For the first time, Lilian noticed that the other shops had been transformed while she and Margo had worked tirelessly on her own.She peeked out the window to see that the brown cottage on the left had a small display table set up, along with tons of boxes.
“I wanted to say hi.I arrived a little later than I hoped, but I’m here now.”
“Sorry about that,” she said.“I’ve been waiting a few hours for the contractors to help us.It’s so nice to meet you.I’m Lilian.Ms.Bodice for the faire.”
“You can call me Russ for the faire.”He stepped in fully and offered her a hand.His arm was decorated in a dark swirl of tattoos.She tried her best not to stare, but one was very clearly a large sword surrounded by wildflowers.“I prefer to use my name for business reasons.”
“Makes sense.”Lilian frowned, wondering if she should have considered the same thing.So far, there was nothing about Bodice and Brawn that connected it to her mother’s bookshop back in her hometown of Tenison.
She added the concern to the list of things to worry about later and focused back on the man in front of her.“So, you… um… do you make things out of wood, Mr.Wooden?”
He laughed.“That would be convenient, but no, I don’t.I make clothes.”
“Oh, like leather purses and stuff?”He had the look of a man who would work with leather.A pristine leather band wrapped around on his wrist might have been one of his creations.
He shook his head again.“No, not leather.I make dresses.”
Lilian caught Margo’s eyes widening.That was… unexpected.
But Russ laughed, a deep belly laugh that cut straight through their silence.“Don’t worry.I get that a lot, but what can I say?My mother taught me to sew at a young age, and there’s good money in dressmaking.”
Lilian didn’t doubt that.The women who owned the largest dress shop at the faire had a two-story building that was always buzzing with customers.After her first year volunteering at the faire, she’d saved enough to buy her first full costume.A sea-blue dress, bodice, and undershirt that cost a pretty penny, but it had been worth it.For the first time, she’d actually felt like she belonged.
When she’d decided to be a vendor, she’d needed at least one more dress so she wasn’t wearing the same thing every weekend.Another pricey commitment, but she loved the green dress that now clung to her body.
“Can we see some of your dresses?”Margo asked excitedly.
“Of course.I’m still unpacking, but feel free to stop by anytime.”His dark eyes swept over their shop.“And I see you have a… bookshop here?”
Lilian and Margo exchanged a look before nodding.
“Bodice and Brawn.”Russ read the sign and smiled.“Can’t say I’ve ever seen a bookshop at a faire before.”
That was the second time someone had said that to her today.Lilian swallowed a lump of unease as she wondered if it was a good thing or if she was crazy for opening the first bookshop.
“You do a lot of faires?”she asked instead.
Russ nodded.“I have a circuit I travel every year.Doesn’t pay well to stay at just one.Renaissance Faires, festivals, sometimes I do conventions…”
“Wow.”Lilian knew some of the vendors traveled a lot to sell their goods, but she’d never considered required such a variety of events.“So, you’re not from around here?”
“I have an actual shop in Kentucky,” Russ said.“The wife is manning it now since the kids are in school.But if she can get the chance, she usually breaks away to join me for a week or two.She’ll be disappointed to miss this.Kansas is one of her favorite stops.She would have loved your store.”
Margo gave Lilian’s shoulder an excited little shake as if to say,See!This is a good idea!
“And are you two girls local?”
“Yeah,” Lilian answered.“We’ve been working here for years, but this is our first shop.”
“Congratulations.You never forget your first.”Russ chuckled.“Well, I’ve got a lot to do before the sun goes down.It was nice meeting you.”He leaned forward and handed each of them a slender business card.The name of his shop was spelled out in beautiful silver cursive, the tail of the lettering curling into a needle.Wooden’s Wares: Dresses for the Fantastical.
“Wow, thanks.”Lilian stared at the card longer than she probably should have.It was one more thing she hadn’t considered for her small shop.Bodice and Brawn wasn’t her full-time commitment, but still, a business card could at least point people back to the store in Tenison.
Then again, who would drive out to rural Kansas to visit an old used bookshop?
“If you two need anything or have any questions, you know where to find me.”
Russ was already halfway out the door when Lilian glanced down at her watch.There wasn’t much daylight left, and he had only just gotten here?It had taken her and Margo hours to set up their shop; she couldn’t imagine doing it by herself.
