A bane in the neck, p.1
A Bane in the Neck, page 1
A Bane in the Neck
Ember Mae
Copyright © 2022 by Ember Mae
All rights reserved.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the products of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Created with Vellum
For my God, who sustains me while I follow His purpose for me.
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Author’s Note
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Also by Ember Mae
1
The sun shone down on the mountain, the early morning fog long gone and replaced with a steady, comforting heat for Vermont in early spring. I checked behind me to make sure my trouble-finding pup was still with me on our trek to the shop.
Some trees around the shops had leaves already back on their limbs and the bushes planted by my shop had shiny red berries on them.
I looked over at Doodle and then back at the bush. “I don’t know how this thing has already got fruit on it, but this is a berry no one should eat,” I told him. “Especially you. Remind me later and I’ll take all of them off and get rid of them. I don’t need you or anyone else getting red baneberry poisoning.”
Doodle doggy grinned up at me, then continued smelling his way to the door to my shop.
The door was made of paneled panes with dark stained wood moldings. Stuck to one of those panes was an envelope with big red letters on it.
I sighed.
“Late notice,” I told Doodle, my snow-white West Highland Terrier, while he waited for me to open the door.
He cocked his head at me and whined a little.
“I know, but I can’t afford to feed us and pay rent on this building,” I complained. “No one told me when I accepted this space that the non-peak season was so desolate.” I shoved the key in the hole, gave it a twist, and pushed the door open. Doodle half barked at me and then ran inside, his nails clacking on the hardwood, and his white ears bouncing in time with his steps.
I rolled my eyes. He was such a prince sometimes.
“Doodle, can you get the station set up for our appointment today? I’m going to check the messages.”
Doodle sat down, looked at me and huffed.
I laughed, “Right, I forgot, you’re a freeloader, not an assistant.”
He chuffed, then trotted to his bed in the corner of the small boutique shoe store and promptly took his mid-morning nap.
I laughed, turning back to the door. I pulled the letter from the pane and locked the door again. Then I made my way over to the old cedar-topped counter I had as a cashier stand. It was bare except for the old-fashioned cash register I found for a steal on Facebook Marketplace and a small phone and answering machine in the corner. I didn’t want to field customer calls on my off days, of course right now, fielding calls would be a blessing.
I hit the little button next to the red light on the machine and waited for the message. I hoped it was another client appointment. That would be a lifesaver right about now.
“Hey, Roni, it’s Charlie. I’m sorry, but I’m going to have to cancel my appointment. It’s a tough time right now. We’re short-staffed, and my main chef just called out sick. I’ll set up another appointment when I get a chance. My feet are killing me. I hope you have a great day, and I’m really sorry. Um, okay, bye,” the machine said.
I let my face fall to the counter. “This sucks!” I groaned into it.
Doodle ran over to me, apparently concerned by my face-smashing behavior, and jumped up to my knee. I bent down and picked up his almost weightless body, snuggling him close to my chest.
“Thanks, my little dragon. I love you too.”
He licked my nose, then clacked onto the counter.
“You know, it’s a good thing I don’t run a bakery. You couldn’t be on the counters there.”
He chuffed again, then spun in a circle three times before lying down in the middle of the counter space.
I left him there and began preparing for the day. I swept the floors, counted the money in the cash register and the cash in the safe in the back room, I adjusted all the shoes, and put up a flier for twenty-five percent off on pre-made pairs of shoes. Hopefully, that would catch the eye of some shopaholic guest.
I had just enough time to read what was in the letter left on my door before I needed to welcome the nonexistent masses into my store. I took a deep breath and sliced it open. It read:
Dear Miss Swift,
You are hereby informed that you will be required to partake in Vendor Agreement Heading B Section 24-C, whereby you and Miss Kourtney Blake will create and advertise an event for the upcoming St. Patrick’s holiday for Last Resort and Spa. You will receive further instructions from a Board of Directors member shortly. Please prepare a list of ideas.
If you refuse to take part in this assignment, your store, Sole Mates, will be closed down and your vendor agreement void. As a low-income producer, you will be subject to Heading B Section 24-C anytime you are three months behind on rent and/or are not producing the expected revenue as agreed upon in your Vendor Agreement.
Have a great day.
Sincerely,
The Board of Directors, Last Resort and Spa
I put the letter on the counter, my hands shaking slightly. Doodle scooted over to me, nosing my face.
“Have a nice day,” I grumbled to the letter. “They’re making me work with the woman who not only canceled an expensive wedding, and cheated on my brother, but also called me a thief. Are they insane? Nora Last is on the board. She’s that witch’s grandmother. She knows what happened. Ugh.”
Doodle licked my nose this time, and I laughed.
