“What?” he says.
“Hi to you, too.”
“Yeah, fine. What’s up?”
She studies him. His face is red, like a sunburn.
She’s looking at all her fellow employees more closely, trying to figure out who might be behind the note. So far they seem to be treating her mostly with the same indifference; Jerry might seem a little more moody than usual, but given Oliver’s appearance, perhaps that’s to be expected.
“I heard back from my landlord,” she says.
“And?”
“She spoke to Nicholas, the bookstore owner of Turned Pages. He’s expecting us; he said we could come by today.”
“We?”
“Yeah, we.”
“I’ll just run the books over later.”
Taylor narrows her eyes. “Fine, but remember our deal.”
“I remember,” he grumbles. “What about the other stuff? The doctor’s kit?”
Oh, right. She’s supposed to be following up on that, too. And Taylor would—that is, if she could. “I, uh, we haven’t heard back from the antiques store owner. Just hold on to those for now.”
“All right.”
Later, after the lunch crowd clears, Rose stands surveying the emptied restaurant with a satisfied look on her face, like a proud mother hen.
Like a shoemaker’s elves, they get to work cleaning the restaurant. Liam clears the bar; the rest of them bus the tables.Taylor is picking a stray napkin from beneath a table when she sees a man’s legs briskly stride into Canton’s. Navy pressed trousers, horse bit tan loafers.
Peter.
She nearly bumps her head trying to scramble out.
But it’s not Peter. It’s a man who looks nothing like him. What was she thinking? The person is tall, almost too tall. All arms and legs, like a human Gumby. But he’s one ofthem,clearly. The loafers look like top-grain leather, and a paisley silk pocket square peeks out of his navy suit jacket.
“Hello, Rose,” the man says. “And Liam, Eduardo, Jerry,” he acknowledges with a nod.
They nod back, and he turns to Taylor. “Hello, Taylor, I’m Michael,” he says, rather stiffly. He’s frowning, as if he doesn’t know what to make of her. Finally, he says, “Welcome to the Knox.”
This must be the Michael they said may have done her geomancy-reading thing. She’s never seen him before in her life; she’d remember.
“Hello,” she replies. “Nice to meet you.” She’s standing there awkwardly; does she shake his hand? But he hasn’t extended it.
“I’m sorry I wasn’t here last week. Did anyone tell you you’ve joined us at an interesting time?”
She can feel Liam watching closely from the bar. “Uh, yeah,” she says.
“We are happy to have someone join us who has a restaurant background. Though this is quite different from North Carolina. It must be a bit of a cultural shock.”
“It’s okay.”It’s okay?She internally cringes, wishing she’d offered something more interesting.
“She’s doing well,” Rose says, coming to stand beside them with a look of pride that now extends to Taylor.
Taylor shrugs, but she’s pleased. “I’m trying.”
