Lillibet's Bookshelf - Chapter 1

Chapter 1

“Lillibet, what are you doing back there?” called the familiar voice she was so accustomed to. It was the booming voice of her grandfather, Lester. “I know you’re busy, but come on out here and give your papa a kiss.” Lester Mariby was eighty years young and as feisty as any twenty-one year old she knew. He just didn’t understand that he was actually eighty, slightly arthritic, and had hair as white as snow.
“I’ll be right out Pops,” Lily yelled back. “Just give me a minute to finish stacking these boxes.” Lily had just received a shipment into her tiny bookstore and was like a child opening a treasure chest. The books inside might as well have been gold coins and ingots as far as she was concerned.
“I’d be glad to come back there and give you a hand,” Lester called back, rising up on tiptoe to try and get a glimpse of just what was going on in her jumbled back room. The silk curtain she used to hide the clutter was gapped open by about an inch, leaving a very small opening through which he attempted to look. He just didn’t understand why his Lillibet insisted on being so private about her back room.
“No, no. I’m coming right now,” Lily begrudgingly laid down the book she was caressing as if it were a newborn pup that hadn’t yet opened its eyes. “Stay right there. I’m afraid you’ll trip and fall if you try coming back here.” Truth was, Lily just didn’t want to hear Papa complain about the clutter and dust she didn’t seem to be able to get rid of. She absently brushed her hands down the front of the pink and white gingham print sundress she wore.
“What are you up to today?” she asked as she pushed through the royal blue silk curtain which separated her cluttered store room from her eclectic book shop. “Does Elsie know you’re out and about?” she asked, strategically placing her hands on her hips and an exaggeratedly accusatory scowl on her face.
“That damn woman knows all she needs to know, that I took the car and won’t be back for lunch,” Lester answered back testily. “She always wants to know exactly what I’m up to and where I’m going. Drives me crazier’n hell. It’s like she’s on a mission from the devil himself to treat me like a three year old.”
“Maybe if you didn’t act like a three year old, and more like a eighty year old, she wouldn’t feel the need to hound you so much,” Lily answered back, taking his wrinkled face in her hands and giving him a light peck on his lips. Her grandfather was the love of her life and she enjoyed aggravating him more than anything else in the world, except for maybe receiving a new shipment of books. Lily Connor was twenty-seven years old and lived in the small town of Avalon, North Carolina. She was the proprietor of a small book store, which she had built from scratch since she was twenty-two years old and a fresh graduate of the University of North Carolina. She’d never wanted anything else. As far back as she could remember, all she’d ever wanted was to dedicate her life to books. Her mother had loved books, and she had instilled that love in Lily from a very young age. She only wished that her mother had lived to see her daughter realize her dream.
“I don’t act like a three year old. You should learn more respect for your old granddaddy. After all, you should always respect your elders, especially us white-haired, widowed, and fading old men,” Lester snapped back, only half-heartedly trying to conceal his feeling of self-importance. Lily’s lips twitched, holding back a grin as she watched him stare at the straw hat in his hand, examining its brim with fake concern.
“You may be white-haired, and you may be widowed, but you most certainly aren’t fading. Why, half the men in this county would kill to be as healthy as you are. Even Dr. Kellam says you’re healthy as a horse.”
“Yeah, well, he doesn’t walk around in this old body day in and day out, creaking and popping at the joints. I’m just waiting for the arthritis to take hold and put me in a wheelchair. Then you’ll believe I’m fading like I’ve been telling you.”
“Poor, Pops. Here, let me get you a chair before you fall out right here in the middle of my mystery section,” Lily sarcastically answered back.
“Mind that tongue of yours, girl. When I’m dead and gone you’ll regret talking to me that way. It’ll be sooner than you think that you’ll be planting me in the church cemetery beside your grandmama, God rest her soul,” Lester replied with a huff and a look that most people would have taken for harsh, had his deep blue eyes not been slightly upturned at the edges, giving his entire face the impression of grinning. He looked at his granddaughter intently. She would never know just how proud of her he was. He may give her a hard time about running her little shop, but he was extremely proud of her, following her dream and making it a success in this little town. She’d had a hard childhood, one most children wouldn’t have survived sane. But his Lillibet had grit and a good dose of his stubbornness. These two qualities had helped insure her success in business, as it had in high school and college. He just didn’t understand why they didn’t also apply to her choice in men.
“You’re not going anywhere anytime soon. Who would I have to torment then?” Lily said, her lips curling in a smile she knew Pops couldn’t resist. “Come and give me a hug, you old codger,” her arms extended to him and she worked her fingers as if begging him to come as close as possible to her and squeeze her hard. “I love you, you know that?” she whispered in his ear as he closed his arms around her in a bear hug, lifting her slender body off of the floor almost two inches. Pops had hugged her this way every day, at least once, since she was big enough to walk. Lily couldn’t imagine not having this every day. Doing without it in college was bad enough.
He stepped back from his granddaughter, holding her hands in his and lovingly taking her in. She was small and slender like her mother and grandmother. Her sable brown hair curled softly just below her shoulders and framed her heart-shaped face. Her eyes were the same brilliant blue as his, which made his chest poke out in pride. She was extremely delicate, but, he knew that underneath that façade, she was really as tough as nails. The soft lines of the sundress she wore accentuated her simple, clean style. A pink ribbon held back her cascading hair from her face. She looked as delicate as a china doll and he had vowed long ago to protect her from anything or anyone that would seek to hurt her.
