Page 12 of It Started With a Scarf

"No, she didn't, and I have no idea how to get in touch with her. She worked at Abercrombie, but I went there a couple of days ago to follow up with her, and they said she wasn't there anymore, that she quit. I don't even know her last name. I gave her my phone number, but I never had hers."

Dominic could tell that the guy was telling the truth.

"They didn't tell you where she went to work?"

"No. And I feel bad asking so many questions since something had obviously happened for her to not work there. I don't know if she quit or what."

"Okay, thanks, it's no big deal," Dominic said even though it felt like a huge deal to him. No lead to Marley was a gigantic letdown.

"Hey, if you find her, tell her I'd be willing to work with her on her hours. I know she was thinking about riding the bus after a shift, but I work weekends anyway, so I could give her a ride home. I didn't even think about telling her that when she was here. Can you tell her if you see her?"

"Yeah, sure. How did you do a job interview with her and not get her last name?" Dominic was being lighthearted and he made a face that made Tom laugh.

"I don't know!" Tom said. "We didn't get that far. And they didn't mention her last name at Abercrombie. I asked if they knew where she was working now, and they said they didn't. I felt like a creep as it was." Tom reached out to shake Dominic's hand. "I wish I could help you more, bro. Will you be joining us tonight? Can I get you a menu?"

"No, I'm… I just stopped by to see about Marley."

"Oh, yeah, sorry I couldn't help. I only had contact with her through Abercrombie. I gave her my number, but I don't have hers."

"No worries," Dominic said.

Chapter 4

Marley Matthews

A month later

"Hey, Ada, thanks for calling me back," I said to my sister on the phone. I had my hands full of bags and I awkwardly held the phone to my ear as I spoke. "Hang on. I'm setting some things down. H-hang on just a second."

"Do you need another five minutes?"

"No, it's perfect timing. I'm outside the store now. There's a bench here. I just had to set my bags down."

"Are you outside?"

"No, I'm still in this building. The first floor is this little mall thing. I'm inside, just not in a store."

"You're shopping?"

"Yes. I just got off work, and I'm shopping for Joan while I was out."

"Groceries?"

"No. It's Thanksgiving stuff—fall décor for her house and some things for the table. Some of it came from my store, and she asked me to go by another store, too. My hands are full. That's why I had to call you back. Hey, I was thinking about something for Mom for Christmas, and I wanted you to feel her out. It's a butcher block. It's heavy-duty, and it's really nice, like five hundred originally. I can get a deep discount and free shipping through my company. Do you think she would want that?"

"I can't believe you sell old-lady Thanksgiving stuff instead of cool clothes."

"It's home furnishings. That doesn't mean it's just for Thanksgiving, or for old people. We have cool stuff. Young people come in too… sometimes."

"What is it? Napkin holders and stuff like that? Who buys that? I can't believe you're not at Abercrombie anymore. I miss that. Your Christmas gifts were always the best."

"You'll still have Abercrombie this year. I bought your presents long before I quit. I have them wrapped and everything."

"Yesssss," Ada said "I can't wait. I can't wait for you to get here already. Do you have your ticket?"

"Yes, and it's weeks away. December twenty-second. We still have a week before Thanksgiving."

"Uh, that's too long. Why don't you come home for Thanksgiving too?"

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