve been happier ever since. I’ve got a career path that fulfills me, and I don’t have to spend all my time insulting people for money.”

  “Touché.” Logan sat there quietly for a minute, and Laurie ate another bite of her sandwich. It still tasted like cardboard—not that she’d ever actually eaten cardboard—but she knew she’d be hungry midafternoon if she didn’t eat now.

  “May I explain a few things to you? I’m not expecting total forgiveness, or even partial forgiveness, but I’d feel a lot better if we talked.” His voice had lost its superior tone, and Laurie nodded. She could stand to hear him out for a few minutes, she guessed. She could be the bigger person.

  “So, as you know, I’m a lawyer.”

  “Um, yes, I did figure that out. Next astonishing revelation?”

  “I’ve been working on a really sensitive case, and the day we came in to try on dresses, I found out that half my evidence had been thrown out. It was crucial that I win this case—I can’t tell you why, just that a lot of people were going to get hurt if I couldn’t pull it off. So that’s why I wasn’t paying much attention to the sales agreement and so forth—my mind was somewhere else, wondering what would happen if I couldn’t find another way to prove my case.”

  “I did notice a bit of an obsession with your phone.”

  “I was texting my office and calling witnesses to see if there wasn’t a way we could pull everything out of the fire. And when I came back to talk to you about getting the refund, I’d just learned that my case was falling apart and there was nothing I could do about it. I took it out on you, and that wasn’t fair at all. You just happened to be the one sitting in front of me at the time.”

  “Oh, lucky me. The joys of coincidence, right?”

  “I guess you could put it that way, yes. I wish I could have held it in better and treated you more professionally, but the case really meant a lot to me and it was slipping through my fingers. Listen, I meant it when I said I was sorry. I don’t know why I felt the need to be so defensive with you, but you didn’t deserve it. You were just doing your job, and I tried to railroad you into going against the store’s policy. I was wrong in every sense of the word.”

  “And so when you took me out to dinner, what was that all about?”

  “Pride, pure and simple. I hated that you’d seen me so vulnerable and I was trying to regain my dignity.”

  Laurie choked back the guffaw that was threatening to come out. “That was your idea of regaining dignity? Crash and burn, buddy, crash and burn.”

  “I know. The whole thing was a h
uge mistake. And that’s why I won’t go away—I want to try until I get this right. And I should also apologize for my mother. She’s become used to getting her own way, what with her son being a lawyer and all, and she does tend to sue a bit too easily sometimes. I need to be more mindful about which of her ‘cases’ I take. Not to say that she’s an unkind or unforgiving woman—not at all. She’s just . . . used to getting her own way,” he repeated, sounding like he wasn’t sure how else to phrase it.

  Laurie sat back and regarded him. His eyes looked sincere, but she’d been taken in by sincere eyes before, and that had led to ordering three double chocolate donuts at D’Angelo’s. Among other various chocolate items obtained from other vendors in town, not limited to the grocery store, the diner, Frannie’s . . . She wasn’t going down that path again.

  “What exactly does ‘doing this right’ consist of?” she asked.

  “Knowing that you’ve forgiven me, and knowing that I’ve learned a valuable lesson about not taking things out on other people. And that I shouldn’t be so quick to litigate. Even though I do enjoy a good litigation.”

  Laurie pulled out her donut and broke it in half while she thought. If she made this hard for him, he’d just keep coming back—he’d already proven how persistent he could be. Better to let him off the hook and get it over with. Then maybe she could move on with her life.

  “I forgive you,” she said after chewing her first bite of chocolate heaven. Thank goodness her taste buds hadn’t betrayed her in this regard. “I have to ask, though. I’m sure you’ve offended lots of people in your long and illustrious career. Why do you keep trying to patch things up with me? What makes me so special? Unless you spend all your time driving from city to city, sending flowers and making long speeches.”

  “No, I don’t do that.” He paused. “I don’t know what it is about you, Laurie, but you are so special.”

  She couldn’t come up with a reply to that—there didn’t seem to be one in the entire English language—so she handed him the other half of her donut instead.