“How’s my girl? You doin’ all right? Did you eat breakfast, and I don’t mean one of those silly granola bars you’re so fond of. I mean a real breakfast – bacon, eggs, grits, gravy and biscuits. You’ve got to keep up your strength. You’ve got a very busy few weeks ahead of you, unless of course you decide to call off the wedding to that pea-brained Howard boy.”
“Now, Pops. I don’t plan to do any such thing. David and I are getting married in three weeks, and I feel great. I know you don’t care too much for David, but he really does care about me. Besides, we’ve known each other for years, and, I think, after five years of dating, it’s time to take the next step.”
“I know you’re plenty old enough to get married, it’s just that David has such a reputation for being wild. You know how he was in school. I know you heard the stories about his college years. Why in the world did you ever agree to go out with him in the first place?”
“Pops, I’ve lost count of the number of times you and I have had this conversation. David has changed. He grew up in college, and, working for his Daddy has taught him what’s important in life.”
“If he’s anything like his mama, he’ll never know the value of a dollar, or how hard it is to earn it. You know as well as I do that he’s been spoiled his entire life. That mama of his has given him anything he ever wanted. And his daddy has always been too spineless to put his foot down. I just don’t have a good feeling about this, Lillibet. It’s not too late to change your mind.” Lester pleaded with Lily with his eyes, still holding both of her hands in his. The large round diamond on her finger was just another show of pridefullness in his book. His Mary had had a diamond much smaller than the one on her finger, and David had made it very plain to him that no fiancée of his would were anything that small and insignificant. Lester had wanted to show him just exactly how insignificant David’s opinion of Mary’s engagement ring was to him, using his fist! But, for Lily’s sake, he had only closed the box and vowed to let it stay in the bedroom safe until Lily’s future daughter may one day appreciate it. He’d also vowed never to tell Lily how David had scoffed at her grandmother’s most prized possession.
“I understand your feelings, Pops, and I appreciate your paying for everything like you were my father. I know how hard it is for you to accept that I’m finally getting married. Just remember, I will always be your Lillibet and I’m only moving a few miles down the road to the club. I’ll still be right here, waiting for you to come and check on me every morning. I love you, you old codger.”
“I love you, too. But don’t for one minute think that it’s too late to back out of this wedding. The money means nothing to me. I worked all those years to give your grandmama and mama a good life. After your mama died, I was determined to give you every opportunity that money could buy. I’ve got more money than I can ever spend. It’ll all be yours one day. I just enjoy seeing you enjoy it while I’m around to supervise.”
“The second most wonderful gift you’ve ever given me was the seed money for this store. The first was the love you and Grandmama gave me after mom and dad died. I’ll never be able to repay you for that.” She slid her arms back around his neck and squeezed him tight. “I love you and I always will. It’s been just you and me for the last seven years. There will always be a little place in my heart reserved just for you.” She leaned close to his cheek and kissed it softly. The feeling of razor stubble and the faint smell of Old Spice would always and forever remind her of Pops.
“Well, now. That’s enough of this mushy stuff,” Lester said as he gently pushed her away from him, sniffing and wiping at his eyes. “How ‘bout some lunch at Ruby’s? We’ll have BLT’s, fries and sweet tea like we used to. What do you say?”
The look in his eyes had her longing to say yes. But, she knew that the luncheon David’s mama had planned at the club would start in about a half hour. “Sorry, I’ll have to give you a raincheck. Pat’s luncheon for me is scheduled to start at twelve and you know I can’t miss it. How about you go home to that lovely salad Elsie’s sure to have ready for you and I’ll come by after work and tell you all about my lunch.”
Lily could see the disappointment in his eyes, but she knew he understood - no matter how much of a pity party he threw at her.
“You know that woman doesn’t know how to cook anything with any taste. No salt, no butter, no red meat. She’s trying to kill me. Maybe I’ll just go to Ruby’s by myself. Nothing like a solitary lunch to help you dwell on your problems,” Lester sniffed.
“Somehow I doubt you would be alone at Ruby’s. All the regulars will be at the counter. And, you know that Elsie is just trying to make sure you stick to your diet. Blood pressure problems are nothing to sneeze at.”
“I know, I know. But, I don’t have to like it.”
“No, you don’t. But when you’re holding your great-grandchildren and telling them all of your outrageous stories from your youth, you’ll be glad you did. Now, get going before Elsie calls out the Highway Patrol to find you.” She flashed her sweet smile at her grandfather and knew that would melt his heart.
“Well, okay. But you be sure to come by the house after you close.”
She walked him to the door of the shop. One last kiss on the cheek and she sent him out the door to his Cadillac. She leaned back against the door and took a deep breath. She would rather take a beating than go to this luncheon. The social thing was not her forte, but, for David’s sake, she would try very hard to seem comfortable. Even if she really would rather be sitting in Ruby’s over a greasy BLT and fries with her granddad. A quick glance at the clock and she knew she had to hurry. She walked to the back of the counter, taking her pink purse from under the cash register. Pat had approved this outfit weeks ago for the luncheon, with its matching pink pumps and handbag. Checking her lipstick in her compact mirror, she touched it up. She smoothed her hair and walked to the door. Turning the sign from “Open” to “Closed”, she grasped the doorknob and pulled the door open. She fell backward as the door unexpectedly flew in toward her. Between the tinkling of the bell over the door and the crashing of a children’s book display to the floor, Lily let a less than genteel exclamation of “Shit!” fly right out of her mouth. When she regained her balance, she realized a person was standing in the doorway. She felt her face go crimson.