Elodie nodded and smiled at both of them like she hadn’t basically just forced Neera into doing something she didn’t want to do. Scarlet knew she’d have a chance to talk to Neera at the party coming up. She’d find her and she’d make sure that she really wanted those shifts. If she didn’t, she certainly wasn’t going to have hurt feelings.
Working in retail wasn’t for everyone. Neera had just spent four years taking nursing, which was a tough course. It was no surprise to Scarlet that she wouldn’t leap at the opportunity to hang clothes on racks, steam out orders, do inventory, and help customers.
“Now that the hard stuff is decided, can we talk New Year’s parties and fun tattoo ideas?” Elodie whipped out her phone and was already searchin
g for tattoos before anyone could say anything.
Scarlet swore she saw Neera sink just a little further into the couch. Her smile looked altogether too forced. There seemed to be something wrong that went above and beyond the breakup Neera had just been through.
She wasn’t Neera’s mom, but she had known Neera since she was born. She could talk to her. Maybe she could help, although her own life was a hot mess. Maybe that’s what made her the best candidate. She could understand everything Neera was going through.
A strange thrill shot through Scarlet when Neera caught her eye and offered a small, private smile meant just for her. Scarlet picked up her coffee, which was barely lukewarm, and blamed it on January chill encroaching on December and settling in early.
Chapter 3
Neera
Neera never thought she would be waking up early on a Monday morning for a job this soon after getting home, but after Scarlet’s offer the day before, and Elodie’s enthusiasm about it, she found herself steaming out garments from freshly unpacked boxes in the back of Scarlet’s shop.
It wasn’t the first time she’d been in Scarlet’s boutique. More like the thousandth. Over the years, Elodie had stopped in for just about any reason, and it was rarely for shopping. When Scarlet bought the small space, Elodie had spent hours helping her renovate it. Neera had been ten at the time and she vividly remembered getting covered from head to toe in paint because she wanted to help out, eating dinner on the cement floor before the tile went down, and her mom’s and Scarlet’s laughter and joy as they made plans for the space together.
Now I’m working here.
Neera hoped it wouldn’t be for long. She ran the steamer down a sheer, seafoam green dress and shuddered at the color. Honestly, she didn’t mind retail. Yes, she’d rather be working as a nurse, but until she had some interviews, that wasn’t going to happen. Yes, she could always use the money, and yes, she did want to help out.
She sighed to herself and chewed the inside of her cheek as she set the dress aside and started on another, a black cotton type deal that was wrinkled beyond anything she thought possible and was going to be a real chore to bring back to boutique worthy glory.
Neera had always been up for a challenge, so she tackled the dress with a sort of delight at smoothing out the creases and wrinkles. The challenge of being so close to Scarlet, alone a lot of the time? That wasn’t something that Neera was sure she was up for.
She’d made it her mission, since she was sixteen and had developed an incurable crush on her mom’s best friend, never to be alone with her. Honestly, Neera didn’t trust herself. She didn’t trust herself not to slip up and say something stupid or start staring at Scarlet and forget to stop. She didn’t want it to be obvious, because that would have made things so much more than uncomfortable. The disaster that followed would have been of more than epic proportions, not to mention the fact that she’d never be able to look Scarlet in the eye again. And also her stupid crush would probably break up a lifelong friendship.
Six years later, it was obvious that what she felt was more than a crush. Now Scarlet was divorced, single, and apparently more open-minded, though she hadn’t said anything of that nature so far. Neera wasn’t sure if what her mom was saying was right, but if Scarlet had gone on a date with a woman, that meant something.
While Neera wanted Scarlet to be happy, it also stung her that she wasn’t the one to go on that date with her. That she’d never been the one, because she could never, ever tell her how she truly felt.
The buzzer at the back of the store went off, and Elodie looked up at the black and white footage on the monitor screen in the back room. It displayed the store, split into four different views. She could see Scarlet out front, working on an order she wanted to place, standing behind the register, browsing and clicking away on the store’s computer.
Neera almost glanced back down at the dress she was only half finished steaming, but something about the customer’s stature and posture made her take a double look. The store sold only women’s clothing, but it wasn’t unusual for men to come in.
It was, however, unusual to see Bryan, Scarlet’s ex-husband, walk through the door.
Neera dropped the steamer wand and had to scramble to pick it up as it shot water all over the floor. She switched off the machine and walked closer to the front. She wasn’t sure about leaving Scarlet alone up there. She knew that she could handle herself, but something told her to be within hearing range just in case. She watched covertly from the side of the back door, which was left open a crack.
Bryan was already at the front counter, and there was nothing friendly in his posture. His body language was already screaming hostility before he even opened his mouth.
“Where’s the ring?” he barked, not bothering to moderate his tone since there was no one in the store that he could see but himself and Scarlet. “That was part of the deal. I gave you everything, the house, your business— I didn’t try and touch any of it. The least you could do is return my mother’s ring like you said you were going to. My lawyer was expecting it over a month ago.”
Scarlet backed away from the computer a step, putting a little bit of distance between herself and Bryan. She wasn’t scared, and she wasn’t going to stand down, but she wasn’t going to fight back and cause a scene that any one of her customers could walk in on either. “I— I totally forgot. I’m sorry. The business has been so busy and—”
“I’m going to ask Charlotte to marry me. Can’t very well do that without my mother’s ring, now can I?”
Neera’s stomach sloshed wildly, and her mouth gaped open in surprise. Bryan was getting married? To the woman he’d been cheating on Scarlet with? He had the nerve to come in here and demand his ring back, and tell Scarlet what it was for? Why couldn’t he have just called?
She couldn’t see Scarlet’s face, but she could hear the hurt in her voice, even though it was obvious she was struggling to keep a neutral tone. “What? Marry her! It’s been like—”
“Real love doesn’t have a time limit,” Bryan snapped. He leaned on the counter casually, and there was no mistaking his twisted smile. He was enjoying digging the knife in. This wasn’t about a ring at all. “We’re also expecting a baby, and I want to get the wedding done before too much time goes by. It’s only the right thing to do.”
“A child! Good God! Bryan! A baby? You— you never even wanted kids!”