You don’t need to worry about next year yet.”
He took a too-long, too-fast gulp of coffee, wincing at the heat of it. “If I don’t, no one else will.” He blew across the surface of his mug. “It’s up to me. It’s always up to me.”
I didn’t like the tone of his voice, how hopeless it sounded. “But it’s important, right?” I sat down next to him, my hand on his arm. “I mean, it’s your brother’s legacy. It’s what you—”
“It’s what I do.” This was the least enthusiastic I’d ever heard him, and I had a feeling he didn’t mean to show me this side of himself. A side that was more stuck with keeping things going than doing it because he wanted to. Had he let anyone else see it? Or did everyone think, like Mitch and like Chris, that he was perfectly content in this? Chris treated Faire as a hobby, while it took over Simon’s life. Were they the only two who kept the whole thing running? Simon was terribly overworked if so.
There had to be a way to help him. But was it my place? A day before, I would have offered to help come up with a solution. But a day before, I thought I was making a home here, and I was still rattled from my conversation with Chris earlier, and knowing Simon had had a hand in hiring my replacement. How many more things was I wrong about?
So instead I gave his arm a reassuring squeeze, and he shook his head as though he were waking up from his thoughts.
“Sorry, that’s . . . well, it’s not important now, is it?”
“If it’s important to you, then . . .”
He waved a dismissive hand. “No, Chris is right. It can wait. I have better things to pay attention to for the next couple weeks.” He brought my hand to his mouth for a kiss, and a smile lit up his eyes. This was a part of his pirate personality that had crossed over into his real life, and I couldn’t complain. Although I’d never been with a guy who had been into hand kissing, with Simon it felt natural. But his words landed with a thud in the pit of my stomach. Would I really get only two more weeks with him? Part of me wanted to ask, get it all out in the open. What if that conversation went badly, though, and I ended up with no more weeks at all? Two was better than none. Right?
Simon didn’t notice my inner turmoil. “The shop closes at six, right?”
I nodded. “I’m here for a few more hours. I can meet you later—”
“I can wait.” He indicated the laptop bag on the table. “I’ve got some work I can get done.”
“If you’re sure . . .” I pushed back to my feet. “Let me know if you need more coffee, okay?”
As the afternoon went on, I split my time between the coffee counter and the front of the store, helping Chris whenever she needed it. She seemed to need it more than she usually did, teaching me about running the shop. It was interesting, since retail was new to me, but I didn’t get why she wanted me to learn all this now when my time there was coming to an end. When she left around five I went around to the back to close down the coffee counter. I may have stopped at a certain table to run a hand through my favorite pirate’s hair.
“Still here, huh?”
Simon looked up from his laptop and smiled at me. “Where would I go? I’m waiting for you.”
“Not too bored?”
“Not at all. I’ve been busy . . .” He pointed at the screen, and I leaned over to take a look.
“What’s this, online gaming? I didn’t take you for a . . .” I squinted at the spreadsheet he had up. “That’s a terrible game.”
He laughed, ending with a cluck of his tongue. “It is. Planning ahead for the school year. I’ve been meaning to catch up on some paperwork. I may as well do it here.” He reached for me, catching my hand in his and kissing my knuckles again. “I’m way behind this summer.” He cocked an eyebrow in my direction, that look that made me want to start unbuttoning. “I’ve had other things on my mind these past few weeks, for some reason.”
“Hmm. Can’t imagine what.” I tried to sound innocent, but mostly failed.