Page 23 of Playing for Keeps in Starr's Fall
“Hey.” Zach smiled. He’d been spending several hours nearly every night playing RQ with Ben, but he hadn’t seen him in person in a couple of weeks, and he was struck again by how young and vulnerable he seemed—the way he hid behind the dirty blond bangs that slid into his face, how he hunched his shoulders and covered his hands with his sweatshirt. “I hope you’re not on RQ,” he remarked with mock severity, “when you’re meant to be doing your schoolwork.”
“No. English.” Ben made a face. “But I’m almost done,” he added hopefully.
“I can’t play till later,” Zach told him. He didn’t usually play RainQuest every single night, and certainly not for as many hours as he had with Ben, but it seemed like the best way to be the kid’s friend, as Maggie had asked him to be, although she’d tried to pretend she hadn’t. She probably thought he was some kind of sad weirdo, he reflected, playing video games with a fourteen-year-old most nights. Maybe hewasa sad weirdo, but he felt sorry for Ben, and they’d chatted online as they’d played. While Ben hadn’t revealed much about his life, what he had had made Zach suspect the teenager was deeply lonely.
He glanced at Maggie, feeling suddenly dispirited; never mind Ben,hefelt lonely. He’d thought they were becoming friends, but it was clear from her stiff movements and the way she wasn’t speaking that her opinion of him had seriously dipped since he’d last seen her.
Ben must have sensed the tension because he rose from his desk, looking between them both, and said, “I think I’m gonna go for a walk.”
Maggie whirled around. “A walk? But your English?—”
Ben waved her objection aside. “I’m almost done, and you know, I should be doing gym too, right? Physical exercise.” He went to the row of hooks by the stairs and pulled off a parka. “I’ll be back in a little while.”
And then he was gone, disappearing down the stairs while Maggie gaped after him, looking she’d lost her best friend. After a few seconds, she snapped her mouth shut and turned back to the kettle she’d been filling. “Would you like coffee,” she asked with excruciating politeness, “or tea?”
“Coffee would be great,” he replied with the same politeness. “Thank you.”
Maggie spent a few minutes spooning coffee into a French press as Zach rocked back on his heels, wondering how to break a silence that was definitely starting to feel uncomfortable. He could hardly sell Maggie his proposition when she was like this, and yet he was reluctant to ask her what had put her in this mood. What she’d heard about him… but he could already imagine.
“So how are you settling in?” he finally asked. “I like your place up here. Lots of color.”
She glanced around suspiciously, as if looking for confirmation of his assessment, which hadn’t been a criticism, even if, judging by the way she’d bristled, she seemed to have taken it as such. “I like color,” she replied defensively.
“I do too.” Zach had a feeling every topic was going to be a conversation minefield. “Looks like you’ve made some progress with the café,” he remarked. When he’d come downstairs, some leather sofas had been pushed against the walls, and a wooden counter installed along the back, by the kitchen area. It was a start.
“Yes, some,” Maggie agreed. She turned around, her arms folded, as she waited for the kettle to boil. “I’m hoping we’ll be able to open by the beginning of March, but we’ll see. I haven’t done any marketing yet, and frankly, I don’t really know where to begin with all that.”
“Maybe I could help,” Zach suggested. “I’ve done a little marketing for the store. I know what newspapers to put ads in, anyway.”
Maggie’s gaze narrowed. “That’s very kind of you, but?—”
“That’s actually the nature of my proposition,” he cut across her, not wanting to have to listen to her rebuff. “I’m not trying to come across as pushy, but I’d love to help you with the café however I can.”
She cocked her head, looking uncertain, maybe even a little suspicious. “You’ve already got a general store to manage. Ben and I went in there the other day. It’s very nice?—”
“My sister does most of the management,” Zach cut across her for a second time. In the three weeks since he and Jenna had had that clash, his sister had doubled down on her decisions. She’d canceled the order they’d already agreed on for some local artisan products and had stocked even more soup. Chicken noodle, too. He hadn’t even bothered to show her his business plan, and now he wasn’t sure if he ever would. Jenna seemed determined to do things her way, no matter how much sense his business ideas might make.
Zach understood her reasoning, sort of; the store had to carry some staples. But he was starting to suspect that Jenna was just disagreeing with him because she needed to be in control, rather than what made the most business sense. In an age of online shopping and easy delivery—even to Starr’s Fall—it just didn’t make sense not to stock a few higher-quality products for the occasional tourist.
“I’m not sure I understand,” Maggie said slowly. “Are you asking for a job?”
He was saved from replying by the shrill whistle of the kettle. Maggie turned around and busied herself with making the coffee while he tried not to feel stupid. No, he was not asking for ajob. Jeez, did she really think he was that pathetic? That desperate, that he was asking her to employ him at minimum wage or something? He alreadyhadthat kind of job… being more or less employed by his sister, even though on paper they were fifty-fifty equal owners.
“Milk or sugar?” she asked as she poured the coffee and then brought two mugs to the table.
“I take it black, thanks.” He joined her at the table, sitting across from her. “And no, I’m not asking for a job, not as such. I just thought you might appreciate the help, and I’d really like to see this place succeed. Starr’s Fall needs more unique attractions. I checked and the only other boardgame café in all of Connecticut is in New Haven, so this could be a real draw to the area.”
“And you think it won’t succeed without your help?” Maggie asked a bit sharply, her eyes flashing, and Zach drew back, surprised as well as a little exasperated.
“I didn’t say that.”
She tucked a silver strand of hair behind her ear. “All right, but you implied it, though, pretty much.”
Why, he wondered, were they arguing? Was Maggie just looking for a fight? “I’m sorry if it seemed as if I did,” he said after a moment. “Trust me, that was not my intention. I just know how overwhelming it can be to start a small business. Jenna and I took over from my parents, and that was hard enough.” Especially as his parents had had a decidedly haphazard approach to the whole enterprise and had let it limp along for well over a decade. “You’re starting from scratch,” he continued. “If I were in your shoes, I’d be taking all the help I could get, but maybe that’s just me.”
Maggie lowered her gaze, her dark lashes fanning across her pale cheeks, as she took a sip of her coffee. “Sorry,” she murmured. “I know I must sound a little snippy.”
“Yeah, why is that?” Zach asked, keeping his tone conversational. “Is it you… or is it me?”
