Page 24 of Winter Nights at the Bay Bookshop
‘It’s not that I don’t read. Ialwaystake a book on holiday with me, although the one I took to Malta last summer is still by my bed, gathering dust, and I can’t for the life of me remember what’s happened so far.’
‘So would it be fair to say that books aren’t a passion for you?’ I asked, fighting hard to sound positive.
‘That’s right.’
‘And, actually, you aren’t a reader at all?’
‘Not really.’
‘So what you said in the interview?—’
‘I could hardly say I hate books, could I?’ She sounded indignant as she cut across me. ‘You’d never have given me the job if I had.’
She laughed and I laughed with her, thinking how I’d just dodged a bullet.
‘Thanks for that, Melissa. As I say, we’re down to our last few candidates so I’ll let you know by tomorrow at the latest.’
‘That’s fine. Oh, while you’re on the phone, can I just check the hours? You said it’s Monday to Friday but you might need me to work some weekends in December.’
‘That’s right.’
‘The weekdays are fine but I don’t want to work weekends and you should probably know that I’ve got a holiday booked in December. I go on the 13th and get back the day after Boxing Day.’
I clamped my lips together, eyes scrunched tightly closed and counted to three before I responded in a positive-sounding tone, ‘I’ve noted that down. Thanks, Melissa. We’ll be in touch very soon. Have a fabulous day.’
‘I will. You too.’
If I’d been using a landline, I’d have slammed the phone down into its cradle. If Melissa’s evident dislike for books hadn’t already been a dealbreaker, her lack of availability in our busiest month would have been. I’d made it very clear in the advert how important it was to be free in December.
Grabbing a red biro, I placed a big cross over Melissa’s CV and picked up Lars’s with a sigh.
‘It’s for the business,’ I murmured. ‘I can put my personal feelings aside for Bay Books. I can be a professional.’ Although I had to acknowledge the skip of my heart at the thought of seeing Lars again. If he accepted.
My hands were shaking and my heart was thumping so heavily as I attempted to call Lars that I kept pressing the wrong numbers. Finally getting it right, my stomach churned as I waited for the call to connect and for Lars to answer. It rang and rang and I was convinced I was about to get his voicemail when he picked up, giving his full name just like Melissa had.
‘Hi, Lars, it’s Lily at Bay Books. How are you?’
‘Lily! Hi! I’m good, thanks. Yourself?’
I’d noticed during his interview that he’d lost his accent – something that was even more obvious to me when speaking to him over the phone. I wondered if it had been intentional after the kids picked on him about it at school.
‘Yeah, fine. Look, erm, we’ve finished our interviews now and considered each candidate carefully and, erm…’ My throat had gone very dry and I grabbed the mug of tea I’d made and took a quick gulp, immediately regretting it because it was far too hot and scalded my mouth.
‘It’s a no, isn’t it?’ Lars said. ‘I understand. I knew it was a long shot but it was worth a try. It was good to see you and your dad again. I really appreciate you giving me the interview opportunity. I didn’t think you would.’
Although I couldn’t see his face, I could hear the sadness in his voice that I’d seen in his eyes back at school.
‘What makes you say that?’ I asked.
‘After the way I treated you at school. You didn’t deserve that when all you did was try to be nice to me. I was bang out of order but… No, I’m not going to rattle off any excuses. I was totally in the wrong and I’m sorry for any hurt I caused you back then.’
I clapped my hand to my chest, stunned. The last thing I’d expected was an apology and it had been so heartfelt. The knot in my stomach loosened somewhat and I felt a lot more positive about what I was about to do.
‘Thank you for saying that,’ I said, my voice sounding small and distant as I battled with my emotions. ‘It means a lot.’
‘I should have said it yesterday. Sorry.’
‘The thing is, Lars, it isn’t actually a no. If you’re still interested, Dad and I would like to offer you a full-time four-month contract at Bay Books.’
