Page 82 of Seeing You

“Would you prefer brownies with frosting? I can do pink and blue frosting too.”

“No, no…cupcakes are fine! I’m just thankful you want to bake anything! I know this week has been hard and…ow!” She glared at Ashlynn. “What was that for?”

“Dude, this was to distract Billie from being sad and you just went and brought up how sad she’s been! We discussed this! No one was supposed to bring up…you know…the thing!”

Good grief.

“No, I didn’t,” Chloe hissed. “You just did! You and your big mouth!”

“Okay, we all need to calm down,” Jade said diplomatically. “No one said or did anything wrong. Let’s just move on to a new topic.” Smiling, she looked at Billie. “What are your thoughts on adding to-go displays at the store?”

“To-go…?”

“Rather than just having everything in the case, we also have a display where customers can grab them and bring them up to the counter. Not with everything, but maybe a three-pack of cookies? Or have a single slice of cake or a single muffin? I’m thinking of ways to make the line move faster sometimes. Plus, customers might feel the urge to buy them that way when they can grab them themselves. What do you think?”

“It can’t hurt…” She thought about it for a moment. “We’d have to find the kind of bags or boxes so they can see what they’re buying…get the right labels…find an eye-catching way to display them…”

She missed the knowing smile between Jade and everyone else because her mind was already spinning with ideas on the kind of display they should get and where it could go and…

“Has anyone started a book club that meets in the shop?” Avery asked. “I think that could be the coolest thing to have a monthly thing just for the adults. I know you have story time for the kids, but how cool would it be to have authors come in and read? Ooh…ooh…you could make it themed for whatever the book is about! Fun cookies or snacks and drinks that are part of the story!”

“We do have a book club,” Jade told her, “but we’ve never invited any authors. I’m not even sure how to go about doing it.”

“Leave it to me,” Avery assured her. “I follow a lot of authors on social media, and I think we could make something work. I’m on it!”

After that, the rest of the evening was spent talking about food, baby showers, books, authors, and plans for all the upcoming local festivals. By the time everyone left, Billie was feeling more and more like her old self. Healing a broken heart was going to take time, but…she had the greatest support network anyone could ever ask for.

And for right now, it was enough.

“I set up a zoom call with the Marshalls for today at three, you have a meeting with Jones and Associates tomorrow morning at nine—also viaZoom—and then lunch with the board at noon,” Stella said before going over the rest of his schedule for the week. Marcus was only partly paying attention because he knew his schedule by heart.

It was the only thing he had to focus on for over a week.

“The reports you asked for will be ready later on today,” she went on. “I’ll email them to you. Is there anything else you need?”

Yes, a life…

“No. Thank you, Stella,” he murmured, as he stared out his window. In the background, he heard his door close, and he felt…nothing. Just like he had since he walked out of Billie’s house. He was numb and going through the motions.

He had no idea how long he had been sitting there when his phone dinged with an incoming text. Sighing wearily, he turned and saw his brother’s name.

Max: Hey! Any chance you’re going to be at Dad’s this weekend?

Max: I finally have some free time and thought it would be great for the three of us to go out to dinner.

Max: Dad said he’s feeling great, so it would be a nice reward for him.

Max: BTW, he sent pictures of the exterior of the house. It looks amazing!

He’d gotten those pictures too and had been pleasantly surprised. As for seeing it in person, that wasn’t going to happen anytime soon. He was sure there would be an angry mob looking to tell him off. Word of him leaving had probably spread, and he wasn’t looking forward to dealing with all the fallout.

So, he ignored the texts and focused on preparing himself for hisZoomcall with the Marshalls. They were a wealthy older couple who were in their first year of retirement and they enjoyed going over every investment and seeing how their stocks were doing each month. It was a standard appointment, and he knew he could almost recite their numbers without even looking at the report, but it was a good way to pass the time.

At three, he put a smile on his face and greeted the Marshalls when they showed up on his computer screen. “Warren, Dawn, it’s a pleasure to see you both,” he began. “I have exciting news for you regarding your earnings this month…”

For the better part of twenty minutes, Marcus spoke almost non-stop. When he finished his presentation, he relaxed a bit and waited for their questions.

“Are you doing okay, Marcus?” Dawn asked. “You don’t seem like yourself.”

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