Page 106 of How (Not) to Conjure a Boyfriend
Mom grins and shoos me toward the door. “You better be joking. Now go on, don’t be late. I love you, mein Schatz.”
I grin and give her a kiss on the cheek before heading out the door with a “love you, Mom” thrown back toward the kitchen as I walk outside with a bit more jazz in my step. Still though, today is going to suck.
* * *
“Remember to clean behind the mixer and fridge before you leave tonight,” Dawn says, looking over her checklist.
We’re closed tomorrow for Christmas Eve and the next day for Christmas, which means today is deep cleaning time. When I got here, it was the prep table in back, underneath it, behind it, above it—everywhere. Oh, and the drink cabinet. Dawn and Kaitlynn are about to leave, so I’m getting the closing tasks for the day. Yay me. All by myself.
“Got it.” I nod, trying to put on a smile, but I think it comes off more as a straight line. “Can I do some of that before close?”
“As long as you keep an eye out here,” Dawn says, and walks into the back, leaving me with Kaitlynn.
“Sucks to be you.” Kaitlynn grins.
“If you only knew,” I come back.
“Cheer up, bitch.” She winks. Had it been anyone else, I might have crawled across the counter.
It’s slow right now, but we’re expecting a little rush right before we close. That’s how it usually happens on Sundays. Church people coming to get their pre-night service coffee and not tipping so they can tithe.
“You could smile alittle, you know.” Kaitlynn shrugs and squints at me. “You look like you hate life.”
“Maybe I do,” I suggest.
“Valid,” she says.
I try anyway. It’s part of the job. Don’t put my feelings on the customer, so I will my cheeks to rise for Kaitlynn. “Better?”
“We’re…getting there,” she laughs.
“I’m going to start cleaning,” I tell her. It’s more to distract myself than anything. I pick up a washcloth and start patting down the display case. There are no customers left in the building, so I move from there to the little bookshelf with its collection of Woodsy Café & Cakes shirts and hoodies, tumblers, and even a few popular fiction titles up top.Everything is fine, I tell myself.Just think about cleaning.
Freyja, please help me keep my mind off him.I don’t even want to think his name. It means too much.
The door chime rings, and Kaitlynn announces, “Mr. Franz.”
“Hello there, Miss Kaitlynn,” Mr. Franz says.
I stop and turn around. I have to say hey, heismy favorite customer. I’m surprised when there’s a woman about my mom’s age and another, who I think is probably a little younger than me, with him. Her hair is gorgeous, blonde and silky, and hangs over her shoulders.
“Hey, Mr. Franz!” I say, moving toward the counter.
“Mackenzie,” he says with his usual broad smile lifting his wrinkled cheeks. “Meet my daughter, Anna, and granddaughter, Isla.”
His family! I’ve always wondered if he had family around. I sort of felt bad for him on days like this and Thanksgiving that most people spend with family. Guess I don’t need to.
“Good to meet you both.” I nod at them. They’re pretty, and I think I can see some of Mr. Franz in Isla. It’s the nose, I think. It has the same raised bridge.
“They’re here for Christmas,” he says. “All the way from back home in Poland. It’s been almost a year.”
“Aw!” Kaitlynn sighs.
“I’m so glad y’all could come. Your dad and grandad is my favorite customer,” I tell them. “Don’t tell anyone else.”
Just his presence lifts my mood. I’ve never seen the man look anything but grateful and peaceful, and something about him feels like he was sent from the gods themselves to calm me.
“Can we get you all something?” I turn to his family.
