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  After all, if everything went her way, this would be the last job she ever had. If she could secure a deposit on a storefront, she’d take a chance on the only dream that mattered. And she’d call it Nadine’s Fine Furniture, in the tradition of her grandfather.

  Chapter Three

  David went to the staffroom to put away his coat and book bag. The lockers were all full already, so he put his stuff down in a corner beside the kitchenette.

  “Not there,” a muffled voice said.

  David turned to see a guy cramming the last bite of a sandwich into his face.

  “It’s a fire hazard.”

  “How’s it a fire hazard?”

  “Beats me, dude,” the guy said, still chewing. “Just sayin’.”

  “Well, where should I put this?” David had his arms full.

  The guy shoved a pile of coats to one side as if his forearm was a wedge. He made a crevice that barely looked like it could fit a handbag and gestured for David to hand his stuff to him.

  “Here’s some space.”

  “Thanks, man,” David said, checking himself in the staffroom mirror. Nothing in his teeth, so that was good. But he could’ve combed his hair. Oh well.

  The guy was being nice. “Don’t worry about it. It’s your first day, right? I wouldn’t want to see you start off on the wrong foot with Nadine.”

  “Who’s she? I’ve only met Hank.”

  “Yeah, Hank’s upstairs where it’s civilized. Nadine is the goddess of the underworld.”

  “Huh?” David was skeptical.

  “She manages Shipping and Receiving and everything on the textbook floor, and there’s nothing she hates more than us part-timers getting in her way. Anyway, your backpack will be fine here. Let’s get upstairs.”

  David followed the guy through a maze of textbooks to a giant staircase and up to the main floor of the university bookstore.

  A crowd of other clipboard-toting trainees clustered around Hank, who was not yet in training mode. Actually, it looked like he was flirting with a couple of the girls, but who could tell?

  * * * *

  After the first training session, David’s mind was in overload. There were so many transactions to remember. Being a cashier was a lot more complicated than he had thought it would be, but the job was a major score. Every undergrad wanted to work at the bookstore. The union wages were high and access to advance purchasing and jumping the line-ups were perks that made all the difference in the first week of classes. Besides, after six months of living on an island off the coast of Cuba with his old friend from elementary school, David felt like the job was a great way to get back into the capitalist disciplined schedule he’d tried to rebel against while surfing and lying on the beach watching the pelicans fly by.

  Hank dismissed the trainees after only two hours. “Consider it a bonus,” he said. “You’ll all be paid for four hours.”

  Everyone cheered. One of the two girls Hank had flirted with earlier said—a little too loudly—“Oh my God. Hank is so nice.” She giggled and led the group of trainees downstairs. As David made his way to the staircase, a guy came up beside him.

  “First year at the bookstore?” he asked.

  “Yeah. You?”

  “Nah. Third year. Best job on campus.”

  “Tell me about it. I’m going to try to hang onto this gig for the rest of my degree.”

  “You and everyone else here. I’m Sam.” He extended his hand, a gesture David didn’t see often. He shook it.

  “David.”

  “Word of advice, though. If anyone asks you to trade a cashiering shift for one in Shipping and Receiving, don’t do it.”

  “Why not?”

  “Just trust me.”

  As they made their way to the staffroom, David caught a glimpse of a buxom blonde—likely a professor considering her gray pencil skirt and fitted, silky coral blouse.

  “Shit, that’s her. Look down,” the guy said.

  “Who?”

  “Nadine,” he whispered then he made a beeline for the staffroom. “Goddess of the underworld.”

  She was surveying a complex floor stack of textbooks, stepping back and analyzing it as though it was a sculpture at an art museum. David’s jaw dropped. She did look like a goddess, but not one who reigned over an ancient hell. She was stunning.

  * * * *

  During his first training shift when he was to finally get in front of the register, he worked alongside Chrissy, a pretty kinesiology major with a ski-jump nose. Right after the fifteen-minute break, Hank took her aside for a few minutes. When she got back, she looked upset, but David had a waiting line and so did she, so there was no way to discuss it.

  As soon as Hank had closed the front gate on the last student and the bookstore was officially empty and closed, everyone cashed out. A symphony of registers spewed their till tape. It took two minutes, just long enough for Chrissy to tell David what had happened.

  She shook her head like she’d been told she had to eat dirt. “Hank wants to take me off cash and put me down in Shipping and Receiving.”

  David, who hated seeing girls suffer, said, “Could be a nice change of scenery.” He shrugged his shoulders, and Chrissy couldn’t help but smile.

