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It wasn’t a long walk back. The air was already warming as the sun cleared the tops of the buildings. Kayla was, in fact, leaning against the wall beside the bookstore door.
“Took you guys long enough.” Kayla reached out, and Austin put one of the to-go coffees into her hand. She sipped and let out a satisfied, “Ahh.”
I chuckled and held out my coffee. “Can you hold this while I unlock the door?”
“Of course.” Kayla took my drink. “Are you excited? This is going to be so great. I downloaded one of her books last week when you said she was going to be your first author, and I’ve already recommended the series to a couple of my students at the learning center.”
I glanced over my shoulder before pulling the key out of the lock. “Yeah? Which one?”
“The King’s Sword? It’s the first in a trilogy, I think. I really liked it. I’m planning on buying it and the rest of the series in paperback today. You have them, right?”
I grinned at Kayla and her bubbling enthusiasm. That was definitely her defining characteristic, and I loved it about her. I also didn’t mind that she could tone it down when it got to be too much. “Pretty sure, yes. I ordered some of everything she had. We worked out a deal where she gave me her author price plus a little, but if I charge a little less than you can get them online, I still make a decent profit. Everyone wins.”
“I have a pretty smart sister. I’ve always said it.” Austin reached for the door. “Why don’t we go inside and continue the conversation.”
“Sounds good to me. Did you get the turnovers?” Kayla handed me my coffee before she stepped into the bookstore and headed toward the seating area. She stopped when she saw the new setup. “This is different.”
“Good or bad?” I looked over the area and tried to decide. I didn’t know where else I could set up for an author signing, but if we were going to try something else, we needed to do it now.
“Just different.” Kayla went to the couch and sat. “I’m not sure where else you’d set up.”
I laughed. “That was my exact thought. It’s not like I’m keeping it this way. It was easy enough to push things around.”
Austin frowned as he sat beside Kayla. “Next time, ask for help. You shouldn’t have to do this on your own.”
I nodded and tried to keep my voice casual. “Cody happened by while I was working. He did a lot of the heavy stuff.”
“Good. That’s good then.” Austin opened the bag of pastries and took out one of the turnovers. He handed it to Kayla then reached in the bag again. “I’m glad you’ve been able to help him with the Christmas gala. He was upset when he got that dumped on him. It’s going okay?”
I took the bag from Austin when he held it out and looked inside. My chocolate-filled croissant didn’t look nearly as amazing as their turnovers. But it was what I’d wanted, so I’d deal. “Seems to be.”
Kayla’s eyebrows were almost all the way to her hairline as she looked at me. I sent her a questioning look. Her gaze darted to Austin, and she gave a tiny shake of her head.
Shoot.
The only thing that could mean is that she had questions she didn’t want to ask in front of Austin, but that I wasn’t going to get out of answering.
I bit into my croissant. I wouldn’t lie. Cody and I had agreed on that. But man, it was going to be tempting.
The three of us chatted about nothing important while we finished our pastries and coffee. Then I dragged out the vacuum to get rid of the flaky crumbs that Austin—well, all of us, but mostly Austin—had managed to get on everything. I was coming back from putting it away when the bell over the door jingled.
I hurried to the front. “Good morning. We’re not quite open yet.”
“I know. I’m sorry. I’m early—well, I was supposed to be early, but I’m earlier than that. I’m C. J. Brightley.” The tiny woman held out her hand.
I shook it and smiled. “Of course, you are. If I’d taken even two seconds, I would have realized it. Thanks for doing this. And for, apparently, being excited.”
C. J. laughed. “I haven’t been in here before. This is a great space.”
“Thank you. I’ve got you set up over here.” I gestured to my right. “We can change or tweak whatever you think we need to. I haven’t done this before and I’m really hoping it’ll be good. For all of us.”
C. J. wandered to the signing area I’d created and looked everything over. She peeked under the table and grinned. “I think it’s going to be great. I have a pop-up banner in my trunk. Do you mind if I set that up on one side?”
“Not at all.”
“I can get it for you, if you want.” Austin stood, brushed off his hand on his jeans, then held it out. “I’m Austin Campbell, Megan’s brother.”
“Nice to meet you.” C. J. took his hand. “I’d love some help. Thanks.”
