Читать книгу From Bags to Riches - Sandra D. Bricker - Страница 13

Chapter 5

5

Oh, Katie, you are the most angelic little thing I’ve ever seen,” Jessie cooed, cradling Courtney’s baby in her arms.

Adjusting the little bonnet—ivory cotton with bunches of pale violets scattered over it—around Katie’s perfect pink face, Jessie’s heart pounded out the backbeat to a song she hadn’t heard in a very long time. Like the first chords of music that meant something profound once-upon-a-time, Jessie’s maternal longings materialized in a nostalgic mist of emotion and yearning. She tickled the palm of the baby’s hand with her index finger until Katie instinctively grabbed hold of it and softly clucked her delight.

“Look at you,” Courtney said with a wide grin from the other side of the jewelry display case. “You’re a natural.”

She knew her friend meant well, but the words brought with them an undeniable sting.

“She’s so beautiful, Court.”

Amber stood, moving behind the stool where Jessie had perched to get a closer look at little Katie. “She sure is. She looks like one of those kids on the front of diaper packages and jars of mashed carrots.”

“She does, doesn’t she?” Courtney beamed, her gaze riveted on her daughter. After a moment, she peeled her attention away—it looked almost painful—and she lifted the hooded pink gingham basket from the floor and set it on the counter. Reaching out for Jessie to hand over the baby, she added, “Sorry. We were talking about the producers’ visit tomorrow.”

“Do I have to?” Jessie whimpered, but she gingerly passed the child from her arms to Courtney’s.

Courtney settled Katie into the basket and tucked the flannel blanket around her tightly. “I get distracted every time she hiccups or blows a bubble or does something else equally as brilliant. Where were we?”

“You were going to tell us what we should do to prepare,” Amber reminded her.

“Jason said they’d arrive around eleven,” she said. “Which—in Hollywood-speak—likely means noon or later. Do you have anything going in the afternoon?”

“Nothing on the schedule,” Amber said, looking at Jessie. “Just those three dozen customers we’re hoping will happen by.”

Chuckling, Jessie said, “We’ll spend the morning tidying up, and we’ll be ready for them whenever they show.”

“It will just be Jason and his cameraman,” Courtney explained, her face angled down into the bassinet. “They’ll want a tour of the store—”

“Short tour,” Jessie cracked.

“—and a conversation with the two of you to get acquainted with your sparkling personalities—”

“I hope they wear their shades,” Amber teased, tossing her honey-blonde waves. “Because our white light is blinding.”

Courtney grinned. “Jason will ask you about the nuts and bolts of how things work, who your target customer is, that kind of thing. I’ve got another three-day workshop scheduled at the end of the month. It’s at capacity, and we have a styling field trip to Melrose so I need to also schedule an evening session here for them, too. I imagine Jason will want to shoot the interview segments with you two in the week ahead of it, but he’ll tell you more about that when he gets here.” She paused to adjust the baby as she stirred. “The network wants us to do a photo shoot next week. I’ve just hired a new assistant—Kimberly—and she’ll call you to schedule it.”

“A photo shoot,” Amber squealed.

“And it wouldn’t be a bad idea for you to consider getting an assistant yourself,” she told Jessie.

“What does she need an assistant for?” Amber cut in. “She’s got me.”

“You’re both going to need one if this thing takes off the way they seem to expect. Oh, and I’ve arranged a phone call for you with my manager, Ruth Claudio. She’ll answer any questions you have about the contracts and compensation. I’ve been with her for several years, so she’ll handle all that for you as a courtesy to me . . . or you can get someone of your own if you’d rather. Ruth can give you some referrals.”

Jessie turned to Amber. “What do you think?”

“Courtney trusts her. I think we can, too.”

Jessie nodded, and a smile stretched across Courtney’s face. “Good. I feel good knowing Ruth will be looking out for us all. She’ll call you late this afternoon here at the store.”

Amber squeezed Jessie’s hand. “This is going to take Adornments to another level.”

“Assuming we’re interesting enough to make the show a success,” Courtney joked.

Amber chuckled. “Some of the episodes I saw of Carmina’s show felt like watching paint dry.”

