Finding Me (26 page)

There was one dress that was this absolutely beautiful ice-blue satin thing. As soon as I saw it,
I just flipped. But when I put it on, it
clung to my thighs just a little too tight, making them look bigger than they are, then sort of hung loosely at my chest, making me look even flatter than I am. It was an obvious no-go so I
hollered out the door that it was a dud. Mimi
insisted on seeing it anyway, and I can still remember how embarrassed I was as I walked out in it.
Especially in front of Mimi. Everything about her was so
perfectly proportioned (part of that was surgically induced, but that
doesn’t really matter when you’re looking in the mirror, does it?). I braced myself for whatever she would
say, because Mimi was famous for not-quite-filtered comments,
even when she meant no harm. She learned that from
Opal, who took bluntness to a whole new level.

She took one look and shook her head. “Now that’s
a downright shame.” I have never forgotten one single word
of her answer, not one single inflection in her voice, not one single movement as she spoke. She flipped her
perfectly highlighted blond hair over her shoulder, still shaking her head. “You are hands down the prettiest girl who will
ever put on that dress, and the idea of that dress is so perfect, it’s just a shame that the designer didn’t pay a little more attention to detail in the way that it is cut. It’s
his loss, but it’s a shame he’ll never know it.”

I was stunned. It was perhaps the most
direct compliment I’d ever heard from Mimi, or ever have since, I suppose. But she was completely serious, it
wasn’t that silly little flattering thing that she and her friends would sometimes get into. “You look beautiful.” “Oh
no, you look so much better.” None of that nonsense.

She did love me. I know that she did, in
her own way, and this memory is one that I
will always cherish. We ate lunch in Malibu that day,
and then walked through some shops before driving home. We
laughed and chatted the whole way. I remember thinking at
the time that she maybe was my best friend.

Now, in retrospect, I see that even though the two of us didn’t get along all that great, and Dad and I were always such pals, it appears that in actuality she may have been the better person. At least
she didn’t leave a spouse and children behind to take care of her invalid mother. She was a part
of it, no doubt, but they weren’t people that she knew and loved—they were people that HE knew
and supposedly loved. What kind of monster does that?

Surely there is more to the story. Something that I’m
missing. I’ve got to find it, if I’m
ever going to feel even remotely okay about my father again.

30

K
elli had spent the week learning and relearning Kenmore’s system for doing things around the store. She’d finally achieved a level of competence to his satisfaction just in time for his surgery yesterday.

On Saturday morning, she drove over to the hospital to visit him. He had been moved from the surgical wing and was now on a floor for rehab. The doctor had said he would be there at least a week, but when Kelli arrived, he was already talking about going home. “I’m plenty able to take care of myself. No reason to sit around here when I could be at home sitting around in my own comfortable chair and sleeping in my own comfortable bed.”

“Yes, but don’t you need someone to help you for a bit?” Kelli asked.

“I’ve got Shane, that’s all I need.”

“I wish I had a dime for every time I’ve heard that.” Shane walked into the room carrying an armload of books.

“Heard what?” Kenmore asked.

“‘Shane is all I need.’ It seems that a lot of people feel that way.”

Kelli and Kenmore both laughed, but Kelli found herself
wondering about the words. Shane was good-looking—beyond good-looking, really. He walked around with plenty of confidence that led Kelli to believe he probably had plenty of admirers in his life, but as far as she could tell, he didn’t have a girlfriend. He seemed to spend all his time either at his job, at home, or in the store harassing her. How many women had fallen head over heels for him? Too many, most likely, which perhaps accounted for some of his arrogance.

“So, tell me,” Kenmore said, shifting in his bed, “how did things go with the store yesterday?”

“Pretty well. We were busy, but nothing overwhelming.” Kelli didn’t tell him that she had stayed well past closing, and in fact planned to go out to the store as soon as she spent a couple hours with Beth, in spite of the fact that this was her day off.

“Mr. Moore, it’s time for your physical therapy.” A man who looked to be in his mid-thirties walked into the room, pushing a wheelchair in front of him.

“You can put that thing away. I’m walking.”

“Yes, sir, we just bring this to follow you around in case you get tired and need to sit.”

“Well, I won’t. Leave it here. I’m going to walk every bit of it, because I need to get out of here and back to work, and sitting on my duff is not going to make that happen.”

Kelli and Shane exchanged a grin. Kelli said, “Well, I better hit the road so you can do your thing, boss man. Have a nice workout.”

“I’ll walk you to your car. Something tells me I don’t want to be around here for the next little while.”

