Wyatt narrowed his eyes at me.
揑 mean,?I sucked a breath in and shifted in my seat. 揗y dad likes to keep the store the way my mom had it.?
His eyebrows pulled together and his eyes narrowed further.
One of my shoulders lifted in a shrug and I shook my head. 揑t抯 fine.?
He was doing that watching thing again. I avoided his gaze and focused on sipping my drink.
揌e doesn抰 want you to make any changes??
I sighed. It was hard to explain. 揌e says we have a small-town charm, and anytime I bring up the website or ripping out that ugly carpet, he gets uncomfortable. It was my mom抯 store and he still misses her.?My heart twisted. 揑 do, too.?
Wyatt nodded slowly. 揝o say your dad changed his mind and was on board for whatever changes you wanted to make, and you had enough money to make it happen, what would you do??
I bit my lip, a smile growing on my face. 揊irst, I抎 get rid of that ugly maroon carpet. I hate that fucking carpet.?
Wyatt burst out laughing. 揥hoa, bookworm, language.?
I laughed with him. 揝orry. It抯 like something out of a prison or a high school. I抎 paint the inside a lighter color to brighten the place up, and add a pretty wallpaper. Something floral.?I leaned in, gaze locked with Wyatt. 揝omething bold, frivolous, fun, and wild. I抎 have a ton of plants inside if I could get them to grow. I抎 take photos everyday around the store and post them to social media so people around the world could picture themselves there.?I tilted my head, thinking. 揥e could have a cool chair near the window that people could sit in and take pictures in. We抎 have to get a better website so people could place orders online.?
I remembered something I had seen online. 揙h, and the lighting. I抎 get new lighting, something pretty, some antique chandeliers or something fluffy and silly.?
揊luffy lighting,?Wyatt repeated with a grin.
揧ou heard me. Fluffy. Books are all about fantasy, getting immersed in a story and characters. People read as an escape, and I want stepping into the store to be like that, too. Plus,?I shrugged, playing with the end of my ponytail. 揥hy fit in? Why not do something memorable and cool??
His gaze traveled over my face and he nodded.
揑 think if we had endless funds, I抎 have the mural repainted. Right now it抯 faded and crumbling, and it could be spectacular.?I shrugged. 揂nd the books on the mural??My nose wrinkled. 揟hey抮e outdated. Sure, some of them are classics, but those books leave out a lot of people.?I chewed my lip, thinking about Liya, Max, and Div.
He nodded. 揟hey抮e for straight white people.?
揈xactly. And I know my mom didn抰 mean to leave anyone out, but I know better. I sell lots of books for lots of people. I don抰 want anyone to feel excluded.?A memory passed through my mind and I smiled. 揗y mom used to say, there抯 a story for every soul.?I leaned my chin on my palm. Something happy fizzed in my chest, talking Wyatt抯 ear off like this about silly dreams. 揑 believe it. I believe the right book is out there for everyone. I love that part of my job.?
He sipped his beer and watched me with a warm gaze. 揢pdating the mural is a great idea.?
I clasped my hands together. 揑 don抰 know. My dad would never go for it. All my ideas are kind of out there.?
He raised an amused eyebrow. 揈ven more out there than feathery lighting??
My chest shook with laughter. 揑 said fluffy lighting. And yes, even more out there than that.?I hesitated. 揑抎 make the store into a romance-only bookstore.?
I waited for him to tell me this was a terrible idea, but he only crossed his arms over his chest and tilted his head at me. 揃ecause you like romance books??
I shook my head, sucking in a breath and gathering my thoughts. 揑t抯 more than that. Yes, I love romance books, but so do so many others. Romance is the number one selling genre. Every year, romance sells double the next highest genre, crime and thriller. Most bookstores have a couple shelves dedicated to romance, and you抮e lucky if the staff read romance and can recommend books. People buy a lot of romance online because they either can抰 get the books in stores, or they抮e embarrassed.?
I leaned forward. 揙ne time, Avery and I were in Victoria, and I went into a bookstore to see if they had a certain romance book, and the guy laughed at me.?
Wyatt抯 eyebrows shot up in surprise.
My nostrils flared and I swallowed. My stomach boiled at the memory. 揌e laughed at me, Wyatt, for wanting to read a book with a happy ending.?My eyes narrowed. 揟hat guy was a dick.?I shrugged. 揑 want to create a space where people aren抰 embarrassed to read books that make them happy. No women are killed in romance books the way they always seem to be in crime novels.?The champagne fizzed on my tongue again as I sipped it. 揟here are tons of regular bookstores on the island where people can buy other genres, not to mention overnight delivery services. If it were up to me, I抎 create something special, unlike any other store around here. Besides, my store is kind of small. It would be so easy to fill it up with romance. I can always special order other books in for people who want them and don抰 want to go to Port Alberni.?That was a larger town on the island that had a big bookstore.