Page 9 of Wish You Were Her
“I know, sir,” Jonah said, pinching the bridge of his nose and exhaling slowly. “Our festival-goers are very committed. But as I say, shuttle buses from the city run twice every hour. There are loads of hotels in the city.”
“I don’t want to be stuck on a bus with idiots!”
Jonah almost put the phone down, his wrist straining as heforced himself to stay on the line. “Okay. But as I say, if the inn is booked up, you may have to rent a room in town from one of the locals, or shuttle in from the city. Our program will be announced in two weeks. Thank you for your interest in the Lake Pristine Book Festival.”
He slammed down the receiver and let his elbows drop onto the cash desk. “Simon?”
“Yup?”
“Can I take my break?
“No way. People are heading this way.”
“You didn’t hear this guy on the phone. My blood pressure is skyrocketing.”
Simon threw him a look of sympathy. “Give me the phone next time. You always say the wrong things to people, Jonah.”
Simon was in the window, finishing the display. He was making a rainbow out of books, coordinating by color. His blonde hair was starting to moisten and he was wearing dark glasses to combat the heat. People waved at him and smiled in appreciation as they passed by outside and he would throw them a salute in greeting. Jonah swallowed and glanced down at his hands. He loved Simon but he envied him, too. He made everything look so easy.
“Fine, but you man the desk. I’m dusting those top shelves.”
Jonah was atop his ladder and removing books from the top shelf when the shop door tinkled and opened.
“Don’t let the air conditioning out,” Simon quipped, throwing the visitor a winning smile.
Jonah glanced down at the customer, a well-dressed woman in her forties with a sunny smile. She wore a maxi dress and asun hat, with sandals and a large tote bag. She was obviously a book lover. Simon would have no trouble with her.
Jonah returned to dusting.
“Sorry to be crouched in the window like a ghoul,” Simon said to the customer, getting to his feet. “Can I help you?”
“Hello,” she said in an airy, cheerful voice. “Is George about?”
“He’s just stepped out to see if he can buy another fan. Is there anything I can help you with?”
“No, I’ll wait, it’s fine.”
The door tinkled once more and someone else entered the shop. From his vantage point, Jonah could only make out the top of her head. She was young, tall and wore a baseball cap, sunglasses and a fabric mask.
“You doing okay up there?” the older woman asked, calling to Jonah with a pleasing smile.
“Oh, fine,” he called down. “Just dolling the place up a bit.”
“It’s almost festival time,” Simon added, returning to his window. “And we have a celebrity on their way to town, so we can’t have a mucky shop.”
Jonah continued to clear the shelf. He kept his back to the customers. Simon was always good at keeping people busy so that Jonah could do the cleaning and the organizing.
“What kind of celebrity?” the older woman asked Simon.
“A famous actress. It’s the talk of the town.”
“Surely there are better things to talk about.”
“Well, that’s exactly what I think,” Jonah said matter-of-factly, wiping clean the now empty top shelf with ferocious speed. “She’s probably going to take one look at this place and bail.”
“You think?” asked the younger woman, taking off the cloth mask covering the lower half of her face.
“Yes, I mean, this place makes the town inFootlooselook like Sodom and Gomorrah,” Jonah went on, still focused on the bookshelf.