  “He’s preying on my niceness and my inability to say no. I’m gonna get eaten alive by the queen of the underworld.”

  “I believe her official title is goddess of the underworld.” David was surprised that Chrissy didn’t laugh at his joke.

  “She scares me.”

  David thought for a moment. “Wanna trade?”

  “Seriously?” She looked like she was about to hug him.

  “Sure.”

  “Oh my God.” She bounced up and down in front of him then flirtatiously wrapped her arms around him for a brief second. “Thank you so much.”

  She ran off to get Hank to make it official.

  They took their registers downstairs to count the cash. Hank found him in the middle of his quarters. He lost count. Hank told him to report to Nadine the following day. David nodded and resumed counting. Had he just made the biggest mistake of the semester?

  * * * *

  The next morning, after showering with his sandalwood soap, he toweled off and put his hair into a ponytail. It might be time to cut it soon, he thought as he saw himself in the mirror, but it was still only September and he wanted to keep the hair as a reminder of his totally relaxed spring and summer.

  He put on his best work clothes—khaki pants and a plaid shirt. Everything about David was casual. His wardrobe mirrored his attitude toward life, and he liked it that way. He got to the bookstore early and was already designing stack layouts in his mind when Nadine came to open the door to the underworld.

  “Good morning,” he said.

  “I thought Hank was giving me that sweet-looking blonde.”

  “We switched.”

  “Oh, really?” Nadine’s eyes narrowed momentarily. “She asked you to?”

  “I offered.”

  “I see.” She turned the key and barged through the thick laminate door. “Well, there’s a lot to do, so come with me.”

  David followed his new boss, careful not to make it obvious that he was checking her out. He couldn’t help himself. With her slender shoulders and full hair, she could have been a model. Nadine stopped at a table. Next to it was a skid, wrapped in plastic cling wrap from top to bottom, like a giant textbook cocoon.

  “These are mostly science texts, but pay attention because there could be some business admin books, too. I need them all counted and priced. Then cross reference the paperwork that came with them with the original order and make sure the numbers all line up—so your tallying skills are really important here.”

  “I’m good at counting,” David said. Nadine was clearly not amused.

  “Here’s your pricing gun.” She passed him the plastic contraption. “If you can’t figure out how to work it, just ask.”

  Perhaps it was the way she’d said it
, as though he really wouldn’t be able to understand the high technology of the pricing gun, but David was determined not to ask for help.

  “All right,” he answered, as he rolled up his plaid sleeves.

  “I’ll be at my desk,” Nadine said as she walked the eight paces to where she’d be spending her workday and sat down. She faced him. It was undoubtedly the floor layout that made the part-time students give her the nickname. It was nearly impossible not to feel scrutinized and observed like a lab mouse in a tiny cage in front of Nadine. But he was much more creative. He was in her dungeon and her office chair was her throne. He was a lowly peasant boy whose greatest aspiration was to please his queen. Where did he get this stuff? He found an X-ACTO knife and freed the skid of books from their plastic encasing. With acute focus, he went through box after box, like an athlete training for the Olympics.

  Chapter Four

  Nadine sat at her desk and made calls to distributors while she click-clacked away on her keyboard, never once stopping to stare out of the window or swivel in her chair. She did notice David’s hard work—it was impossible not to—but she was busy thinking about obstacles of her own. Her mom had just emailed her and even though Nadine would never admit it, she did routinely check her personal email on work time. It was one of the few luxuries she had carried over from the years when she had her own office. Her mom had thrown a wrench into Nadine’s weekend plans, and she brainstormed practical ways to avoid letting her mom pull her strings. She’d read enough books by now to avoid being susceptible to the old tactics. She did not want to spend the weekend fawning over her brother Bruce’s second baby while her sister-in-law smugly talked about their nanny, recent renovations and the people at the country club. Nadine had plans of her own, dreams of her own. She was so tired of playing second fiddle in the family.

  She was jolted back to reality by David, who approached her desk after what seemed like barely an hour.

  “Done,” he announced.

  “Already?”

  “I’m fast.” He beamed at her. She found it eerie.

  “Well, around here, haste usually makes waste, so let’s see that paperwork.”

  He handed her the sheets he’d marked up with tallies. She perused the papers, looking intently for errors. She found none.

  “Did you take a break yet?”

  “No.”

  “Do that,” she ordered. “When you come back, you can shelve the texts then, after that, I’ve got another project for you.”

  * * * *

  “See you when you get here.” Nadine hung up the phone.

