Under New Management

Under New Management

  By Fiona L. Webber

  Copyright 2013 by Fiona L. Webber

  Cover Design by Jennifer Barnhouse

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  All rights reserved without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the copyright owner and publisher of this book except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are a product of the author’s imagination. Any similarity to real persons living or dead is purely coincidental and not intended by the author.

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  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  Under New Management

  Bonus Material: Chapter One of Love's Decisions

  Acknowledgement

  About the Author

  Contact Me

  Under New Management

  "Here comes your shadow." Gail smiled and nodded her head toward the grocery store's parking lot. "It's so nice you two can spend so much time together. Pete helps you in your store every day."

  Even without Gail telling her, Shannon would have known it was Pete. It was the same every morning. She could picture him now, walking purposefully across the parking lot with determination marking his every step. The sun would be glinting in his shaggy blonde hair, while the breeze played hide and seek in and out of his wavy locks. The artificial smile he'd worn every day since he received his lay-off notice at work carved indelibly on his handsome face. In his crisply creased suit pants and sport jacket, he appeared the perfect example of the young affluent bank loan manager he used to be.

  Shannon pushed her curly black bangs off her perspiring forehead. Her ponytail bounced against the back of her neck. Oh, please not today, she thought, I need some time without you. Instead of any of that, she said, "Pete likes to help out in the store since he has so much free time now."

  "Any job interviews scheduled since those two a few weeks ago?" Gail asked.

  Shannon shook her head and continued bagging the groceries.

  "Has he registered with any temp agencies?" Gail persisted.

  With another shake of her head Shannon pulled another grocery bag from the holder and started filling it.

  "Any idea how much longer he'll be out of work?"

  "Not much longer, I hope," Shannon answered, and meant it. The shrill note in her voice startled her in the early morning stillness of the store. She looked up quickly but, thankfully, Gail didn't seem to have notice. "Soon," she continued more quietly. "We're really starting to feel the pinch without that extra paycheck each week."

  Gail nodded knowingly. "I remember when John was laid off two years ago. The money was tight all right but that wasn't the worst of it. I just couldn't stand him under foot around the house all the time. He got so he wouldn't even look for work. You know what I mean?"

  Shannon nodded. Boy, do I ever know what you mean, she thought, but didn't answer.

  "You and Pete are different," Gail chattered on. "At least he works right here in the store beside you every day."

  Shannon plopped a box of cake mix into the bag of groceries. "All finished," she said firmly. "Come back soon."

  "See you." Gail waved as she went out the door.

  Shannon ran her fingers through her bangs. She peered nervously out the window. Gail and Pete were engaged in apparently animated conversation. Pete smiled, perhaps a little tightly, but nodded vigorously on Gail's every word. Not so long ago, he had teased Shannon unmercifully about the everyday trivia she had to listen to at the store. Now there he stood listening intently to Gail.

  How things have changed lately, Shannon thought with a sigh. Before his layoff, Pete never came into the store. "The store is your business," he'd say with a proud smile. "You started it without me; I'm not going to tell you what to do since we're married." Now, he was here from opening to closing time every day. He hadn't applied for work anywhere else since those two interviews five weeks ago. He didn't go anywhere or do anything except come here to the store. The thought of all those long, endless days until he would find another job made her feel dizzy. Still, he was a big help. If only …, she thought. If only what?

  The door swung open with its little tinkling bell interrupting any answer to the question.

  With a perfunctory peck on the cheek, Pete said, "You didn't wake me." His voice was accusing, but he smiled widely.

  "I thought I'd let you sleep late today," she said and winced guiltily.

  "Well, now that I'm here, what's on the agenda today?" He rubbed his hands together expectantly. "Any deliveries?"

  You know the daily schedules as well as I do, she thought, but every morning we go through the same ritual.

  "Those extra hams and turkeys you ordered for Thanksgiving will be delivered today," she answered quietly.

  He took a sponge from beneath the counter and began scrubbing the sparkling Formica.

  "You're sure they'll deliver today?" He scraped a microscopic spot with his thumb nail. "We need them today or we'll lose money every day they're late."

  She nodded, carefully avoiding his smiling gaze. "This is the regular meat delivery day."

  "Did you go to the bank?" he asked absently.

  "Yes," she said, studying the shining waxed floor.

  He gave the counter a final swipe with the sponge.

  "Did you check the stock for next week's orders?"

  "Yes." She nodded emphatically. "And I called Mary to work on Thanksgiving Eve, so we can have the day off."

  "Good girl," he said, "Always on top of everything."

