Once Upon a Date - Susan Hatler Page 0,37

sniffling and wiping his cheeks. “There’s so much missing from my life, and I don’t know how to fix it. I’m not strong like you . . .”

“You can become strong, one good decision at a time.”

“What does that even mean?” he asked, looking up at me. “You’re creative and you have everything going for you. You’re even dating. I’m on my own and I want to change things. I need to change things, but I don’t know how. You won’t leave me, too, will you?”

My eyes watered. “I’ll never leave you, Phillip. I’ll always be here.”

He collapsed in my arms, his forehead on my shoulder as he sobbed. “Everyone leaves.”

“That’s not true. I’m here. Mom’s here.”

“She cut me off.”

“Only financially. You’re a grown man, perfectly capable of getting a job and earning a living. She can’t support you in that way forever.”

He lifted his head. “Will you help me?”

“Of course I’ll help you, bro,” I said, looking him in the eyes. It was the first time Phillip had ever shown that vulnerable side of himself to me. Although it hurt to see him sad, it was also a big breakthrough. I kept my arm around his shoulders and pulled him closer. “But you have got to stick to the plan, okay?”

“I’ll try.” He wiped his nose on his sleeve—so gross —and nodded. His expression reminded me of when he was twelve years old and my heart melted.

“No, it’s like Mr. Miyagi said in The Karate Kid. You either do, or you don’t, or you’ll get squashed like a blueberry.”

He rolled his eyes. “Like a grape.”

“Whatever,” I said, the corners of my mouth twitching. “It was your favorite movie, not mine. So, what do you say? We’ll make a plan and you’ll stick to it. Yes?”

He crossed his heart with his index finger. “I will, I promise. So what is the plan?”

I thought for a moment. “First, we look for a job for you. Do you have a tablet around here where we can get online?”

He nodded, and pulled up a search engine. I took the tablet from him and opened up a local employment page, scanning the ads.

“Okay, phase one. We go through the jobs listings, find one you’re qualified for, and apply. You don’t have to love it, but you have to do it until you find something else. Agreed?”

He smiled at me for the first time. “Agreed.”

“See? You’ve made your first good decision. You’re on your way.”

“Michelle?”

“Yes, Phillip?”

“I love you.”

My heart warmed. “I love you, too.”

****

After I left my brother, I decided to walk downtown. Talking to Phillip about the day I’d seen him in the boutique had brought back bittersweet memories of the hours Brooks and I had spent in the bookstore. The memories were bitter because Brooks was no longer in my life, and sweet because it had been one of the most perfect dates of my life.

I wanted to talk to him, but I wasn’t sure what to say. And I was drained from the showdown with Phillip, even though that had turned out to be a positive experience for once. So, I sought solace the best way I knew how in books.

As I walked into Hilda’s Hideaway Bookstore, the owner smiled in greeting as the bell tinkled above the door. She checked behind me as if expecting to see someone else there.

“Hello, again!” she said cheerily.

“Good afternoon, Hilda.” I smiled, my heart heavy as I made my way to the back of the shop where Brooks and I had sat and read together. I ran my finger absentmindedly along the spines of the books, but of course, Little Women wasn’t there, because Brooks had bought it for me. I pulled out Little Men, the sequel to my favorite book.

The heater was off, but I sat down in the same chair as before, and although I tried to read, my mind just wouldn’t stay on the words. I kept going back to that day in Brooks’ office.

“A deal’s a deal. You know I’ve always been a man of my word, Michelle. I said I’d publish it the way it is if you won, and you did. Congratulations.”

I’d known as he said those words that things were going to go downhill fast. The whole idea of the challenge had been to open his mind about the book, not for him to grudgingly agree to publish it without any changes because I’d won some stupid bet.

“I still think it’s far-fetched, but in a cute way, and