Page 29 of Saving Forever
“What about the new wine bar on Main Street?” Serena suggests. “It’s supposed to be great.”
“It’s right down the street from the space I want for the bookstore,” Jayne adds, “so we can walk by and I can tell you some of my plans. Assuming we can make it work.”
“That’s still on the table?” I ask. We talked about it several weeks ago but I haven’t had time to follow up with everything going on in my life.
“You gave me some great suggestions about financing,” she says, “so that’s what I’m working on now. Along with a business plan.”
“It’s good to get organized,” I say. “Especially if you get investors.”
“I don’t know any other way to do it,” she admits. “Bodi would give me the money but…” She pauses and sighs. “I don’t want him to invest in something so risky. Are bookstores hot right now? Sure. But so many go out of business. I’m looking at the stats and even though that little downtown area in Peachtree Heights is busy, is it busy enough to sustain a bookstore long-term?”
“Those are important questions,” I say. “Demographics can make or break you. There’s also the type of bookstore.”
“I know.” Jayne is thoughtful. “I’d like a romance-only store, because honestly, as much as I love kids, I don’t want to be overrun with kids and then have women looking for spicy reads be turned off.”
“And of course, then you’ll have the opposite problem,” Serena interjects. “Where moms who have their kids with them don’t want to come in, worried they might see something they shouldn’t.”
“Exactly.”
“I went to a romance-only bookstore in L.A.,” Serena says. “And they were packed. On a Tuesday or something. And once you start doing special events, with authors and stuff, I think you’ll be golden.”
“I agree. There are a billion regular bookstores. Yours should be special.”
Jayne smiles. “That’s what I think too. Well, I’m graduating with my master’s in two weeks, and then I plan to dive into this headfirst.”
“I’m so excited for your graduation,” Serena says warmly. She turns to me. “We’re having a graduation party at the house. You and Viktor are invited.”
I smile gratefully. “Thank you. I’m struggling to feel like I fit in anywhere. I didn’t realize how much Nathan had isolated me until I ended things and was, like, shit…I’ve let my friendships go, my professional contacts, everything. Thank you for letting me back into your life.”
Serena’s gaze sobers. “You think I haven’t been in a situation where it felt like I lost everything? My very lucrative job. My insurance. My baby daddy. All of it, gone. Because I was pregnant. So I understand. Different circumstances, but a similar result.”
“And you and Viktor look so cute together,” Jayne says. “No one is going to suspect anything. I mean, I’m going to assume you guys get along when you’re alone?” She looks at me questioningly.
The answer is easy. “Yes. Absolutely. The language barrier was hard at first but now I’m used to the way he talks and he’s really sweet and thoughtful. I don’t understand how he’s still single.”
Serena nudges me. “Especially since he’s not.”
We all chuckle.
“You know what I mean. I didn’t expect marriage to be an option with someone like him.”
“Kelly says he’s too shy for his own good.”
I must have made some kind of face because Jayne cocks her head. “What? Something happen with Kelly?”
Kelly is Jayne’s boss at the library and they’re close too, so I don’t want to say anything that might come back to haunt me.
“Well, I don’t think she likes me.”
“Not true.” Jayne shakes her head. “She doesn’t think what you guys are doing is healthy—for either of you. But it’s not about you specifically.”
“That’s good to hear.” I smile and change the subject. “Anyway, Viktor is a little shy, but I think it’s more about the language barrier than his actual personality.”
“I never thought of that,” Jayne admits. “Interesting.”
“He’s also very…protective. He didn’t like the way my dad spoke to me at all.” The memory makes me smile. “There’s something about a guy who gets all gruff and bossy. He almost yanked my arm out of the socket getting me out of the car. Not in a mean way, he just wanted to get as far away from him as possible.”
Serena fans herself. “Ooohhh, our Russian hottie is alpha.”
