That was a nice cold hit of reality.
****
Caleb was going throughthe latest bookings that had come through in the last twenty-four hours.They had gotten quite a few calls.Many of them were consults, as they were looking to have something custom-drawn.
He loved getting the visions of what customers wanted and bringing them to life.Pete had put their initials by each client.They didn’t poach from each other, and divided all the work equally between them.
Pete was currently in one of the rooms, working on a piece of ink from an out-of-towner.The customer just wanted his ink brought back to life.Over time, some ink faded, and he didn’t have a problem making it more vibrant.
He had just put the phone down and made another booking when Emily walked into the shop.She was a little red-faced, and that was not something he wanted to deal with.Emily’s wrath was legendary, although he had rarely seen it directed at her husband.
“Pete’s in with someone.”
“It’s not him I want to see, it’s you.”
Okay, this was not good.“Me?”
“Yeah, you.I just came from my date with Mae, and do you know who we bumped into?”
He frowned.“Is this supposed to be a trick question?”
“Natalie.Cheerleader, bitch of a woman, Natalie.”
Caleb closed the book and looked at Emily.“And?Natalie was a girl from high school.”
“Yeah, well, she just told Mae that you’re using her for a pity fuck and as soon as you’re done with her, she is going to be exactly like everyone else in this town,” Emily said.“You should have seen her, Caleb.I mean, Mae doesn’t listen to that kind of stuff, and we all know your reputation.”
“Natalie is a bitch.She needs to ignore her.”
“Fine.You don’t want to take my warning seriously, that’s on you.I know my girl, and that was like a bucket of freezing cold water thrown on her today.And trust me, that’s not good for you.”
He groaned.Glancing back toward Pete, he then looked to Emily.“You good to watch the shop?”
“Yeah, of course.”Emily rolled up her sleeves and stepped behind the counter.“Does this mean I get to ink someone?”
Caleb was at the door and then stopped and turned to look at Emily.
She held her hands up in the air.“I’m just kidding ...or am I?”
“Emily!”
“I won’t touch anyone, I promise.”She rolled her eyes.
He didn’t want to leave Emily to watch the shop, but he also didn’t want to let Mae think the worst.This was the wrong idea, but he forced himself to leave the shop and make his way across town, straight to Mae’s bookstore.The OPEN sign was already out, and he saw the little billboard outside, advertising the latest bestsellers, along with coffee and a sweet treat.
He stepped inside, and the scent of coffee, books, and cinnamon assailed every one of his senses.It all smelled so good.But he wasn’t interested in anything on offer.
The woman behind the counter had just put down the phone.Her hair was pinned back, and she wore an autumnal dress complete with pumpkins all over.She wore a belt around the middle that cinched at the waist.
“Caleb?”she asked.
“Natalie is nothing,” he said.
She looked past his shoulder.“Emily told you.”
“You’re not a pity fuck.”
She cringed and he quickly checked her shop.“I mean it.”He stepped up to the counter, but he knew that wasn’t close enough, so he lifted himself right over the counter.
