Page 32 of Save a Wish

A shudder came over me at the notion of almost marrying Cian. What a disaster that would have been.

Enough time had gone by now that I didn’t worry so much about Cian or my parents finding me. Knowing them, they’d been angry with me at first and had probably sent out the royal guards to search for me. Then they’d likely come to the conclusion that life was easier without me challenging every old-fashioned law and way of doing things in Verdalach. All of our lives had been improved by me leaving.

And today, I’d begin my quest to improve the lives of others with my services.

A soft knock sounded on the cabin door, and I opened it to find Jimmy Slater standing on my doorstep. Between him and Hank, the two older gentlemen had created a schedule of checking in that made me feel looked after.

“Good morning, Jimmy.” I stepped aside so he could enter the cabin.

“Morning, Sadie.” He pulled off his John Deere cap and gave me a polite nod. “I know you’re gearing up for your big event today so I won’t keep you. I just saw some of the jewelry you have for sale at Patty’s.”

Someone else who had taken on the job of looking after me. I’d gone into Patty’s frequently for groceries, but this week I’d asked to hang up my business flyer and one advertising the launch event.

“Of course.” Patty had gestured to the corkboard. “Put up whatever you’d like.”

Then her gaze had landed on the pendant I wore around my neck. I’d fashioned it out of a pretty rock I’d found on a walk along the edge of Slater’s Pond. I’d wrapped some silver wire I’d found in the cabin’s garage around it and hung it from a silver chain I’d picked up from a little craft store on Main Street.

“That’s nice,” Patty had said.

“Thanks. I made it.”

“Folks around here would love to buy jewelry like that,” she’d said. “Do you have more pieces?”

I’d fingered the pendant. “Not yet, but I suppose I could make more.”

“You do that and bring them in here. They’re guaranteed to sell like hotcakes.”

After a quick stop in the craft store, I’d gone back to the cabin, hunted for more pretty rocks, and mass produced a variety of pendant necklaces. Over the weekend, every single one had sold.

And that was how I’d developed what Patty had called a side hustle, which was funny because I hadn’t launched my main hustle yet.

But that would change today.

“I was wondering,” Jimmy began as he twisted his cap in his hands. “I was wondering if you could make something special like those necklaces for Beth.” He jabbed his hand into the pocket of his flannel coat. When he held that hand out to me, a shimmery, white rock in the rough shape of a heart sat in his palm. “I found this rock and Beth loves hearts.”

Could he be more adorable? This man had never killed anyone. I was sure of it.

I picked up the rock, testing its weight. “I think so. It’s nice and light so it won’t feel heavy around her neck.”

“Good, good.” He angled his head at the rock I still held. “Maybe with a leather cord instead of a chain one? Beth likes a more natural look.”

“Exactly what I was thinking.” I walked Jimmy into the kitchen and grabbed a piece of scrap paper to make a note of what he wanted. “I can have this ready for you soon.”

“No rush. You focus on your event. Whenever you have time is fine.” He smiled. “I wanted to catch you with this order before you got too busy with everyone who’s going to be beating down your door for your services after today’s launch of Kalm Kingdom.”

I rubbed his arm. “Thanks, Jimmy. Your belief in me means so much.”

“Easy to believe in someone whose goal it is to help people live better lives.” He put his hat on and headed for the door. “Good luck.”

He left and I sketched a quick design for his request. It would be fun making something that he wanted to gift as a token of his feelings for Mrs. Hartley.

But that project would have to wait because if I didn’t get my materials loaded into the car right now, I’d be late getting to Hartley’s Nest for the event. That would not be a good way to advertise my new business, and arriving stressed and rushed wouldn’t create the relaxed atmosphere I was hoping to generate for today’s attendees.

Thirty minutes later, I drove past the gates of Hartley’s Nest and to the nature trail area where we’d decided was the best place to host my event. The mouth of the trail was a wide open area with a soft carpet of leaves perfect for doing nature-inspired yoga.

As soon as I got out of my car, Beckett was right there, ready to help me unload my materials. The sight of him always made my insides heat up. I was growing more and more fond of that reaction.

And it was getting harder and harder to pretend that reaction wasn’t happening.