Page 6 of Love’s Harvest (Lilace Lake #3)

On Monday afternoon, Sarah waited in her office to meet April Loomis, the high school girl who was starting her part-time job with them. She’d spoken with her tutor, Mary Alice Toomey, and they’d decided it was important for April to arrive by herself.

Sarah and Mary Alice had already discussed aspects of April’s dyslexia and how capable she was with numbers.

“She’s a lovely girl but needs help with her self-esteem.

Needless to say, she’s been bullied by others in school,” said Mary Alice.

“She lives with her father and grandmother, neither of whom is helpful when it comes to styles and such. I think spending time with you will be helpful in many ways. You might even be able to guide her toward a better appearance.”

“I’ll try,” said Sarah. “Appearance does matter. Especially in high school, which is a tough place for many at best.”

“I’m sure your parents are delighted to have you back in town. And I hear your daughters are adorable.”

“Thanks. They’re a handful but a lot of fun,” said Sarah. “I’ll get back to you in a day or two, after I’ve had a chance to see how April will fit in.”

“Thanks. And if you need me at any time, just phone or text me. I appreciate your help,” said Mary Alice.

Sarah ended the call and sat a moment. Being a part of the summer gang had helped her through high school.

That, and the fact that she was easy-going and liked to have fun.

It made it easy to be included in the group of fun kids.

She sometimes wondered what had happened to that lucky girl.

One thing was for sure, if April needed her help, she would be glad to do so.

###

April arrived right on time at two thirty.

Sarah’s gaze took in a girl of average height and size, brown hair, and pretty blue eyes. She was wearing a blue skirt, a white blouse, and white sneakers.

“Hi, April,” said Sarah, getting to her feet. “We’re glad you’ve agreed to help us out for a while. I think you’ll like the job. Unloading stock, opening boxes is a little like Christmas.”

April lips stretched into a nervous smile. “Thanks for having me. Ms. Toomey told me I was lucky to get this job, but that I was excellent with numbers, and that’s what you needed.”

“Exactly,” said Sarah. “I also know how careful you are about doing your work and completing it. That means the world to us.”

April stood quietly, clinging to her hands.

“This downstairs floor is where most of the receivables is entered into our computer system, marked, and stored. From here it goes into our display of goods. The heavier, bulky items like mowers and snow blowers are brought to a storage area near our receiving dock to be entered in our system and marked.”

“Are all the holiday things stored here? I thought I saw a Christmas tree,” said April gazing around the large space.

“Yes. We can have some fun with some of the Halloween things I’ve ordered. I’m going to do a holiday window display, and our store will be a stop on the Halloween parade of treats.”

“Nice,” said April. “The kids in my neighborhood love to get dressed up. I’m too old.”

“If you want to be part of handing out candy here for the parade, you can dress up then,” said Sarah. “We could use the help.”

“Okay,” said April, her eyes shining.

At that moment, Sarah knew she’d do anything to help April. She’d already seen beneath her solemn, anxious appearance to the adorable, eager girl just waiting to bloom.

Sarah led April over to a long table where a small box sat. A larger box sat on the floor.

“This is where we receive orders. We open the box, get the packing slip out, and check to make sure everything that is on that sheet is actually here in the box exactly as ordered. Sometimes descriptions are available. Other times, only the numbers for different items are shown.”

April nodded politely.

Sarah held up the box cutter. “This is very sharp. You need to be careful with it and very careful opening the boxes, so you don’t harm yourself or what’s inside the box. Here.”

April accepted the cutter from Sarah and worked carefully to open the box.

“These are for my Halloween display,” said Sarah. “A black cat, a witch’s hat, and some little stuffed mice. Look. Each mouse is a little different. This is where you have to be careful in checking them off on the packing slip.”

Sarah let April set the pace as she worked her way through the items in the box.

When she was done, Sarah said, “Okay, now we have to enter this items into the computer. First, we look for the company and bring up its account in our system. Then we enter the date we received it, today, and then we use our automatic screening device to input the numbers to our computer. In doing so, it will automatically determine the sales price. When that work is completed, we can print off a sheet of sticker prices to use for each item.”

April studied the sheets.

“So, it makes sense?”

April gave her an unsure look. “Yes, but I’ll need to do it a few times to get comfortable.”