“Okay, okay, I’ll settle down, jeeze,” I said, wiping the slobber from my nose. “But I want it made absolutely clear that I’m doing this for you and your highfalutin lifestyle. You hear me?”
Doodle sat, looking at me with a smile.
I sighed looking down at my phone. It was March eleventh. That gave me seven days to come up with some fantastic event. How was I going to work with the Wicked Witch of the North?
The tinkle of my phone alarm started ringing through the pocket of my jeans, which meant it was showtime. I turned it off and headed for the door.
“All right, little dragon. Let’s hope we get more customers than we did yesterday,” I said, flipping the little plank hanging on the door from ‘Closed’ to ‘Open’ and unlocking it.
I headed back to my post behind the counter when I heard the bell on the door jingle. I turned, surprised and excited that it seemed a customer had been waiting for me to open. All of that washed away when I saw who was actually coming in my door.
“What do you want?” I asked, turning all the way around to face off with the blonde standing in my doorway. It was Kourtney Blake, just the woman I didn’t want to see.
She was taller than me, but then who isn’t when you’re five foot one? Kourtney had long bleached blond hair, spray tanned skin, and cold blue eyes that were always calculating to make sure she got the better end of every situation. She wore a hot pink business suit, even though she was the nurse on campus for the resort and should probably wear scrubs. From head to toe, everything on her person was, as my best friend Angie would say, aesthetically pleasing, but it turned my stomach.
Doodle growled from the counter. His eyes narrowed at her. I didn’t know if it was my tone that put him on edge, or if it was just the witch’s presence, but either way, he wasn’t happy.
“Your mutt isn’t going to bite me, right?”
I crossed my arms. “He’ll bite, but only if I tell him to. Why are you here?”
She took a step farther into the room and let the door close behind her with a clang. “Didn’t you get the notice?” she asked, speaking in a high-pitched, nasal tone that made my skin crawl. I walked back behind the counter. I needed something between us so I couldn’t just lunge at her. That would not be appropriate.
“Yes, I did. I didn’t expect you to show up here though. I figured we would send vaguely rude emails back and forth like civilized adults,” I said, wondering if that would in fact be considered the adult thing to do in this situation. You’d think at twenty-seven I would have a better grasp on what being an adult was all about, but I concluded a couple years ago that being an adult is even more of an enigma when you are one than when you aren’t.
“We have to put on a show-stopping event or we’re both getting kicked out of here, and a show-stopping event does not get done through email. Besides, we have to work together to do it. Trust me, I clarified that part extensively.”
“Which really means you’re just looking forward to bossing me around and makin
She smiled, but it wasn’t pleasant. “Yes, that’s part of it. Though I would’ve preferred to just have Ashley do all the work for me, Nora insisted we work together to fulfill our vendor agreement.”
“Who calls their grandmother by their first name?” I asked, dumbfounded.
“I do. Trust me, she’s not really the grandmotherly sort,” she said, waving me off. “We’ll have lunch at noon over at your friend’s café. Don’t be late. I’m an important person and I don’t want to be stuck waiting for you. Also, leave the mutt here.”
“He’s not a mutt.”
“He’s a dog, and that’s all that matters to me,” she said, turning on her heel, her blond hair sailing behind as she headed for the door. “Don’t forget. Noon at Enchanted Reads and Teas.”
The door slammed behind her as she made her way down the sidewalk. I let out a breath I hadn’t realized I was holding.
“This is so not good,” I complained and thunked my forehead back down onto the counter. Doodle leaned over, licking my face.
I looked around at my shop. The cute shelves I put together with my brother and my best friend. All the shoes I’d made with my own two hands. Shoemaking was the love of my life and if I had to work with the absolute bane of my existence to keep doing it, then that was a price I was willing to pay.
2
“All right, Doodle, I’ll be back after lunch. I’ll bring you something too, okay?” I said, scratching behind his ears. “Stay out of the shoe polish and keep an eye out.”
Doodle licked my face, then readied himself so I could lower him back to the ground. I placed him carefully on the hardwood and grabbed my purse.
With a sigh, I changed the sign from ‘Open’ to ‘Out for lunch’ and locked the door. On my walk over to Enchanted Reads and Teas, a cute little café/bookshop my friend Jade ran, thoughts of the coming stress, and overall irritation I was bound to experience danced through my head.
“Had I known then what I know now, I never would’ve tried to set up my business here,” I grumbled to myself, walking past the Last Resort Lodge from the shopping village.
“Hun, I thought we spoke about talking to yourself,” a familiar voice asked from the flower beds. I looked closer to see that it was Lois ‘Jellybean’ Wilks, the owner of Lacey Things, Last Resort’s lingerie shop.
