AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I needed to talk to Cody. Make sure we were on the same page as far as keeping things where they needed to be in our relationship.
Yay.
Not.
“Mama!” Beckett ran over with two books clutched to his chest. “They have bunnies!”
Whitney took the books and flipped over the cover on the top one. She grinned at the cheerful illustrations then flipped to the other book. “Aww. Yeah, we’ll have to take these.”
“Sucker.” I winked and rang up the books. “Should I let you know when we get the third in the series in?”
Scott laughed. “Yeah. Go ahead and set a copy aside for us at that point. You know we love books.”
Whitney used her card in the reader and reached for the bag with the books. “Thanks. And that other stuff? You ever need to talk? You know where I am.”
“Yeah. Thanks. There’s more candy in there, too.”
“Just what we need.” Scott shook his head even as Beckett cheered.
I waved as they exited the shop. When the door closed, I blew out a breath. I wasn’t looking forward to either of the conversations I needed to have with Cody.
But maybe being in love wasn’t all sunshine and steamy kisses.
21
CODY
Mia’s had been slammed. Did everyone want Italian for their Halloween meal? I thought I’d glimpsed Wes sitting at a table in the bar, but I wasn’t positive. And since he didn’t call out or wave me over—if it was actually him—I wasn’t going to push it. He was still ticked about me and Megan dating.
I’d deal with it—with him—at some point. But tonight was not it. Especially not in a crowded restaurant.
So, instead, I’d hovered near the hostess stand waiting on our to-go order and trying not to be in the way of all the families and groups hoping for a table until I could finally collect the bag and head back toward the bookstore.
Lots of people—groups of teens, or families with younger kids—were strolling both sides of the sidewalk and popping into the businesses so they could collect candy. I liked that about Old Town. So much of the DC area felt like this swarming, anonymous mass. But Old Town was like a small town right in the heart of it.
I pulled open the bookstore door, smiling as the bell jingled, and glanced around. There were a lot of people milling around in here, too. I caught Megan’s eye and nodded toward the back room, hoping she caught my unspoken question. She gave a small shake of her head and gestured toward the checkout counter.
Okay.
Maybe that made sense. It wasn’t like she could disappear into the back with a store full of customers.
I carried the bag over and tucked it onto one of the shelves under the counter. A harried mother with two skeletons clinging to her pants came up.
“Thank goodness. I need to check out before I spend all my grocery money in here.” She grinned and set a large pile of books on the counter. “I don’t know how I managed to go this long without realizing there was a bookstore, but now I kind of wish I could forget.”
I cast a frantic look around for Megan before offering the woman a smile. “Well, we’re glad for your business.”
I eyed the register. It couldn’t be that hard, could it? I’d watched Megan do it at least a hundred times. I’d give it a shot. I scanned the first book, barely avoiding pumping my fist in victory when it rang up and showed on the screen. I reached for the next. “Did you find everything you were looking for?”
The woman laughed. “More than. And I see you have local independent authors coming twice a month. I’ll be back for the next one. I’ve met her at church, would you believe, and keep meaning to read her books.”
“Then this is the perfect opportunity.” I finished scanning the books and studied the keypad before hitting what I hoped would figure the tax and total for me. It looked like it did.
The woman fed her card into the machine and I put the books in a bag while it processed. When she removed her card, I searched for the right button to print a receipt, ripped it off, and added it to the bag.
“Did your kids get can—”
She held up her hand. “So much. No more, please.”
