Page 20 of Beautiful Harmony

“Seo-Jun is lovely, she really is, but she’s the worst gossip in Harmony Falls. I swear,” Cora said.

“What’s wrong with his face?” Emma asked.

“He has terrible burns all along the left side of his body,” Cora said. “Seo-Jun googled him and found some old articles about how he’d been in a car accident as a teenager. Got trapped in the car, and half his body burned before they got him out.”

“That’s terrible,” Emma said.

“It is,” Nora said.

Emma touched her birthmark. “I hope he knows what he’s in for in Harmony Falls. The staring and the comments and the questions.”

“Heather said they used to live in Martinvale. That town is even smaller than Harmony Falls, so I imagine he’s prepared,” Cora said.

“The shop was busy when they came in, and a bunch of people were rudely staring, but neither he nor his wife seemed to notice,” Nora said. “And I don’t mean in that ‘pretend not to notice’ way, you know? Like, they literally only had eyes for each other and their kids. It was ridiculously adorable.”

Cora glanced at her watch. “Okay, I’ve done enough gossiping on work time. C’mon, Nora, throw your stuff in your locker, and then you can help me reorganize the sale bin yarn. Our local Red Hat Society chapter decided to learn to crochet, and they were in here this morning rummaging through the yarn. It’s a total disaster.”

As Cora and Nora headed to the back, Emma turned to her laptop and finished the yarn order she was working on. As she submitted it, the bell above the door jingled, and another blast of cool air washed over her.

She smiled at the silver-haired woman who stepped into the store. She wore a wool pea coat that fit her trim figure perfectly and thick cozy looking mittens with an intricate fair isle pattern.

It was too late in the season for tourists, but Emma doubted she was from Harmony Falls. The woman made an impression with her good looks and fashion sense. Emma would remember her if she lived in Harmony Falls.

“Welcome to Twisted Stitches,” Emma said, tugging a little self-consciously at her Twisted Stitches t-shirt as the woman approached the counter. “How are you today?”

“I’m well, thank you.” The woman’s gaze flickered over her birthmark but didn’t linger. She smiled at Emma, soft lines appearing around her pretty hazel eyes.

They looked a lot like Lucas’s eyes, Emma mused. They even had the same green flecks that his eyes had.

She realized she was the one staring for a change and smiled apologetically. “Is there something I can help you find today?”

“Oh, I’m just browsing while I wait for my son. I’m having lunch with him today, but he’s running late.”

“All right. If you have any questions, just let me know,” Emma said.

The woman nodded and wandered over to the wall that held the bulkier yarn. She studied the hanks of yarn hanging on the pegs. “You have a beautiful selection of yarn. I’ve been meaning to come to your store for ages now.”

Emma joined her at the wall. “Thank you. Are you from New Cassel?”

The woman would be. How she dressed, her manner of speaking, and her entire vibe practically screamed city living.

“If I say Willington, will you do that dreadful spitting on the floor thing?” the woman asked.

Emma laughed. “I will not. I actively avoid spitting in my store. Actually, I avoid spitting in general.”

The woman laughed, too, her hazel eyes sparkling. “Then, yes, I’m from Willington. I’m Helen.”

“Hi, Helen, I’m Emma. It’s nice to meet you.”

The woman paused. “It is so lovely to meet you finally, Emma.”

Okay, that was a bit of weirdness, but Emma shrugged it off. She didn’t spit in her store, and she also didn’t grill potential customers about shit they said.

“Those are lovely mittens, Helen. Did you make them yourself?”

“I did,” Helen said. “It was a few years ago now, but I used to make fair isle mittens quite often. I sold them at craft fairs and the like. My husband called it my side hustle.”

“We have a few customers with yarn side hustles,” Emma said. “I have some patterns for fair isle mittens here at the store if you’re interested.”

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