She was tall, fit, and built with all the things a woman could ask for. She was in her late fifties or early sixties; I wasn’t certain and I sure as industrial strength glue would not ask.
She wore yoga pants with a flowy tank top that showed off her toned arms and on her feet were the platform heels I designed for her.
I smiled. “You said it was okay as long as I didn’t answer myself, and I haven’t… yet.”
I walked over, and she stooped down a bit to give me a hug.
“It’s nice to see you. I need some of your biting humor before lunch,” I said.
She side-eyed me, “Why? Who are you having lunch with?”
“Good old Kourtney Blake,” I sighed, rubbing my hand across my face.
“The Wicked Witch of the North? What possessed you to do that?” she asked, casually reaching into her bra and pulling out a snack bag full of pink jelly beans.
“I am being forced by the board. Apparently, we have to plan some big St. Paddy’s Day celebration for the resort or we are getting the boot, and not in a fun way,” I said, looking at the bag of jellybeans she was eating. “Do you separate the jellybeans into colors before packing them for, um, safe-keeping?”
“Honey, I don’t put that much effort into anything, not even getting laid. I special ordered these off the internet. Jade helped me. They just show up on my porch every month.”
I nodded. “Convenient.”
“Yes, and requires no extra work on my part, other than collecting them from my door. It’s really nice,” she said, popping a couple more jellybeans into her mouth. “So, do I need to spring you from this lunch? I could fake a hip injury.”
I laughed. “Thank you for offering, but I’ll be all right… I think. Anyway, if I don’t work with her, I lose the shop and my little heart can’t take that.”
“I completely understand. Fine, if you won’t let me be your excuse, let me talk to the board. I’ve got some pull there. I could probably get you a pardon.”
“Thanks, Jellybean, but I got myself into this mess. I’ll do my bit to get myself out of it. Besides, you’ll ruin your reputation as the aloof, uncaring, snarky old lady of the resort.”
She laughed. “It’d be worth it. Besides, everyone around here knows I’m only an aloof, uncaring, snarky old lady to people. To my persons, I’m the biggest momma bear alive.” She winked at me.
I smiled up at her, trying to blink the sudden moisture from my eyes.
“Ahh, I love you,” I said, awkwardly hugging her again. “Okay, I have to go. I’m already late. I’ll see you at dinner?”
“Sounds like a plan. I’ll see you later. I got some new product in for you girls to try.”
I stopped dead, my face getting hot and my voice quivered. “I-uh, I don’t think I am going to try anything on. Not really my thing.”
She let loose an evil laugh. “Oh, I know, honey, I just wanted to make you go red, and it worked like a charm. I’ll see you later.”
I shook my head at her and continued on to Enchanted Reads and Teas, hoping my face would turn back to its usual color before seeing Kourtney.
“You’re late,” Kourtney said as I sat down at the little round wooden table she’d picked. We were sitting by the large picture window that looked out on what were ski slopes in the winter, but right now was simply a pretty boring, insanely steep, hiking trail. Of course, I’ve never been one for the outdoors, so it could just be me.
“Sorry, I actually had a customer today,” I said, sitting down across from her.
“Great, did you sell enough of your shoes to pay the rent you owe?”
“No,” I replied, grinding my teeth. “That’s why I’m here. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have bothered showing up at all.”
“That’s rude,” she said, glaring at me for a second, then threw her long blond hair behind her and leaned forward. “I like it. Your brother never stood up to me. He always pandered. ‘I’m sorry honey’ this, ‘forgive me baby’ that. It was annoying.”
I sighed, “We aren’t talking about Teddy. Let’s just talk about the event.”
Her smile broadened. “Right, I’ve heard you have some experience as an event planner and it didn’t really go to plan, so I want to assure you I will take the lead on this endeavor. I will not fail because of the likes of you.”
My face fell. “How do you—Teddy,” I groaned, leaning back in my chair. “I can’t believe he told you that.”
“What did you expect?” Kourtney asked, grinning overtop of her water glass. “We were going to get married.”
“Yeah, well, I thought my middle school dance fiasco wouldn’t have been a topic of discussion during all of your googly-eyed talks.”
“Ha, if the man isn’t talking about making detective, then he’s droning on and on about his ‘amazing’ little sister,” she said, rolling her eyes. “Personally, I don’t see the appeal, but then I had the fortune of being an only child. I didn’t have to pretend to like someone tied to me by blood.”
I rolled my eyes. “I don’t think the board meant for you to railroad this into an event solely run by you. I mean, you can toss away the money you put into that wedding like chump change, but I don’t think the board is going to agree to pick up a tab that expensive. I’m still amazed your grandparents did.”
She narrowed her eyes at me. “You know what’s funny about me tossing the money and your brother away like chump change is I can get it all back. Even Teddy.”
