Page 77 of November

“Previous?”

“Yes. And the current owner, Melinda, just kept most of the tours the same for the first few months.”

“And now?”

“Now, I don’t know. She might want to shake things up. If you want to come here today, she’ll be in soon. I can tell her you want to talk about it.”

“I can’t today,” Maisie said. “I want to, but I’m running for city council, and it’s election day.”

“Oh, cool. Good luck,” Jill said. “Can you give me one second?”

“Sure.”

“Thanks,” Jill said into the phone. “Willa, one minute, babe. Then, lunch, okay?” Jill sounded far away now. “Sorry, my girlfriend just showed up to take me to lunch. I can tell Mel that you called, and she can call you back, if you want.”

“That would be great. And I can stop by tomorrow or something, if she needs to meet in person.”

“Okay. I’ll leave her a message. I like your store, by the way. I’ve been in a few times on the tours. I think there’s always someone else in there, though, when I stop by.”

“Probably Lainey or Sarah.”

“Maybe. I don’t know.”

“Do you think Melinda would be more likely to say yes if I add something for the tourists?”

“Like what?”

“I don’t know; give you all ten-percent-off coupons for them, or a free bookmark or something? Or maybe add some water and snacks to the shop to encourage people to buy?”

“Water and snacks for sure,” Jill replied. “But our tours are usually on tight schedules, so we can’t keep them there browsing for long.”

“What if youendedthe tour here?” Maisie suggested as she moved up in line to check in. “Maybe a tour ends here, and there’s a café next door that’s about to open. It could be that they finish atChapter & Verseand can get themselves a coffee or water there. I might even be able to get coupons for Southern Roastery for them.”

“Southern? I know people who work there,” Jill said.

“You do?”

“Yes. A few, actually. I hadn’t thought about using my connections there for coupons, but that could work. I’ll have Melinda call you. I think she’ll like the idea of finishing the tour there and doing some kind of coupon deal for a percentage off books and maybe coffee. If you don’t hear back from her today or tomorrow, though, just call us back. She’s planning a wedding right now, so she’s a little scatterbrained.”

“Okay. Thank you,” she said.

“Yeah, no problem,” Jill replied.

Maisie said goodbye and felt a little bit better about doing one thing good today.

CHAPTER 20

“Hi,” she said into her phone.

“Hey. What are you up to tonight?” Ava asked.

India glanced down at her full wineglass and the fire she had turned on the moment she had gotten home.

“Wine and contemplation,” she replied.

“Contemplation? That doesn’t sound good,” Ava said. “Is everything okay?”

“Um… Not really, but I’ll be all right.”