Page 4 of Her Summer Hope

The jingling of the bell alerted her to their first customer of the day and from then on, it seemed to never stop. They stocked a variety of books, new and old, and the college students loved to come in and browse for hours at a time. The old leather sofas were always spread with one student or another, and the corner chair was almost always occupied by the elderly woman with the newest cozy mystery.

She never bought anything, and it was a testament to Christian’s generosity and kindness that he allowed her to read there every day free of charge. She had an inkling that the old woman couldn’t afford to buy the books that she loved so much, and she imagined that the books were in demand at the library. She knew the wait lists for popular books could be months long.

Madison scanned the stained wood, string lights, and overstuffed chairs. The fireplace in the corner was a fake—too dangerous to have in a bookshop, Christian said—but it lent an air of hominess in the little shop that set it above the other book retailers nearby. She understood why people would rather come here even though the prices were a little higher.

As long as people had the money for books, Christian’s Corner Books would stay in business.

She spent the first couple of hours ringing up customers, recommending books, and staring out the window at the green trees that lined the street. They were at the very end of their summer life and would soon begin to turn the variety of colors that she once loved.

Oranges, reds, and yellows would flutter outside the large display windows in the gusty winds of fall. Pumpkins and bales of straw would appear and the city would light the Christmas lights every night until late February. Eventually, pumpkins would turn into scarecrows and turkeys, then snowmen, reindeer, and giant fake presents.

Rob had died last December, early in the month and so not on Christmas day, but still…it tainted the whole season. Christmas was going to be hard. If it weren’t for the children, she would skip it completely.

That reminded her about the presents. She needed to buy Christmas presents, and she needed to start soon so that she’d have time to get enough for everyone. Then, she’d need to worry about birthdays again. The weight of it all was heavy enough to drag her right down to the shop floor, if she let it.

The world didn’t revolve around her tragedies. The city would continue to decorate and people would continue to shop. Through it all, the sadness she felt in her heart would linger on— the sadness of Rob’s death, but also the anguish of what she thought of as The Other Thing.

She blinked away a tear before it fell and turned back to her work. She didn’t get paid to cry and stare out of the windows.

I’m sinking.

Chapter Two

Kyle

“Well?”

The big man appeared out of nowhere through the thick trees on the slope of the mountain. Kyle didn’t startle. He’d known he was there already, and the big man had known that he’d known.

Vigilance was something that you didn’t easily lose, even when you got out—not if you were smart.

“Well, what?” Kyle asked placidly.

The luxury chalet in front of them was finally finished and he was having a hard time believing it. They’d worked so long on this project, first drafting the idea, then pitching it to the right people, gathering sponsors, and finally getting the funding.

Then, the real work began…building it.

After all the preliminary desk and public relations work, getting his hands dirty was a real relief. He wasn’t made for office life. None of them were.

Kyle’s father had a construction background and he knew the trade well enough, and he had blueprints for everything else. The others had laughed at the idea of building a chalet from the ground up, but once he showed them the cost savings, they’d agreed.

Reluctantly.

Kyle felt sometimes that the only reason it got done at all was because of his never-ending supply of motivation, his legendary stamina, and a hell of a lot of coffee. The guys all took turns grumbling at Kyle, one another, and the building itself, but it got done and ahead of schedule to boot.

Today, they stared at a completely built, furnished, and inspected cabin. All they needed were the occupants.

“When are the first ones coming in?”

“Don’t know,” Kyle said, scratching his beard and the man scoffed.

“I don’t know why we let you handle the correspondence part of all this. We should let Evans do it.”

Kyle grinned. “Because this was my idea remember, John? You all wanted me to suffer and I have. Look at these scarred-up hands.” He smirked and held up his hands, displaying the multitude of scars from his years in the service.

“You’ve had those scars for years, Rev. You think I don’t recognize that one in particular? My boots still have the bloodstains,” he said, sticking his foot out.

They didn’t, of course. Those boots were worn out a long time ago, but he wouldn’t be at all surprised if John had kept them as a memento. John Conner was a packrat of epic proportions. After moving with Kyle to Endurance, North Carolina, he’d had to rent a storage facility to store everything.

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