first time in five years, I wonder if it’s fucking time to put myself out there again.
Suggestion 2
SAY NO, EVEN IF YOU WANT TO SAY YES
ANNA
“You know if Gaston comes in and sees what you’re doing, he will lose his mind, right?” I ask Chrissie—my boss, the owner of the Sweet Spot, and a woman I now consider a friend.
“What Gus doesn’t know won’t hurt him.” She grins, and I look at her stomach, which has grown considerably over the last few months, and the large bag of flour she’s dumping into one of the plastic storage containers.
I walk to her and take the bag, ignoring her grumbling as I take over. “I’m pretty sure he’s installed cameras in here just to make sure you’re not overdoing it.” It’s a joke, but in all honesty, I wouldn’t put it past him to have done something like that. He’s very protective of his wife, and his protective nature only seems to have grown since she got pregnant.
“I would kill him,” she says, looking around like she’s searching for a hidden camera. I smile, then glance at her when she asks, “How was your day off yesterday?”
“Good—just a normal day, except I went to go play bingo with Edie, and on the way, she got pulled over, then accidentally hit the cop who pulled her over.”
“What?” Her eyes widen.
I set the bag of flour down and lean against the counter. “It was a mess. She checked her side mirror but not the blind spot, so she didn’t see that he had pulled out until she’d sideswiped him, and by then it was too late. Now she has to go in front of a judge to see if she should still be allowed to drive.”
“I’ve heard rumors she’s a menace on the road.”
“I’m not sure those are rumors. Still, I hope things work out. It’s going to be difficult for her if her license is taken away.”
“I bet.” She shakes her head. “She’s always been independent, so I’m sure even the idea of her losing her license is not something she wants to consider.”
“Yeah,” I agree. “But I told her that if it does happen, I’ll drive her around, and Pearl and Dixie both said the same, so it’s not like she’ll be stuck at home all the time.” I pick up the bag of flour and carry it to the storage bins before dropping it inside one. “Anyway,” I say, walking back toward her, “I had a chance to look over the applications you left on the desk in the office, and there were a few really good candidates. I was thinking maybe we should each pick our favorite from the bunch and bring them in for a second interview.”
“That’s a great idea. Gus wants me to have at least two people hired and trained as soon as possible. That way you’ll have the help you need when I do go into labor and after the baby is born.”
I glance down at her stomach as she starts to rub it and know we don’t have long. She’s already at seven months, and if she’s anything like a few of my girlfriends in Chicago who’ve had kids, she’s not going to feel like working the last few weeks of pregnancy. “I think even if we find one really good person to hire full time, I’ll be okay while you’re out for a few months.”
“I know you’ll be okay, but I also want you to be able to have two days off a week to play bingo or . . . I don’t know, go on a date or two.” She shrugs while shooting me a look I’ve found her giving me more and more often. A look that states she wants me to have a life outside of her shop and to meet a man. Something that is actually funny because she’s told me herself that she wasn’t looking for a man when she met her now husband; things between them just kind of happened.
That said, I do need a life, but I do not need to date. I spent five years with Lance and was in the middle of planning our wedding when I realized I wasn’t just going to be hurting myself by marrying him; I would eventually end up hurting him, too, and he didn’t deserve that.
Regardless of the fact that I wasn’t in love with him, I cared about him deeply. Our relationship was comfortable, and our plans for