As soon as the two of them made it out of Kenmore’s room, Shane said, “I was planning on coming to find you today, so this was a bit of good timing. I drove by the store last night. What exactly are you doing in there?” He didn’t sound angry, just curious, but Kelli
knew that could easily change. Besides, Shane lived thirty minutes away from the store, so there was no accident in his “driving by.”

“Ever since I’ve been here, I’ve thought there is a better way to arrange the merchandise. Right now, a lot of the plumbing and car supplies are toward the front. It tends to make the store look a little junky. Plus, those items sell a fair amount, so if we moved them to the back, then the customers would have to walk past several aisles of other things that they might also need but don’t know that we carry. I just thought that if I can make the store look a little neater and increase our sales at the same time, it would be a good thing.”

“Did you tell Pop you are doing that?”

She braced herself. “Not exactly.” Kelli looked at Shane, trying to gauge how he was taking it. “Your father isn’t particularly open to suggestions where the store is concerned.”

Shane laughed outright. “Don’t I know that.”

“I thought if I make the changes while he’s gone, once he gets back and sees how much better it works, he’ll be happy about it.”

“You are a shrewd woman.” He cocked an eyebrow in what could only be a flirtatious manner.

“So you seem to believe.”

Shane stopped beside her car. “I still don’t understand what you are up to. You show up from across the country, take a job at a little market in the middle of nowhere, and you’re putting in all of these extra hours like you own the place. Something doesn’t add up.”

“I’m sorry if I’m doing too good of a job for your liking.” Kelli opened the car door. “I’m leaving in a couple of months, and you can make certain to replace me with someone who won’t work as hard, okay?” She climbed in and drove away without looking back. She also made a mental note to continue avoiding Shane as much as possible. Problem was, he wasn’t making that easy.

“Any sign of Kelli yet?”

“I’ll go check.” Alison walked across the hall, drew back the curtain, and looked down the sidewalk. “Not yet. But it’s only nine-thirty. She isn’t supposed to be here for another fifteen minutes.” She went back into Beth’s room, where her daughter was making an attempt at knitting a baby blanket.

“I know. I’m just anxious to hear about how her day went yesterday. She worked by herself, you know.”

“I don’t think she was by herself, exactly. Kenmore said Keith was going to work extra hours to help her out.”

“Still . . . he’s just a kid.” She pulled the knit square up for a closer examination, shook her head, and pulled out a row of stitches. “It was her first day in charge of the place. I asked Rand to drive me out there to check on her, but he wouldn’t.”

Alison laughed. “I’ll just bet.”

The doorbell rang, and Beth practically squealed. “I knew she’d be early.”

Alison met Kelli at the door. “Good morning.”

“How’s our patient today?”

“Not very patient, I’m afraid.”

Kelli laughed. “Somehow that doesn’t surprise me.”

“Thank you so much for hanging out with her while Rand and I are working.”

“I’m happy to. I only wish I could do it more during the week, when you’re teaching in Nashville.”

“She’s fine by herself, for the most part. Besides, Kenmore needs you more than we do right now. You’ve become quite the helper in your short time in our city. You better get out of here before we decide we can’t let you go.”

Kelli blinked fast, as if fighting tears. “Glad I can help.”

Alison made her way out the door, wondering if she’d somehow upset Kelli. There was something about the girl that made Alison uneasy—not in a bad way, but it just felt as if Alison were missing something about her. Something important.

Still, she was glad Beth had befriended her. It seemed as if both of the girls needed a friend right now. This was a friendship she would continue to encourage.

31

S
hane waited until midday Wednesday before he executed a surprise inspection of his father’s store. He’d waited long enough to give Kelli a false sense of security that she was not being watched. By now, her true colors were likely beginning to show. He was going to double-check the receipts for the last few days and find out exactly what was going on.

When he pulled into the parking lot, there were several other cars there, as well. Rather a lot of cars for this time of day. Shane went inside and couldn’t believe what he was seeing.

It had only been four days since he had last been there, but in that time, shelves had been rearranged, the dusty old displays of life-sized Dale Earnhardt cardboard cutouts and such had been removed, and there was a fresh coat of paint on the wall behind the register. The whole front counter had been reorganized and actually looked neat and clean.

He looked toward the register, where Kelli was ringing up Mabel Smith and her passel of grandkids for the afternoon’s Milk Dud fix. “I love what you’ve done with this place,” Mabel was saying. “The kids’ play area over in the corner is genius.
Just genius. I’ve told Marion and Bernice about it, too. I expect they’ll be bringing their grandkids in to check it out in the next day or two.”

“Thanks,” Kelli answered. “I thought that would make for a nice convenience for families with small children. I’m glad you think so, too.”