Page 104 of Animal's Reformation
Chapter Twenty-Three
The morning lightstruggled through clouds scudding across the leaden sky. Mountain tops peeked through gauzy veils of mist, and a sweet, earthy smell permeated the air. Pulling up the collar of his leather jacket, Animal took a sip of his coffee as he walked out of the Mugs and Things shop.
Trees lined Main Street on both sides, standing so tall that their branches touched high in the sky. Shops and restaurants were bustling with activity, and several people strolled on the sidewalks, looking in the store windows.
Animal had one more stop to make before meeting up with Hawk and Throttle at Ruthie’s for an early lunch. Bones had told Animal he’d meet up with him at the Shade Store since he’d be in the area, and then they’d both head over to Ruthie’s together.
Animal pushed open the door to the small store filled with bolts of fabric, several types of blinds, shutters, and shades, and stacks of books filled with design ideas. A forty-something-year-old woman dressed in a tailored suit smiled as she approached him.
“May I help you?” she asked.
Animal glanced around the store, wondering why the hell he thought coming here was a good idea. “I need to get some stuff to cover some windows.”
The woman’s smile widened. “In that case, you’re at the right store.” She gestured at the various items in the shop.
He wiped the corners of his mouth with two fingers. “I wanna buy some shit for my woman’s windows.”
The saleslady’s face fell slightly. “Okay.” A buzzer sounded and she looked over Animal’s shoulder and her face paled.
“Dude,” Bones said. Animal turned around and bumped fists with him. “So remind me again why the fuck you’re in this place.”
The woman took several steps backward.
“Buying shit to put over Olivia’s damn windows. She’s had those fuckin’ sheets up since she moved in.” He glanced at the sales clerk. “Olivia Mooney has an order here for one of her windows. I wanna pay for it.”
The woman nodded. “Okay—let me look that up.” She scurried behind a counter, a look of relief washing over her face.
“What the hell do you know ’bout decorating, dude?” Bones laughed.
“I didn’t do half bad at my place,” Animal answered.
“As I remember it, Jada did most of the decorating.”
“I found it,” the woman said. “White shutters for the living-room window. She also picked out treatments for the bedroom, bathroom, and sliding glass door, but only put a deposit on the shutters.”
“Damn, this is gonna be easy. I’ll pay for the whole damn thing.” Animal took out his wallet.
“Everything?” the woman asked.
“That’s what I said, didn’t I?” Animal walked over to the counter.
“Yep … that’s what you said,” Bones answered.
Flustered, the woman shuffled some papers around on the counter. “I was referring to you paying for the installation as well as the treatments.”
Animal’s jaw tightened. “Yeah.Everything. Fuck, lady.” Her tight expression emphasized the lines around her mouth. “When can you get all this delivered and installed?”
She touched the base of her throat and glanced back at the computer screen. “The shutters she put the deposit on can be done right away, but the Roman shades for the bedroom, the sheer shade for the bathroom, and the white shutter panels for the sliding door will have to be ordered.”
“That’s cool. Let’s do the shutter thing this weekend, and order the rest.” Animal glanced at his phone. “Write it up quick ’cause we gotta get going.”
“Certainly. There’ll be an extra charge for installation on a Saturday.”
“Okay.” Animal turned to Bones. “You wanna help me fix a stove today? I gotta pull it out and it’s a cast-iron motherfucker. It’s the woman’s great-great grandma’s stove, and I’m gonna need help dragging that thing away from the wall.”
Bones shrugged. “Sure—I don’t have any plans. So, you just being in this damn store means you must really like this chick.”
“Fuck, dude. How the hell did you figure that out all on your own?”