  She glanced around the store.

  "I'm here now, so why don't you take a break," he said, patting her shoulder.

  "I'm not really tired," she protested half-heartedly, "but the storeroom does need a good cleaning."

  "Sure," he answered, squeezing her arm quickly. "Sure, that sounds like a good idea."

  She felt the tightening in her chest that signaled the distance that was slowly widening between them lately. I should say something, she thought, but what? Her jaw worked convulsively, opening and closing her mouth ever so slightly, but she emitted no sound. Not, Please go home and let me run my own store. Not even, I understand how you feel about losing your job. She shivered involuntarily. Oblivious, Pete carefully continued counting the money in the cash register.

  "Pete," she whispered.

  "What?" He looked up, then, "Not now, Shannon. I lost count of the money. I'll have to start all over."

  "It was nothing important," she said. She turned and marched resignedly down the aisle.

  The storeroom was quiet and comforting. She sat on an orange crate, looking at the wedding ring on her finger. Just a plain gold band. Her grandmother had given it to her when she and Pete told her they were engaged. It was as if Grandma was right next to her now. "Sixty years of marriage for us," Grandma had said. "Take care of each other and it will be the same for you." Shannon twisted the ring around her finger. "I'm trying Grandma," she whispered. "But sometimes I just don't know what to do."

  She studied the ceiling. It was clean, of course, just as the rest of the store was. She prided herself on her cleaning. Even the health inspector always remarked on her excellent cleanliness rating during his inspections. And yet, Pete was out front re-doing all her morning work. She shook her head in frustration.

  She began to rearrange the crates of fruit and the cardboard boxes of canned foods. Slowly, the physical exertion relaxed her tense muscles. When the crates and boxes were stacked neatly against one
side of the room, she started moving them back to their original places.

  From time to time she heard the tinkling bell on the front door that announced a customer's arrival or departure. Voices drifted down the aisles to the storeroom and once or twice she heard her name, but she steadfastly resisted the urge to return to her place at the checkout counter.

  She didn't know how long the rising crescendo of grating voices had gone on before she noticed them, but gradually they intruded themselves on her solitude.

  She was aware of Pete's menacing voice first. "You stupid idiot. What am I supposed to do with these?"

  "Look, I just deliver what you order. You do whatever you want with them." That voice was familiar....

  "I'll tell you what I'm not going to do," Pete's shout reverberated through the store, "I'm not going to pay for them!"

  "You ordered it, you pay for it!" Then the angry voice clicked in her mind. It was Dave Larsen with the meat delivery.

  She hurried to the front of the store. With one quick look she knew the situation was ready to get out of control. Pete stood with fists clenched at his waist. His face had the red tinge that signaled his erupting temper. Dave crouched bull-like, ready to charge Pete at the slightest provocation.

  "What's going on?" Shannon asked, placing herself strategically between them. She let her gaze move from one to the other, finally settling on Pete. He made no answer.

  Both men stared at her uncomprehending for a moment. Slowly, Pete's fists began to unclench, but the anger was still visible in his twitching jaw. Shannon eyed Dave Larsen's crouched form with distaste. Abruptly, he straightened to his full six feet height and looked at her sheepishly.

  "Now," she said in a level tone. "What's going on, Dave?"

  Dave cleared his throat self-consciously. "Your husband says he won't pay for the meat he ordered."

  "I told you I didn't …," Pete started, but stopped when Shannon turned her ice-blue gaze on him.

  "Why won't you pay him?" she asked quietly.

  "I didn't order beef and chicken," he answered in an equally quiet tone. "You know I ordered turkeys and hams. With Thanksgiving coming next week, what are we going to do with that stuff? "

  "Why would I not deliver what you ordered?" Dave interrupted.

  Pete looked past Shannon to Dave and said, "He probably delivered our order to someone else. He's just trying to save his job at our expense. That might even be understandable if he admitted it."

  "Look, Shannon, you're a reasonable woman." Dave stared down at her. "I've been delivering here for ten years. Have I ever brought you the wrong order?"

  "No, you haven't," she said. "Let's see the bill of lading. That should explain all this."

  Dave retrieved his clipboard from the counter.

  "See for yourself," he said and pointed with a pudgy finger to the top page. "The same order as last week."

  "You're right," Shannon said, scanning the order form. Turning to Pete she said, "Are you sure you phoned in the new order?"

  His eyes closed, Pete thought for a long moment. "I was dialing the phone to change the order," he said in a subdued tone, "and …," his voice trailed off quietly, then, he shook his head and continued, "someone came in and I hung up to help the customer. After she left I didn't call back to change the order."

