He laughed. “Don’t look so shocked. Though I admit, it was a blow. But we all have those moments, don’t we? And I realize now, it wouldn’t have been a good fit. Claudia was savvy enough to know that. She’s always had a commercial eye. And it’s all about commercial fiction these days, isn’t it?”
“Well, I can only speak for myself,” Shelby said. “I grew up reading Emily Giffin, Adriana Trigiani, and Jennifer Weiner. I wrote my senior thesis on friendship and class in the books of Anne Rivers Siddons.”
“And one day someone will be writing about your books,” he said.
She shook her head. “Well, I don’t know about that. But...thank you.”
His eyes focused on her.
“You know, I’ve been so busy teaching that aside from that one boat ride, I haven’t taken enough time to enjoy the incredible natural beauty here. It feels a bit criminal. I’ve heard the sunsets on Herring Cove are quite spectacular. Would you like to join me one evening this week?”
She didn’t see that coming. She was flattered. She wanted to say yes, but she had so much writing to do. She wasn’t there meet a man. Still, it was summer. And how could she write a fun novel if she wasn’t having any herself?
“I’d like that,” she said.
Twenty-Eight
Carmen Lombardo didn’t spend a lot of time at Land’s End Books. She wasn’t much of a reader. In fact, the only book she read that year had been Shelby’s. (She’d been surreptitious about it knowing her husband and son wouldn’t understand.)
She wondered if that was part of the bookstore’s appeal for Mia. Teenagers always leaned towards whatever was opposite of their parents. And Carmen was fine with that—to an extent. But she was getting concerned.
Two nights ago, Carmen and Bert had been in bed watching an old episode ofBeat Bobby Flay, debating whether or not they should add beer-battered cod to the menu, when Mia walked into their bedroom. Carmen found it endlessly irritating that her children never bothered knocking on the door before walking in. As if Carmen and Bert couldn’t possibly be doing anything that might be embarrassing to interrupt. (Which was entirely off base, thank you very much.)
“Mia, I’m happy to see you, but please, for the hundredth time...”
“I heard your TV on so I knew you were awake,” she said, sitting on the edge of the bed. Carmen looked at her husband and he shook his head: he gave up.
“How was the book party?” she said, turning back to Mia.
“Amazing. I’m actually good at this. The bookstore thing.”
“I’m sure you are,” Carmen said, smiling at her.
“Yeah. So... I’ve decided this is what I want to do after high school. I’m not going to apply to college.”
Carmen turned to Bert. She didn’t trust herself to speak without having an emotional outburst.
“Mia, don’t upset your mother with this nonsense,” he said. “If you want to work in the bookstore, work in the bookstore. But you’re going to do it with a college education.”
“I just don’t understand why you see this as an either/or decision,” Carmen said. “Colleen went to college. Shelby went to college.” Where was this coming from?
“I’m not Colleen. I’m not Shelby. And I’m not Justin. And I’mnot good at school.” Her face turned red, and her eyes teared. “Why don’t you understand anything I say to you?” She walked out, slamming the door behind her.
“Whatis going on?” Carmen said to Bert. Really, for most of the last school year she’d felt something was off. But she’d hoped that over summer break, Mia would relax a little. Cheer up. But she was barely going out with her friends. In fact, with all the hours Mia was logging at the bookstore, she was spending more time with Shelby than with anyone else. “Maybe I should talk to Shelby,” she said.
“Why would you do that?”
“All the time Mia’s spending at the bookstore. Maybe she knows something we don’t.”
Bert conceded it might be worth a try, but not to get her hopes up.
“I just need your help with one thing,” Carmen said. “Ask Mia out to lunch so I have a window of time alone with Shelby.”
Carmen found Shelby busy with a customer. And when Shelby noticed her walk in, her face registered surprise. As soon as she finished with the sale she walked right over to where Carmen stood browsing the new releases.
“Hi, Carmen,” she said. “Good to see you.”
“Good to seeyou,” Carmen said. Shelby was adorable as usual, dressed in denim shorts and a short-sleeved button-down shirt with a Peter Pan collar. “How’s your summer going so far?”
