Page 29 of Dying to Read

By the time she got out to the living room, she had a plan for the day in place in her head. The festival didn’t start until noon, so she’d have plenty of time to set up, with Shirley’s help. Then Katie was coming at three and manning the booth until the festival ended that night. Rarity would take a break midday, then come back to give Katie a dinner break and finish up the evening shift with her.

Killer was cuddled on Archer’s lap as he scanned his phone, a cup of coffee in front of him. They looked comfortable.

As Rarity came into the room, Archer looked up. “Are you takingKiller today?”

“I think so. I hate to leave him alone for so long, and it’s not supposed to be crazy hot. I packed his bag last night, just in case.” Rarity poured herself a coffee. “Thanks formaking this.”

“No problem. I needed it too. I’ve got my booth’s stuff already on the bus. Jack is meeting us at the park, and he’ll help me set up my booth. Then I need to take off for a few hours midday.” He set his phone down on the table. “What’s your schedule today? Are you planning on staying in the booth until you close?”

“No, I’m not.” Rarity sat at the table. “I’ve got a two-hour break from four to six so I guess Killer and I will come home and relax during that time. I might leave him home for my last shift. It depends on how tired he looks.”

There was an uncomfortable pause in the conversation. Before, Archer would have told her he’d bring over food and they’d eat together. Or he’d suggest putting something in the slow cooker for them to eat later. But today, he picked his phone up again and started scrolling.

“So are your folks excited about getting the books back?” Rarity was eager to change the subject away from what they weren’t doing together.

He didn’t look up. “Mom’s happy for Dana and me. Since the divorce, she’s separated herself away from Ender business. And Dad, well, we haven’t told him yet. I want it to be a surprise when we can givehim the books.”

Something in his tone said there was more he wasn’t saying, but Rarity left it alone. If they were broken up, as Sedona’s gossip train had claimed, it wasn’t her business anymore.

“I bought a supposedly rare copy ofThe Hobbitthat I saw at the bookstore in Flagstaff.” Rarity refilled her coffee cup. “I guess as a bookstore owner, I should be investing in rare and antique books. At least for display at the shop. It’s kind of a way to remind people that books are valuable, not just for the stories they tell.”

This time Archer’s gaze did pop up from his endless scrolling. “Just be careful if you’re buying from Arthur. He has a slippery reputation.”

“What do you mean?” Rarity felt chilled and curled her hands around her coffee cup, hoping that would warm her hands as well as the rest of her body. He’d seemed a little odd when she’d visited the bookstore, but not dangerous. “I’m having it appraised by a professor over at the university.”

“Drew says he’s been linked in the past to selling books from homes in Flagstaff that have been hit by robberies. Not connected, he always seems to have an alibi, but Drew thinks he’s acting like a fence, selling stolen items.” Archer leaned forward. “Is that why you were at the bookstore? Were you looking for a specific book?”

“I was trying to see what a copy of theAlicebook might be worth. I don’t know a lot about rare books and I wanted to do some research.” Rarity paused and considered the new information. “Did you know that he used to have a bookstore here, in Sedona?”

Archer nodded. “Grandma worked for him and his wife buying up valuable books at estate sales and auctions. According to Drew, he was questioned when Grandma was killed. He had an alibi and swore he’d never seen the books. Be careful, okay?”

“I will,” Rarity said. She started to say more, but Archer stood and took his cup to the sink.

“We need to get going. The festival starts at noon. And you know there’s always a rush before it starts.” Archer grabbed Killer’s bag. “Is everything in this?”

“Add a couple of water bottles from the fridge, but everything else is there.” Rarity stood and dumped the rest of her coffee out, turning off the machine. Then she went to collect her tote. “And grab the tub with the bottled water in it that’s sitting on the porch. Shirley’s bringing the ice. So if you or Jack need water during the day,come on over.”

As she gathered the rest of what she needed, she thought about Archer’s warning. If he was worried about Arthur Wellings, why had he been there the same day she was? And what had he been looking for? Reading material for the woman in the car with him? Maybe he didn’t want her coming into Rarity’s bookstore, so he drove her to Flagstaff.

This wasn’t something she was going to fix in the short drive from the house to the bookstore to the park. But at least they weretalking about some things. She’d missed Archer as a friend as much as she did as a boyfriend.

When they got to the park, Archer parked the bus as close to her tent as possible. He texted someone on his phone. Then he went to the back and opened the rear exit door. Rarity went out the front with Killer, his bag, and her tote. She tied him up under the table that the festival organizers had provided, then went back to the bus to start unloading.

Archer handed her three folding chairs and grabbed two tables. “You go set up and I’ll bring in the books as soon as all the tables are in. Jack’s coming to help unpack your stuff; then I’ll drive the bus over to the other parking lot to unpack my booth’s boxes. If I forget to unload any of your stuff, I’ll bring it over as soon as we get set up.”

“Thanks, but I can help unload too,” Rarity said as she reached over to grab the metal tub and thewater bottles.

“I’ll get that.” Jack came up behind her and took the tub out of her hands. “Archer wants you back at the tent so you can tell us where to put everything.”

“Your boss can be a little pushy at times,” Rarity said as she went back to get the folding chairs she’d left at the back of the bus.

“You should have to work with him.” Jack grinned. “And he’s been a bear for the last month. Always got somethingon his mind.”

When she got to the tent, she saw that Archer had already set up the two tables. He moved out of the way as she came into the tent. He nodded toward Killer, who was pulling on the table where she’d strapped his leash. “He’s tryingto get free.”

Rarity took the chairs over to the table she would use to set up a cash register station. She took the time to set Killer up under the table, along with food, water, a chew toy, and most importantly, his travel bed. He sniffed it several times, then curled up for his first nap of the day. With Killer finally settled, she worked on the setup of the inside of the booth, including adding a skirt around the table to give Killer a mini-tent. The privacy gave him the security that she knew he needed to take a nap. It was allabout the dog.

Shirley arrived with four coffees and a box of pastries just as Archer brought in the last box. She handed Jack her keys. “Go grabthe two bags of ice and lock my car, please? And hurry so your coffee doesn’t get cold.”

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