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“I’d forgotten it was there,” Carter says. “They only blocked it off in the seventies.”
Mitch looks at me. “So the plans were right,” he murmurs.
“Oh yes,” Carter says. “That’s definitely how it was originally.”
Mitch looks around. “Bear?”
He comes over, carrying his coffee cup. “Yeah?” he asks through a mouthful of cheese scone.
Mitch gestures to the photo, and Bear bends to take a look. “Apparently there’s an archway on either side of the shop,” Mitch adds, and Carter nods.
Holding the photo, Bear wanders over to the right-hand side, to the wall that joins the café, looks at the photo, then examines where the archway would have been. He knocks on it and presses it in a few places.
“It’s just drywall,” Bear says, “papered over. It would be an easy job to open them up again.”
“We thought it would be a good selling point,” I say. “Having a cozy book-and-coffee space. It could be called The Nook, and the book club could meet there.”
“Ooh.” Cate and Harri’s eyes light up. “We could have T-shirts made,” Harri says. “Meet me in The Nook at Evermore Books.”
Everyone laughs, but people are exchanging glances and nodding. Clearly, they all like the idea of the book café.
I glance at Mitch. He’s put down his coffee cup, and he’s standing looking at me with his hands on his hips.
“What?” I ask with a smile.
He doesn’t say anything. He’s thinking again. His eyes are intense, alight with something.
Cate looks from him to me and back again. “What’s going on?” People start turning as they hear her, and everyone looks at Mitch.
His lips slowly curve up. “You should do it,” he says.
I blink. “Do what?”
“Buy the bookshop.”
My eyebrows shoot up. “What? I couldn’t.”
“You’re practically running it anyway,” he points out.
“That’s true,” Cate says. “Who orders the books?”
“Well, I do…”
“Who runs the accounts?” Mitch asks.
I purse my lips. “Yeah, okay, I do those, but Clive helps…”
“Who knows every customer?” Emma asks. “And what they like to read?”
I just give her a wry look.
“Who runs the book club?” Mitch asks.
“It was a joint decision…”
“Who chooses the books for it?” Cate says. “Because she’s constantly on Goodreads and in Facebook groups talking about what are the best books to read?”
I hold up my hands. “All right, I get what you’re saying. But it’s a big step from working behind the counter to buying a shop and running a business.” The thought makes my head whirl. “All the hidden costs… the insurance, the bills… I wouldn’t know where to start.”
