“Apparently,” Mia continues, “I’m not one of those women whose morning sickness goes away after the first trimester.”
I blink. “Wait.What?”
Mia’s face splits into a grin.
“You’repregnant?“ I leap up off the couch and charge her, slowing only to make sure I don’t maul her in a bear hug that could hurt the baby. “Oh my gosh, Mia. Congratulations!”
When Mia leans out of my hug, she’s got tears in the corners of her eyes. “Thank you.” She swallows a watery laugh. “We’ve been trying for a while, and we’re so excited it finally happened for us.”
I grab her hand and give it a squeeze. “I’m so happy for you and Patrick.” I think back over the signs I missed the past few weeks. “Everything makes so much sense now.”
“Right?” she chuckles. “Not only is my morning sickness not going away but it’s also not limited to the morning. I’ve felt pretty miserable twenty-four seven. The only thing that helps is eating Granny Smith apples, of all things.”
I shake my head in awe of her. “Why are you here? You should rest. I can handle the store.”
Mia squeezes my hand. “I can’t not work for the entirety of my pregnancy,” she argues.
“Well, tell me what to do so I can help you, then.”
Mia presses her lips together. “That’s what I want to talk to you about.”
I nod at her to continue.
“Patrick and I have talked about what we want our family life to look like after the baby comes. I’d really like to stay home with our little one—at least part time.”
“Of course.”
“I can’t do that in good conscious as the sole owner of this place.” She glances around the now quiet book shop before taking a deep breath and looking me dead in the eyes. “I want to take on a business partner, and I want you to be that person.”
My jaw drops open. “Are you serious?”
She nods. “You don’t have to make a decision immediately. We would obviously get lawyers involved to draw up a fair business contract before you buy in. I don’t know your financial situation, and I don’t need to know,” she hurries to add. “But I want to make sure our plans are solid, because I want this store to thrive for years to come.”
My heart is thumping out of control, and my head spins with possibility. My savings from my undercover work will go a long way in helping me to cover the buy-in, and I’m sure I could get a loan. The prospect of putting down roots in Cashmere Cove—of doing something that’s my choice—makes me feel like I could fly. Here I thought she was going to fire me or tell me the shop was closing, and instead, she’s handing me an opportunity to have a stake in a business I love dearly and continue doing a job I enjoy…right when I felt like my prospects were dwindling.
I reach out and hug Mia again.
She squeaks out a laugh. “I’m guessing you’re interested.”
“So interested. You have no idea how much this means to me.” My throat is thick. I haven’t told Mia everything that went down in the last week, but she knows something is up.
She smiles. “I’m thinking we’ll get through the busy season, and then when the calendar turns, we can figure out what this business looks like between the two of us going forward. How does that sound?”
“Amazing. Thank you so much.”
She grins. “Thankyou. I’m going to be able to enjoy this pregnancy a whole lot more, knowing things will be taken care of after the baby arrives.”
“You got it.” I stand and hold out a hand to hoist her up. “Let me take care of shutting down. You head home.”
She stifles a yawn. “Are you sure?”
“Yes, I’m sure. Get outta here.”
“Thank you.” She grabs her bag and coat from behind the counter and leaves through the back entrance.
I take my time getting things in order, stopping to spin in circles every so often. I have big dreams for the store. I’ve been wanting to pitch an idea to Mia for a while now about linking up with some independent authors to see if we could sell signed copies of their books and handle the shipping and logistics of the sales for them. I’ve dragged my feet because I haven’t wanted to overstep, but now? Now I’ll be able to take ownership of this idea and then some.
I can’t wait.