“Of course,” said Sarah. “That’s how we all learn. Let’s complete this exercise by tagging only what items we are going to sell. We can keep the others without tags because they’re part of our window decorations and can’t be sold.”

Sarah stood by, reminding herself not to jump in as April figured out which of the items needed tagging. She wanted to give April a chance to have some success.

“There,” said April. “I’m done.”

“Great,” said Sarah. “Now I need to show you how you put tags on soft items like these. Other items in other boxes may need stickers affixed to them.”

Later, after stowing the display items on a special shelf, Sarah turned to April. “Okay, we’re done for the day. Do you have a way to get home?”

“I brought my bike,” said April.

“Are you able to come after school tomorrow?” At April’s nod, Sarah continued. “Let me show you the clock where you check in and out. It’s important you do it both times so we can get your hours for payroll. Don’t worry. I’ll make a note on the card that you arrived at two thirty.”

“Thank you,” said April. “I liked doing this work. It was fun.”

“I’m glad because we’re going to need your help. Fall and the holidays are busy times for us.”

They went to the check-in area in the receiving dock.

After she checked out, April’s gaze remained on Sarah even as she spoke shyly. “Thank you very much.”

“See you tomorrow,” said Sarah, seeing April off and then going to check on her father, who was handling the cash register. “I’m going home. Anything else you need?”

He shook his head. “No, you go ahead to those girls. I’ll take care of the late crowd and then close up.”

Sighing with relief, Sarah headed back to her desk to gather her things.

On the way to pick up the twins, Sarah wondered how she should approach April’s appearance.

Working behind the scenes, opening boxes, and moving things around, a skirt and blouse were not appropriate choices for her.

In addition, they made April look as if she was wearing someone’s cast off clothing. A cause for bullying.

She felt maternal juices flowing through her just thinking of it. She’d have April wear one of the store’s blue polo shirts and tell her to wear jeans. That would be practical and give her an updated look.

On the spur of the moment, she decided to drop the polo shirt off at April’s house. She lived in a neighborhood not too far from the cabin complex where Sarah lived. She’d go there first and then pick up Mia and Emily.

She got a shirt, wrapped it in tissue, and stuffed it into her purse. She didn’t want to overstep any boundaries with April’s family, but she couldn’t bear the thought of April being teased. The young girl was so eager to please, so smart with numbers.

As she left the store, she felt satisfied about the day. Hopefully, the rest of the week would prove to be as pleasant.

When she approached the small house, she noticed the leaves in the yard, the need for paint on the old gray clapboards. Sarah knew that April lived with her father and grandmother but had very little knowledge about either of them.

She knocked on the front door.

It was opened by a woman with gray, almost white hair, wearing a long black dress.

Startled, Sarah said, “I hope I have the right address. I’m looking for April Loomis.”

“Wait just a minute.” The older woman left her standing on the porch, but Sarah could hear her call April’s name inside.

April came running to the door, her cheeks flushed. “Hi, Sarah. Is something wrong?”

“No, I just wanted to tell you that you did an excellent job today, and as a new staff member, you get to wear one of our shirts with your jeans to work. It’s a uniform of sorts.”

Sarah handed the tissue-wrapped package to April, who took it eagerly and opened it.

“I love it!” she cried, holding it to her chest. “I’ll wear it tomorrow.”

“What’s this?” asked the older woman.

April turned to her. “It’s my new uniform for work, Grandma. A shirt that I’ll wear with jeans.”

Her grandmother studied it. “I guess it’s okay. It’s not one of those shirts that show a girl’s belly. And no tight jeans and makeup for you.”

April rolled her eyes. “I wouldn’t wear them anyway. Sarah, this is my grandmother Priscilla Loomis.”

“It’s nice to meet you.” Sarah held out her hand and after some confusion, Priscilla shook it.

“Thank you for stopping by,” said April. “See you tomorrow.”

Sarah hesitated then decided to ask, “Where’s your father? I was hoping to tell him what a helpful job you’ll be doing for us.”

“He’s a long-distance truck driver and is away. That’s why my grandmother lives with us.”

“Oh, I see. Maybe later I’ll have the chance to meet him.” Sarah was aware April’s grandmother was listening to everything being said.

She left the house unsettled. April might be more in need of the job than she’d first thought. It seemed as if she was being far too sheltered by a woman who’d not kept up with the times.