“And yet the ratings were high. It was very popular with the under-thirty crowd.” Courtney lifted the quilted diaper bag from the floor at her feet and slung it over her petite shoulder. “I’m going to get this dumpling home before she wakes up in the hope I can get some work done. I’m revamping the blog to prepare for a tie-in with the show. Give me a call if you have any questions or concerns, okay?”

Jessie nodded. “Thank you, Courtney.”

“Don’t thank me. We’re in this together now. Get ready for everyone to know your names, ladies.”

As she walked Courtney to the front of the store, a swarm of butterflies took flight inside Jessie. The warmth of excitement flapped strangely against an icy sense of dread that seemed to spring out of nowhere. She pushed the glass door open with a jingle from the ribbon of bells hanging on it, and she held it open for mother and baby to pass.

“How are you feeling about all this?” Courtney asked. “I get a sense you’re a little leery.”

“I guess I just don’t know what to expect,” she replied, lifting one shoulder in a shrug. “You know me. I’m a planner. I like to know where I’m headed all the time.”

“Look, if you decide this isn’t for you, it’s not going to change anything between us. You do what’s right for you.”

Relief rose like cold perspiration. “Thank you.”

“Let’s reconnect in the morning,” she suggested. “Just so I know where your head is at.”

“Will do.”

Jessie stood in the doorway until Courtney drove away. When she returned to the counter, Amber had already gotten to work polishing the glass.

“Pretty exciting turn of events,” she said, wrinkling her nose as she glanced at Jessie, her eyes glinting with enthusiasm.

“Unexpected,” Jessie added. With a sigh, she asked, “Do you think you can handle things here for a bit? I need to run an errand.”

“I don’t know,” she replied, straightening and scanning the store. “These crowds are a little tough to take on my own.”

Jessie giggled. “I can be back before six. Then you can take off, and I’ll close.”

“Deal.”

She stopped in her office first to pick up her cell phone from the desktop and grab her purse from the peg behind the door. With a quick wave to Amber, she scurried past the jingling door and headed for her car. She dialed Piper before leaving the parking lot.

“Hi, Jessie. I was just thinking about you.”

“Oh good. I’m hoping you feel like seeing me, too.”

“Where are you?” Piper asked, and movement muffled her next words. “Do you feel like meeting for some coffee and something sweet?”

“Always.”

“I could be at Vanilla Bake Shop in twenty.”

“I’m on my way,” Jessie said with a sigh. “See you soon.”

Vanilla Bake Shop on Wilshire Boulevard offered one of the most exquisite key lime confections Jessie’d ever tasted—shy of Miss Maizie’s key lime pie back in Slidell—and she hadn’t sauntered through their glass doors in far too long. As she made her way in that direction, she remembered a Christmas party she and Jack had attended at the home of one of his clients. The Vanilla Bake Shop had catered an entire table of cupcakes that dazzled partygoers with tiny glistening trees set into stark-white coconut, sugar-glazed snowmen atop mounds of creamy vanilla icing, rhinestone snowflakes glittering over stiff frosted swirls. She and Jack had giggled about the snowy holiday theme on a seventy-eight-degree night when they’d driven there with the convertible top down on his sports car.

One of Jessie’s favorite activities as a child had been the connect-the-dots games where lines attaching one dot after another formed a picture. The simple memory of laughing with Jack on the drive home from the Chadwicks’ party acted like a live-action version of that game as she moved through one choreographed memory to another, leading her through the puzzle of their lives together.

It wasn’t like he’d been a completely reprehensible human being or a pathetic excuse for a husband, after all. It might have been easier for her if that had been the case. They’d shared memorable moments of intimacy and tenderness as well; all of which, combined with so many of his finer qualities—humor, kindness, confidence, strength—had managed to diffuse the sound of alarm bells she’d been so readily able to ignore.

She sighed when she turned into the parking lot and gazed on the familiar damask-stenciled awning and pristine display cases on the other side of the front door of Vanilla Bake Shop. Piper’s familiar Jaguar already sat parked in front, and Jessie hurried out of the Taurus and toward the door.

A sight for sore eyes. That’s what she knew Grampy would have said in such a situation.

Jessie wondered if her best friend really looked unusually radiant, or if her own eagerness to connect with her had created the golden light around her perfect, pretty face. Short spikes of red, gold and copper pixie-like hair framed porcelain skin, pouty lips, and wide green eyes. Piper just happened to be one of those few women who could pull off adorable and sophisticated at the same time.

