Page 38 of The Charmed Friends of Trove Isle
“You’re describing my first marriage.” Danette chuckled, making her head bob even more. “We married and then I was stuck in this loveless relationship. I didn’t want to file for divorce because it felt like too much trouble. All the days blurred together for years.”
“What happened?” Liz wasn’t sure she had even known that the bookstore owner had ever been married.
“Well, when you’re in a state like that, something big has to take place. To shake you.” She gave Liz a pointed look. “Or wake you. For me, it was a man. He walked into my store one day. I’ve never had such a physical reaction to anyone in my life. I felt like every cell inside me lit up. We talked and found out that we had a lot in common. Then he came back every day, pretending to need a new book.”
“He liked you too,” Liz said, finding herself fascinated by Danette’s story.
“Yes, he did.” Suddenly Danette’s body seemed to calm. The shakiness relaxed just a bit. “There was a moment when I knew I loved him. But, in order to be with him, I had to make the changes I’d been too afraid to before. He was the motivation I needed.” She looked at Liz. “So what has finally woken you up? Are you in love?”
Liz folded her arms over her chest and shook her head quickly, the quick motion making her head spin. “No, nothing like that. Just . . . Mel came home. I guess she brought back a lot of memories . . . which reminded me of the reason I’ve been sleeping through life.”
Danette poked her glasses higher on her nose, seeming to scrutinize Liz the way Dr. Mayer had earlier. “If you’re looking for a book to help you find the secret to life, it’s not here.”
Liz already knew that. She’d scoured these shelves and every self-help title there was. “What about a book of poetry? Bri really loves poems these days.”
“Oh, yeah? Well, I do have a small section of that.” Danette gestured for Liz to follow. She walked down a narrow aisle and pointed to the second to bottom shelf. “I can’t bend the way I used to.”
Liz squatted low to browse the selection there. As she did, the charm bracelet slid off her wrist. When she reached to pick it up from the floor, her hand knocked a book off the shelf. It landed right at her feet. The cover was a purple color that stood out among the rest. Liz reached for the book and read the title.Dream Weaver: Poems about Following One’s Passion. Liz wanted this book for herself, not that she read much poetry, but maybe she’d start. She pulled another book off the shelf to bring to Bri and stood. “These will do.”
“I know Bri appreciates you visiting her,” Danette said. “You’re a good friend.”
Liz looked down for a moment.Wasshe a good friend? A good friend might have gone to see Melody in these lost years of their friendship, instead of feeling sorry for herself and blaming Melody for leaving. A good friend would have seen that other people were hurting just as much as she was. Liz always did the easy thing. The thing that didn’t scare her. She’d stopped driving, so going where Melody was had seemed like an impossibility. She had called and emailed though. For a while at least.
Liz looked up at Danette, realization settling over her. “You’re not married. What happened to the guy you fell in love with?”
Danette’s body started to shake again. “Oh, he was just the impetus I needed to put me on a different track, I guess I thought I was filing for divorce because of this man, but I was really filing for myself. This fantasy guy and I had a whirlwind romance, and then one day he disappeared. I went looking for him, of course.”
“Did you find him?”
“I did,” Danette said. “He was married with two kids. He lived in a house with a white picket fence.” Her eyes grew shiny for a second. “I guess he was looking for an escape as much as I was.”
“I’m so sorry, Danette,” Liz whispered.
“Don’t be. I stopped sleepwalking through life that summer. I’ll always be grateful to him for waking me up. That’s worth a broken heart, if you ask me.” She turned and walked to the register to ring Liz up. Danette reached for Liz’s debit card and swiped it with impressive accuracy considering her condition. “Tell Bri I said hello, will you?” she asked, looking up with a sweet smile.
“I will. She’ll love the book of poetry. Thank you for your help. Your bagel is on the house in the morning.”
“Oh, happy day,” Danette called as Liz headed for the door.
Seeing Dr. Mayer had helped considerably, but in some ways, coming inside this bookstore and talking to Danette had helped even more. As Liz stepped out onto Seagull Street, she stood there a moment and let the sun shine on her skin. Something sparkled below her gaze that made her look down at her wrist. There was a book-shaped charm on the bracelet. Liz blinked. That wasn’t there before, was it? Had Melody added it without Liz realizing?
Rose honked and slid their mother’s car haphazardly to the curb in front of Liz. The driver’s side window was rolled down and Rose poked her head out to look at Liz. “Want a ride?”
Liz stood frozen on the sidewalk for a moment. She thought she was waking up, but maybe she was still dreaming. “You’re offering me a ride? Without me asking for one?”
Rose rolled her eyes. “Do you want a ride or not?” she huffed. “I know you had that appointment this afternoon. I saw your calendar. I don’t know.” She jerked her thin shoulders in a shrug. “I thought you might be tired.”
Liz’s sister was actually considering her feelings? This was progress. Maybe spending a little time together in their parents’ absence would be good for them after all. “Wait. If we’re both here right now, who is running The Bitery?”
“I called that temp Mom uses sometimes,” Rose said.
“What? Without asking me first?” Liz shook her head.
“You would have said no.”
Liz didn’t argue. She just headed toward the car. Instead of going to the passenger side, however, she walked around to the driver’s side and dipped to talk to Rose. She was tired of letting her fears stop her. If she could drive, she could accept the bigger photography gigs she’d been offered from time to time. She could start pulling in more money from her hobby and chase her dreams like Jo had advised in her final letter. “Can you teach me to drive?”
Rose let her sunglasses slide halfway down her nose and gave Liz an “are-you-crazy” look.
