Page 36 of Cookie

“Sounds nice. Thank you,” he said as he handed me my bag and the next person in line walked up to the counter. I hurried out the door and walked past a few stores that sold souvenirs and other things that neither of us really needed, but then I came to a store that sold handcrafted wooden items. There were so many unique items in the window I walked inside to see what else there was. Neither of us were interested in giving gifts just because. We both liked to put some thought into what we gave each other, which was why we both just gave each other one small gift for Christmas, instead of a pile of meaningless gifts.

Charlie had given me a new warm scarf that I had on, and I’d given him a new pair of thick socks. As I wandered around, there were so many unique items I stopped and looked at each one that caught my eye. Then there was a display of something that had a propeller on the front and when it turned, it made the character on top move.

“Those are whirligigs,” someone on the next aisle said.

“They’re so fun,” I said and spun the propeller on a few to see how they worked. One of them was a goose, the wings flapped when the propeller turned. Another was a truck, and the wheels spun while it bumped along. But then I saw one that was perfect. “Can I get this one?”

“Of course. I have some in the back still in the box,” the woman whose name tag read Bonnie said, before hurrying off. I spun the propeller again and watched as the lumberjack raised his ax and chopped at a piece of wood. “Here you go. Was there anything else?”

“No, that’s all for now. I love your store.”

“Thank you. Don’t you own the bookstore?” she asked as she rang me up.

“Yes, Ryan Stone,” I said and held my hand out.

“Nice to meet you, I’m Bonnie Porter. I’ve been to your store a few times, but Avery was working.”

“I’m sorry I missed you,” I said.

“Oh, I’ll be back,” she said and handed me a bag. “I gave you the local discount.”

“Thank you, and I’ll be back too.” I walked out the door and turned once more to look at their window. I hadn’t heard about this “local discount” but I’d ask Avery about it, becauseit sounded like something we should be doing too. The tourists’ dollars were great, but when everything shut down like it had been, we were dependent on the locals and a small discount helped everyone.

I hurried back to the store and passed Avery and a few customers as I walked straight to the backroom. “Did you get something good?” Avery asked as soon as I walked back out to hang up my coat.

“I did. There are so many fun shops. Every time I go out, I find something I haven’t seen before.”

“We do have a pretty good little town,” Avery said and smiled at the customer she was currently helping. When everyone had gone, I asked her about the local discount. “How much is it?”

“It’s only ten percent, but the locals appreciate it. It’s better than nothing and encourages shopping local,” she said.

“Let’s start doing it. They kept us so busy the past month, it’s the least we can do to give back.”

“You’re a good boss, you know that?” Avery said.

“Well, you’re an outstanding employee,” I said.

“And an excellent boyfriend,” Charlie said from behind me.

“Hey, what are you doing here already?”

“Work is slow. I thought I’d see how busy you were and ask if you wanted to go to my place early,” he said and wrapped his arms around me.

“Please go. You two will drive me crazy if you’re here all afternoon. It’s not too busy and you’ll want to get out of here early anyway,” Avery said.

“Are you sure?” I asked and hoped she meant it.

“Yes, go ahead, and Happy New Year.”

I hugged her and thanked her before turning back to Charlie. “We need to stop by the café on the way out of town,” I said as I slipped my coat on, and he continued to stare at me.

“What did you do?” he asked and narrowed his eyes.

“You’ll see. Can you grab those bags there.” I pointed at the bags I’d just brought in. Charlie shrugged and without asking picked them up.

“Looks like you’ve been busy,” Charlie said as we waved to Avery and walked over to his truck.

“Maybe,” I said, and reminded myself not to forget to pick up our dinner.

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