“It’s so good to see you,” Jessie breathed, stopping to give her a quick hug before dropping into the chair across from her. Noticing the plates and cups already on the table, she perked. “What have we here?”

“A key lime cupcake,” she replied with a grin. “I know it’s your favorite. And a lemon bar for me because that’s my fave. Then I thought we could split the cookies. They’re white chocolate cranberry oatmeal and chocolate chip toffee.”

“You so get me.”

“So let’s dig in,” she said, sliding the lemon bar toward her. “And you tell me what’s got you scrambling for a friend today.”

Jessie giggled. Piper really did get her.

She lifted the beautiful cupcake and slowly twirled it, inspecting the confection from all sides before taking her first bite.

“Oh. Come. On,” she exclaimed through a full mouth.

“Why haven’t we been here for so long?”

“Because we’re idiots?”

Piper chuckled and nodded. “Or we’ve had a few other things to think about.”

“And there’s that.”

She sipped from her coffee cup, and upon placing it back on the saucer, she turned it clockwise. “So. What’s going on?”

“I told you about the reality show thing with Courtney.”

“Just that she’s included you and the store. Is there more to tell yet?”

Jessie licked a smear of icing from her finger as she nodded. “So much more.”

“And?”

“Her manager is going to handle the legalities of it for us, and the producer and his cameraman will come to the store tomorrow to meet us. Then we have a photo shoot for the network and one of Courtney’s styling sessions that they’ll want to shoot at the store—”

“Okay. That all sounds very good. So what’s with this?” she asked, circling Jessie’s face with her index finger. “What’s the face all about?”

“What face? This is my face.”

“Yes, it is,” she answered, with only the subtle hint of a smile. “It is your face of concern and trepidation.”

“No, it’s . . .” Oh, why fight it? “Yeah, you’re right. And I don’t know why I feel so strange about it. I mean, isn’t this something I’ve always wanted, something that puts the store on the map, gives me some financial autonomy and a solid platform for my career?”

“You tell me.”

Jessie moved the last of the cupcake aside, saving it as her final taste. Breaking the oatmeal cookie in half, she raised the smaller half and breathed in its aroma before taking a bite.

“Oh, this one’s good,” she said, nodding toward the second piece still on the plate. “Try it.”

“Don’t rush me. I’m basking in my lemon bar.”

“Well, anyway . . . I know I should be thrilled about all of it, right? But there’s something in my stomach that kind of . . . dreads it at the same time. It makes no sense.”

Piper finished her lemon bar and gazed down into her coffee cup for several beats before she looked up at Jessie and arched one perfect eyebrow. “Do you think you’re just feeling frozen to the spot? Kind of yearning for no more change for a while?”

Jessie considered her words. “I don’t know. Maybe.”

“You haven’t given Danny an answer yet, have you?”

Her eyes dropped in . . . Was it shame? “Not yet.”

“What are you waiting for, honey?”

A bolt of defiance shot through her, and Jessie leaned against the back of her chair and crossed her arms. “Maybe I don’t know if I want to be married again, Piper. Is it some sort of law? Does every person on the planet have to be part of a couple? I mean, isn’t it enough to just enjoy each other? Do we have to put our footprints in stone and engrave it with ‘Till Death We Do Part’?”

“There’s no law, no.”

“I’m not saying it’s not right for you and Antonio, or for Steph and Vince. You know. But for me . . . I don’t know. Look at Courtney. She’s not married, and yet she has a thriving business and a new baby daughter . . .” Her words trailed off slowly.

“So you’re saying Danny is right for you. You’re happy with him, you love him, you enjoy spending time with him. You’re just not sure marriage is the natural next step.”

“Exactly.”

“And how does Danny feel about that?”

“Well,” Jessie said with a chuckle as she popped the last of the cookie into her mouth, “he obviously thinks it’s the next step, as evidenced by the exquisite family ring he offered me.” She crinkled her nose and shot Piper a grin. “I would love to get that ring on my finger though. It’s so pretty.”

Piper tapped her hand with one fingernail. “Sorry, honey. You have to do the crime.”

