little careful. I lay on the bed, the ceiling fan creaking above me, and listened for other noises that didnât come until finally, I fell asleep.
Â
The sound of my cell phone woke me the next morning. Sun streamed in the window, the lace curtains floating around in the soft summer breeze. I reached over the side of the bed and dug through my purse. âYes,â I croaked. My eyelids didnât want to open.
âWake up, sleepyhead. Did you forget all about me?â Aunt Jackieâs voice sounded all cheer and sunshine.
âWhat time is it?â I pulled myself up to a sitting position, my eyes crusted over.
âJust about nine. Iâve had several customers already, all curious about where you are and how you are doing.â
âSorry, Iâll get dressed and walk down,â I said, remembering my Jeep was still at Lilleâs.
âNo hurry. I just wanted to make sure that the weekly supply order got placed as you are looking pretty low in the stockroom. And your book supplier called. Sheâll be in about one. Do you have a list of what you want? Or can I make my own?â
âThereâs a customer wish list on my desk in the back, but we need more stock. I usually let Marcia present her sales pitch and then we go from there. But if you have some ideas?â
âActually I do. Iâll make up a list. Talking with the customers this morning, I got some great suggestions. I donât know why you didnât ask them in the first place. Iâve sold ten books this morning alone.â
Great, now she was making me look bad. Iâd be lucky if any of the townies liked me after her visit. âIâll be right down.â
âTake your time, dear. I havenât had this much fun in years.â The line went dead.
I found a clean pair of jeans in the tote bag Iâd tossed in the corner yesterday and pulled them on. I grabbed a T-shirt and headed to the bathroom to brush my teeth and throw on a little makeup.
Five minutes later, I was on the road, power-walking to my shop. Thoughts of sipping on a double espresso and eating one of Lilleâs cinnamon rolls kept my steps quick. Maybe Iâd splurge on a mocha with whipped cream. I wasnât going to fit into any of my jeans by the time this month ended.
Iâd made sure to lock both the front and back doors before I left the house. I checked all the windows to make sure that they were closed and locked, as well. If the door was open when I got back, it wouldnât be because I forgot to shut it. Then I could call Detective King without feeling like a fool.
I walked in the shop, surprised to see most of the tables and booths filled. The conversation stopped as soon as I walked through the doors. All glances turned to me. Then the murmurs started back up. As I walked to the counter to greet my aunt, several customers stopped me to express their condolences.
âGood morning, Jill. You look rested,â my aunt greeted me when I finally made my way to the coffee counter.
âI canât believe how busy we are.â I grabbed an apron from the back and started to tie it behind me.
âNow, what are you doing?â Aunt Jackie stared me down.
âGetting ready to help?â
âYou called me to come all the way down from San Francisco to help you out, and now you think I canât do it? What, am I too old?â
âI didnât mean to implyââ My words were cut off by Aunt Jackieâs flailing hands.
âThen take that apron off and just show me what you need to get done this week so that you can get back to fixing up that house of yours and handling the funeral arrangements.â Her gray-green eyes bored into me.
âThanks.â I took the apron off and started a list of the daily chores, deliveries, and books I wanted her to order. Forty minutes later, the list for the week was done. Iâd shown her the stockroom, how to work the equipment, and even
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