  Shannon chewed her lower lip. "This really puts us in a mess." She turned to Dave. "But we ordered it, so of course we'll pay for it."

  "I can't believe I forgot," Pete mumbled behind her.

  "Wait a minute, Shannon," Dave said, carefully ignoring Pete. "You've always been a good customer before this. I'll call my boss and explain. He'll probably okay an extra delivery, just this once."

  "Do you think so?" Shannon smiled hopefully.

  "Well, I'll have to take this order back, so it will probably cost you for the trip back," he paused cautiously, "and a little extra for the return trip." His shaggy eyebrows made a lopsided bridge over his nose and he nodded ever so slightly toward Pete.

  Seeing the gesture, Pete said quietly, "No problem."

  "Can I use your phone?" Dave jerked his thumb toward the wall phone behind Pete.

  "No problem with that either." Pete stepped from behind the counter.

  Dave dialed, and then drummed his fingertips impatiently on the wall.

  "Boss? I've run into a little problem." Dave's voice boomed in the silence. He looked at Shannon guiltily, and then continued in a hushed voice.

  Shannon touched Pete's hand gently. "It'll be all right," she whispered.

  "I really messed things up," Pete whispered back.

  "Don't be so hard on yourself," she said. "It was only a mistake. Dave will talk to his boss and everything will be fine." She emphasized her confidence with a small smile.

  "I can't believe I did such a stupid thing," Pete whispered. "I acted like a total fool. I almost got into a fist fight over something you fixed in five minutes."

  Shannon put her hand on his forearm. "It'll be all right."

  "I've been in a tail spin since I lost my job." Pete swiped his curly hair off his sweaty forehead. "Those job interviews I went to didn't help. They treated me like I was worthless."

  "Oh, Pete," Shannon said. "You didn't tell me that's what happened."

  "When I thought he brought the wrong order, I felt like I had a chance to show you I'm not worthless here either."

  Shannon swallowed the lump forming in her throat. "You know you're not worthless to me."

  Dave cleared his throat noisily behind them. "The boss wants to know what your new order is."

  "It's under the counter," Pete said to Shannon.

  "You wrote it out," she said. "You know I can't read your scrawl."

  "It's just a bunch of numbers on the lines." Pete looked at her sharply. "I've had my fill of running this store."

  "I don't care who reads it to me or just give it to me and I'll read it," Dave put his hand over the receiver, "but my boss is waiting."

  "I can't find it," Shannon said as she dug around under the counter.

  "It's right here." Pete reached in and plucked it out of the mess. He handed it to Dave.

  Shannon smiled and kissed Pete's cheek. "What would I do without you? We make a good team when we work together."

  Dave hung up the phone noisily. "I'll be back later today with the new order," he said. "It may be late. I'll have to do it after my other orders are finished."

  "Thanks, I'll stay until you come back," Shannon said. "I know this is a lot of extra work for you and I want you to know how much I really appreciate it."

  "Like I said before," Dave said, "you've always been a good customer."

  "I'm sorry for the extra work," Pete said, extending his hand, "and the other stuff, too."

  "It's okay," Dave said as he shook Pete's hand brusquely.

  "I'll see you later, Dave," Shannon said, as he strode out the door toward his delivery truck.

  "See, I told you everything would be all right," Shannon said. She linked her arm through Pete's. "You just have to be a little diplomatic, that's all."

  "You're a better negotiator than I am," he said and squeezed her forearm. "You're pretty smart, too, and that helps."

  She looked into his twinkling blue eyes. He slid his arms around her waist and pulled her close.

  As their lips touched, the tinkling bell on the door interrupted them. An elderly man paused with his hand on the door. "Is the store open?" he asked.

  Stepping from Pete's embrace, Shannon smiled at the new customer. "Sure," she said. "Come in."

  With a smile in return and a wink the man hurried past them and then along an aisle, putting items in his shopping cart.

  Shannon noticed her wedding ring twinkling in a stray sunbeam coming in thru the window over the checkout counter. Remembering her Grandma's wish for her she smiled. "Thank you, Grandma," she whispered.

  "Ready to take over your store again?" Pete said from behind her. "I think my vacation from the real world has gone o
n long enough. I need to find another job."

  "You don't need to spend every day looking for work," Shannon said, turning to look into his eyes. "I need some help here sometimes."

  "Yes I do," he said, "and no you don't.

  He kissed her upturned mouth gently. She snuggled back into his arms.

  "I love you," she whispered.

  "I love you, too," he said.

  THE END

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