“What did you say the other cookie was? Chocolate chip?”

“Chocolate chip toffee,” Piper said as she broke the cookie in two. “I’ve never had this one, but it looked delish.” She bit into her portion before lifting her eyes again and landing in Jessie’s pool of confusion.

“So what do I do?”

“About which item on the agenda?”

Jessie laughed. “Let’s take them on, one at a time.”

“I can do that.” Picking up an invisible pile of paper, she nudged non-existent glasses up the bridge of her nose. “Item 1-A, in regard to the stunning engagement ring and subsequent proposal. Yes. You shall accept.” She looked up with a grin. “That was easy. Now on to the next item on the agenda, the personal and professional repercussions of doing reality television.” Miming the act of tapping the papers on the table, she added, “This one is a little less clear. Why don’t we visit the pros and cons?”

“Do we have to?” Jessie replied. “I’m enjoying my cookie.”

“Isn’t this why you came?”

She poked out her tongue playfully.

“On the professional side of things, doing the show would clearly bring more attention to Adornments.”

Jessie wrote a checkmark in the air with her finger. “Pro.”

“But what about Danny?” Piper interjected.

“What about him?”

“Being such a private guy, it might not be an ideal situation in his eyes.”

“Yeah,” she said thoughtfully. “He did seem a little funny about it earlier.”

A satisfied grin spread so quickly that it nearly sliced Piper’s face in half. “You saw Danny earlier?”

“We had a light lunch at Nosh, and I was catching him up on turning over a stake in the store to Amber and then on the show with Courtney. He kind of glossed over and started to look a little . . . constipated.”

Piper cackled with laughter. “Jessie.”

“Well. Kind of like this,” she said, curling up her entire face with a dramatized version of the concerned grimace that had clouded Danny’s face.

With a straight face, Piper stated, “That does look like constipation.”

“This is what I’m saying.”

“Maybe you need to come right out and ask him how he feels about it,” she suggested. “If you’re going to move forward with Danny, this will affect him as well.”

“We’re having dinner at the restaurant tomorrow night. Maybe I’ll talk to him a little more about it then.”

“Good idea. And when you say, ‘the restaurant,’ clearly you mean . . .”

“Yes. We’re meeting at Tuscan Son.”

“I’ll call my honey and get you the best table. How many in your party?”

Jessie giggled. “Four. Around seven-thirty. And . . . thank you.”

Piper lifted one shoulder in a goofy shrug. “Eh. It’s what I do.”

***

Danny lowered the zipper of his wetsuit and peeled it away from his arms and torso. He stood under the outdoor shower and let the clean, cold water cascade over him for about a minute. After shutting off the nozzle, he gave his entire upper body a shake, sending a spray of the water into every direction.

“You learn that move from Frankenstein?” Riggs cracked.

As if on cue, Frank took his place next to Danny and mimicked the action. Danny and Riggs laughed as Danny rubbed the dog’s massive head with his hand. Grabbing a towel from the peg on the wall next to where he’d stowed Carmen, he tossed it over one shoulder and followed Riggs out to the table where he’d set two coffees, the aroma meeting him halfway. He flopped to the bench and leaned back against the table, tenting his head with the towel and kneading the excess moisture out of his hair.

“Glad we caught a few waves today.” Riggs slurped his coffee. “We’re bound to lose the swells soon.”

Danny nodded and let the towel drop over his knee before reaching for the mug behind him.

“So we’re headed down to Puerto Rico in a couple of months,” Riggs told him.

“Who’s we?”

“Me, Allie, Char. The whole family.” Riggs clucked out a laugh. “Feels good calling us a family again.”

Danny’s chest squeezed. “Where in Puerto Rico?”

“Carolina. It’s a two-week mission trip with a week of pre-field training. I figured we should do the week before since it’s Allie’s first experience. Hey, you wanna go with?”

“Wish I could.”

“Why not?”

Danny sighed. “There’s a lot in flux around here these days. I need a little resolution before I pick up and leave again. I’m already headed out next week to spend some time in Slidell with Jessie’s granddad.”

“She can get away?”

“No. Just me.” He felt Riggs’s eyes on him, but he didn’t turn toward the heat of them. “She’s just getting things going again, but I thought I might check in on his care, see if he needs anything.”

