Page 70 of Catch Me When I Fall

Our friendship was something I cherished. When he wasn’t fishing or out with Michael, he was with me. We hiked, we walked, we ate. Hell, we’d even binged watched Game of Thrones together. Never, not once since breaking things off with him, had he tried anything with me.

“Good morning, Cardinal.”

I looked up from the bookstore’s laptop to find Margo setting a lavender latte in front of me, steam rising from my favorite mug. Margo’s black hair was tied in a messy bun on top of her head, her face free of make-up.

“Thank you,” I said, smiling. I hadn’t had a chance to get a coffee yet this morning. “You doing okay?”

She nodded. “Midterms will be the death of me.”

I blinked. “I didn’t know you were in college.”

“I take online classes when I can,” she explained. “Which isn’t often, and that’s why it’s taking me so long to get this damn degree.”

“You’ll have it soon enough, darling,” Rossy cut in as he walked up with a smile.

She nodded to our boss. “You’re fucking right.”

The old man winced. “We could go without the cussing.”

She rolled her eyes as I blurted, “Where are you taking classes?”

“Seattle University. I’m getting a business degree.”

Curiosity got the best of me. “Do they have a lot of programs?”

Before she could answer, the door opened, and more customers flowed in, heading directly to the coffee bar. She gave me an apologetic look and then she was gone. Rossy hummed a tune as he came to stand beside me. “How are you doing, my dear?”

Twisting my neck, I turned to look at him. “I’m wonderful.”

“I’m looking forward to your next round of photos,” he said, gesturing to the wall of framed photos I’d taken over the summer. “We’ll need to get some new ones, you know? To put a spotlight on the season.”

“Really?” I asked, my eyes widening. “You’d let me put more up?”

He gave me a warm smile. “Of course I would. People ask me about those all the time and some want to even buy them.”

I looked back over to the small section of bricked wall that wasn’t covered by bookshelves. Twelve of my photos were hanging there, ones of the famous Goonies beach, the pier, the docs, the sunsets, and even the bookstore. I didn’t think customers paid any mind to them. “Wow,” I whispered, feeling proud.

“This weekend, be sure to take some more,” Rossy whispered back, giving me a wink. Then, he was moving through the stacks, disappearing into his office for the day, which he’d been doing more and more lately. The girls and I had a theory that the old book lover was perhaps writing his own.

Four hours later, when my shift was coming to a close, Sarah finally showed herself for the first time that day—her husband in tow. This was nothing new, Michael came by all the time.

She gave me a warm smile. “Hey, babe.”

Before I could respond, Michael cut in, his face serious. “We need to talk.”

I stiffened, a shiver shooting down my back. “W-what’s wrong?”

His brows pinched as his eyes filled with pity. “Carrie, come with me.”

My eyes shot to Sarah, but all she did was give me a short nod, her warm smile morphing into a tight one.

“Okay,” I whispered, coming around the counter and following Michael to the back of the store, Sarah behind me. She unlocked her office door, and we filed in. I stood close to it as Sarah whispered something to her husband. He gave her a nod and jerked his chin to the door.

Then, she was gone, giving me another warm smile on her way out. Once the door closed behind her, leaving Michael and I alone, I looked over my shoulder and then back to him. “Okay, Michael. What the heck is going on?”

He was leaning against her desk with his ankles crossed and arms folded over his chest. “Carrie, take a seat,” he said gently, nodding to the chair in the corner of her tiny office.

I shook my head, my fingernails digging into the palms of my hands. “No. Tell me what’s going on?”

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