Page 38 of The Library of Second Chances
Mildred checked the tag on the bag and held it out to Logan. “One shrimp salad to go. You sure you can’t stay? I can get you set up at the bar.”
“No.” Logan shook his head. “Thank you, though. I’ve got a good book waiting for me back at my cottage.”
“Do you have a number?” she whispered, looking around again to ensure their conversation was private.
“Not yet. But common practice dictates that we take into account your monthly revenue and how much you’d be losing by not being open those months. Plus, there’s usually a little extra incentive for your trouble.” He winked at Mildred. “I’ll make sure of it.”
Mildred clapped a hand over her mouth, trying to contain her excitement. “Oh, Logan. I wasn’t sure if I was really ready to walk away, but then I said it out loud to you that night, and I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it since. I want to see my daughter and my grandbaby. I want to rent an RV and travel out west. There’s so much we could do if we weren’t tied to being here every day. Marty says he loves it, but he just doesn’t know anything other than working. He’s afraid he’ll get bored.”
“Have you tried talking to him about it?”
“Not yet. It didn’t seem worth getting him worked up before I knew if it was even a possibility. I think I’ll wait until you get me a number. Math, Marty understands.” She nodded. “Let’s just hope it’s a number he can’t refuse.”
A couple entered the restaurant and Logan stepped aside to let them approach Mildred, who greeted them before turning back to Logan.
Holding up his bag, he said, “Thanks, Mildred. I’ll keep you posted.”
Exiting the restaurant, Logan walked a few feet to the railing that overlooked the water toward the beach side of the island. He’d seen the engineering reports, and pretty much every plan they had for the marina involved knocking down the restaurant building because it needed more work than it was worth, even if they shored up the pilings to withstand future storms. The town,along with Mildred and Marty, had been repairing things as they became issues, but the whole place was basically held together with patches at this point.
However, if they took down all the walls and just left the foundation and the roof, it might make a pretty decent open-air seafood market.
Fifteen
Lucy
Instead of writing in her gratitude journal, Lucy had spent the last few mornings at the wooden table on her back porch mapping out her new manuscript. Leona had loved her idea for aYou’ve Got Mailretelling and asked her to send a synopsis to share with Lucy’s former editor, Sarah, who’d recently announced her new acquisitions editor role at one of the biggest publishers in the industry.
Lucy hadn’t felt this energized about writing in years, and the ideas were flowing easily. She’d gotten so caught up in her writing, she’d forgotten to stop by the Little Free Library to see if she had a new book from Gatsby’s Ghost. She made a mental note to go by before the first community forum that evening.
She looked out at the ocean, appreciating the clouds that dotted the sky and provided relief from the early morning heat. Closing her eyes, she concentrated on the rhythm of the waves crashing and then fizzling out before the next crash followed at perfect intervals. She was mentally running through her list ofaffirmations when she heard a dog yipping. She opened her eyes to see Pete approaching with Milly, his Pomeranian, from the beach.
Pete waved and Milly ran ahead of him on the boardwalk toward Lucy’s cottage. Pete’s khakis were rolled up a few inches, but still wet from walking in the surf. He and Frank lived a short distance down the beach. Lucy had run into Pete here and there around town while growing up, but her dad was never interested enough in fashion to shop in Pete and Frank’s store. He had been more of a T-shirt and jeans kind of guy. Once Lucy took over the bookstore, however, she’d gotten to know Pete and Frank as fellow downtown business owners, and they often ran into one another on their beach walks. Frank loved to cook and had extended a standing dinner invitation, which she took him up on at least a few times a month.
Milly beat Pete to Lucy and danced around in a circle in front of her barking for attention. Lucy leaned down to pet her.
“Hey there, Milli Vanilli.”
“Terrible excuse for music. You know that’s not where her name came from.” Pete frowned as he approached and sat at the table opposite Lucy.
Milly’s full name was Amelia, and she was named after a nearby island where Pete was born and raised. Frank always called her “Milli Vanilli” after the infamous band that got caught up in a lip-syncing scandal in the early nineties. He enjoyed getting a rise out of Pete and had even changed his ringtone to the group’s “Girl You Know It’s True” on more than one occasion.
“Coffee?” Lucy held up her mug as she stood to go get a refill.
“No, if I have any more my heart might explode. Frank got a new espresso machine, and it has these adorable little cups that look like they came from a children’s tea party set. They’re sotiny that I drank three, and now Milly and I have been walking up and down the beach trying to work off all this energy I have.”
Lucy laughed as she pictured Pete sipping from his tiny espresso cups, no doubt with his pinky out to emulate the royalty he was convinced he was part of in a previous life.
“Be right back.” She slipped through the sliding glass doors into her cottage to refill her mug and grab a treat for Milly. Although she was more of a cat person, she always kept treats on hand for Pam’s and Pete’s dogs when they stopped by the house.
As soon as Milly spotted the treat in Lucy’s hand, she sat without need for a command. Her tail wagged so hard and fast it was shaking her entire body as she tried to sit still for her treat.
“Good girl.” Lucy leaned down so Milly could grab the treat from her hand. The dog ate it and then danced around in circles to show her appreciation.
“You’re spoiled rotten.” Pete rolled his eyes at Milly. As if he wasn’t the one who was constantly spoiling her. Lucy had nearly eaten a dog treat the last time she was at their house for dinner. It was from the dog bakery downtown, but it looked exactly like a human’s cupcake.
“Like father, like daughter.” Lucy gave Pete a knowing smile.
“Guilty as charged.” Pete held up his hand. He liked to treat himself to the finer things in life.