“See if he has any insight on how to get his granddaughter to marry you?”

He chuckled. “There’s that. But mostly I just want to make sure treatment’s going as planned.”

Riggs nodded slowly. “I feel ya. Give her time to miss ya too, right?”

Danny actually hadn’t thought of that. But it couldn’t hurt.

“Whatever works, man. I feel ya.”

As the two of them sat there in silence, staring out at the blue Pacific, Danny felt the call of the waves one more time. He grinned and shook his head as the realization crested: No matter how much time he spent out there, it never seemed quite enough.

“Hey, you wanna hit it again before I bounce?” Riggs asked as if Danny had spoken the thought out loud.

“Can’t. I caught a new case, and I need to spend some time in front of the computer.”

“Sounds gruesome.”

“Yeah.”

A few beats later, Riggs jumped to his feet and grabbed his board. “Well, I’m not letting these last swells go to waste.”

Danny watched his friend stalk across the sand, the ankle leash attached to the surfboard bobbing along like an awkward tail. Frank took off after him at a full run, pacing along the surf and barking as Riggs pushed his board out into the water.

Danny picked up his coffee cup. He downed the contents on his way back to the house. He made quick work of a hot shower and threw on black sweats and a gray t-shirt before replenishing his coffee and making his way to the office to get something accomplished. A quick check of his inbox, however, waylaid those plans.

Flight confirmation, LAX to New Orleans.

An e-mail from Steph to comment on Stanton’s ankle monitor report, which evidently included several visits to Pinafore Street as well as Jessie’s store. When was that guy going to learn?

Clearance sale at his favorite spy gear shop in Hollywood—hidden safes in the guise of sugar dispensers, mayonnaise jars, wall outlets. New inventory—a night vision video camera, a new model GPS tracker, a peephole door camera.

He clicked on the link and read more. Installs to a standard peephole cutout . . . 170-degree viewing angle with special fish-eye lens. If he installed it in Jessie’s apartment door before he left for Slidell, he could—

Danny groaned and leaned back in the desk chair until it creaked. Running both hands through his hair, he closed his eyes and questioned what this line of work had done to his thinking. Stanton had an ankle monitor on, for crying out loud. Between Steph and Rafe, he had feds and cops aware of his every move, not to mention the additional feds he’d looped into the act because of his financial crimes. Jessie would be fine while he went down to Louisiana. Still. He wished she was going with him.

Browsing the last page of clearance items, his hand froze and hovered over the keyboard when he reached the Personal Safety section. A product called Sting Bling caught his attention. A small 0.5-ounce rhinestone-studded container of pepper spray dangled from a keychain. A quick flash of Jessie accidentally dousing herself with pepper spray nearly deterred him, but his concern about her safety during his absence broke through and he moved on to safer gadgets. Perhaps the Screecher, a personal alarm siren—also attached to a keychain—that might provide just enough added protection to give her time to get away from Stanton if she needed to. But not enough protection that he could turn the tables and use it against her.

He paused over the mantle clock with a compartment for concealing a small handgun before laughing right out loud at the idea of putting a firearm into Jessie’s hands.

If only she’d agree to stay over at Piper’s while he made the trip. Or better yet, Amber’s. Stanton wouldn’t even know where to look for her there.

Danny interrupted his own rambling thoughts and picked up his phone. After finding the number and pressing it into the keypad, he opened the desk drawer and ran his finger over the unopened ring box he’d stashed inside it.

“Danny?” Piper answered on the first ring.

“Hi, Piper. Do you have a minute to talk?”

“I do. I just finished making arrangements for you all to get the table by the fireplace that Jessie likes. Tomorrow night at 7:30, reservation for four in your name.”

“Thanks.”

“So what’s up?”

“Did Jessie mention I’m headed down to Slidell to see her grandfather?”

“She did. And I think it’s just about the sweetest thing I’ve ever heard. But with Jack wandering around free the way he is, I sure wish she was going with you.”

“You are a girl after my own heart, Mrs. Brunetti. That’s exactly what I wanted to talk to you about. How safe do you think Jessie would be with pepper spray at her disposal?”

Following just one beat of silence, a rolling and unabashed laugh emerged, so contagious Danny couldn’t help himself from joining in.