Ticket 1207 by Robin Alexander Read Free Book Online Page A

was brick and painted white like the ones downstairs in the store. The opposing wall was sheetrock and was painted deep lavender. The dark color offset the bamboo flooring.
    “This is very nice,” Shawn said as she admired the L-shaped couch that seemed to close off the seating area around the TV.
    “Thank you. It’s been renovated a half-dozen times. My great-grandfather bought part of this building, he was in real estate. His oldest daughter married a jeweler, who taught my grandfather the trade. It became the family business when my dad and his brother got into it. Dad left me his part of the business, and Rene’s did the same, that’s how we became partners. How’d you get into botany?”
    “It was easier than becoming a chemist,” Shawn said as she followed Jill into the kitchen.
    “Would you like wine? I have vodka, too, and I think maybe some bourbon.” Jill dug into the refrigerator, giving Shawn a nice view of her rear end.  
    “Um…wine sounds great.”
    “I have cabernet and white.”
    “I’ll go with the cabernet.” Shawn swallowed hard and whispered, “I am a confident woman.”
    Jill stood up straight and turned suddenly. “I missed what you just said.”
    “I…I was just musing that you like that cleaner, too.” Shawn pointed at the bottle on the counter by the sink. “I’m always confident that everything is clean when I use it.”
    Jill picked up the corkscrew and froze for a second. “I haven’t dated anyone in a long time, I feel kind of clumsy. I’m tense, but please don’t interpret my behavior as disinterest.”
    “Thank you for that,” Shawn said with a sigh. “I feel like that most of the time. It’s really nice to know I’m not alone right now.”
    Jill’s gaze rose from the bottle in front of her. “You feel goofy and out of sorts?”
    Shawn shrugged. “Everyone seems so surprised when I say that, but it’s the truth. I’ve always been painfully shy. People I work with think I’m arrogant or aloof until they take the time to get to know me. Some never do. I’m not very good at small talk. I can’t walk up to a group of people and join in on their conversations. It’s like a handicap.”
    Jill worked the opener into the cork and pulled it out. “That explains a lot. The first few times you came into the store, the only thing you said was, ‘Hello, I broke this.’”
    “And I applauded myself for getting that much out. You thought I was snooty, didn’t you?”
    Jill returned her gaze to the wine and poured it into two glasses.
    “You did,” Shawn said with a soft laugh.
    “I did.” Jill handed Shawn a glass. “But just at first.”
    “It’s okay.”
    “What did you…think of me?” Jill asked before she took a drink.
    “You were very businesslike, but polite. Rene kind of put me at ease because she talks a lot.”
    Jill smiled. “That’s why she handles sales and we work so well together. She’ll talk to anyone about anything. One time, she broke a toe, and everyone that came into the store had to hear the whole saga about her tripping on the steps and how bad it hurt. Then she would whip it out and show how it was taped to another toe. Customers either ran out or bought something just to shut her up.” Jill blinked. “I just realized that we’re standing here when we could be sitting on the couch.”
    She walked into the living room, and Shawn followed. “The balcony is nice,” Shawn said as she took a seat on the opposite end of the sofa from Jill.
    “I leave the doors open in the spring and fall. It’s noisy, but the breeze is nice. During Mardi Gras, I close the blinds and hang a heavy blanket over the windows to muffle the noise. This isn’t Bourbon Street, but it sees its share of traffic.” Jill took a sip of her wine. “I’m guessing that you’re not originally from here. You don’t exactly talk like you’re from Nawlins .”
    “A small town outside of Cincinnati. I came here for school, and I liked it, so I stayed.”