  She had confirmed her after-work jog with her best friend Marnie, who worked from home on Tuesdays. One of the challenges of working these hours was that she couldn’t run with Marnie like they used to, but on Tuesdays they had a standing date. Nadine had her running gear in her work bag.

  Marnie showed up fifteen minutes before Nadine was officially supposed to clock out. Leaving early was not the sort of thing she did, even though the work of the day was accomplished.

  “Come in.” Nadine brought her friend through the back where they received deliveries.

  “Whoa,” Marnie said as she entered the basement of the bookstore where Nadine spent forty hours every week. “It’s so different from your old office.”

  A year and a half ago, Marnie wouldn’t have dared to come to Nadine’s workplace in running gear. Her office had been in the corporate district. Nadine had observed a strict dress code. The lobby of the office tower was reminiscent of five-star hotels, decorated with a huge new bouquet every week and packed with security. The bookstore was the kind of place where employees were allowed to show up in sweatpants if they wanted. Of course, Nadine did not. But it was true what her best friend had observed. Her life had changed so drastically.

  “Yeah, grab a chair,” Nadine said quietly. She could send a couple more work emails before calling it a day. But her best friend was up to no good, sitting beside her. It was like they were back in high school, with Marnie cracking a quiet joke about the teacher. Nadine was completely distracted.

  “Who’s the sex god?” she whispered, as soon as David was out of earshot.

  “That’s David,” Nadine said in a proper and professional tone through her clenched teeth. “He’s off limits.”

  Marnie made an exaggerated sad face at the admonishment. “But why?”

  “He’s young. He’s a student. He works for me.” Nadine listed off on her fingers. “Want me to keep going?”

  “But he’s so cute.”

  “Let him work, Marnie,” Nadine scolded. “And behave yourself. Here, read this.” Nadine tossed Marnie a book, but they both knew she wasn’t going to open Darwin’s On the Origin of Species for any light reading. However, she took the hint and quietly kept to herself for a little, so Nadine felt that the objective had been accomplished and she could finish her task list.

  At three o’clock, David approached Nadine’s desk. “Is there anything else?”

  “Did you finish the skid?”

  “I did. All the textbooks are on the floor, in stacks or on the shelves.”

  “That’s all, then. See you tomorrow.”

  “All right. See ya.” He turned to leave.

  He wasn’t even out of the swinging doors to the store before Marnie playfully punched Nadine in the arm, so hard that Nadine felt accosted.

  “What?”

  “What do you mean ‘what’? Didn’t you see the way he looked at you?”

  “David?”

  “Yeah, David. He has the hots for you so bad.”

  “You’re making it up. Knock it off.”

  But Marnie shook her head. “He’s in love with you. It’s clear as day.”

  “Marnie, quit it. I’ll go change.”

  Nadine re-emerged from the washroom wearing her running gear—her tight black pants and pink fitted hoodie with matching pink runners.

  “Did you see the boy toy out there—or, rather, did he see you?”

  “No,” Nadine said, “and I don’t want you calling him that. It’s not appropriate.”

  “Oooh.” Marnie put her hands up in mock defense. “Inappropriate.” She mocked Nadine’s tone like only a best friend could.

  Nadine rolled her eyes. “Come on. Let’s run.”

  They left through the back door.

  “You don’t really think that David has a little crush, do you?” she asked, as they did pre-run stretches in the cool afternoon air.

  “You are so clueless, Nadine.” Marnie shook her head.

  Chapter Five

  Nadine swiveled around on her chair. There was a pile of papers on her desk and she’d promised herself that they’d be dealt with by the end of the week. In order for that to happen, she had to accomplish a lot in a day. She’d broken down her productivity into one-hour goals. This next hour involved clearing out some of the inventory from the storage area. Last year’s textbooks that hadn’t gone back to publishers, used books and returns all took up a ton of space in storage and there was no chance of students buying what they couldn’t see. Logic had it that if she could get the old stock out on the shelves, she’d expose it to customers then her sales levels would go up and that meant she’d have a better chance at the bonus that was so close she could almost see the dollars in her bank account. And boy did she want those dollars. They’d put her closer to her ultimate goal, and this was the year that everything was going to turn around for her. It was all about steady and constant focus. Working the students as hard as she could and as hard as she worked herself. This David fellow seemed like the kind of guy who could handle her vision.

  “I have a task for you,” she said.

  “Sure. Anything.”

  “Come with me.” She got up out of her chair and flattened the creases in her pencil skirt.

  David followed her.

  “Where are you taking me?” he asked in a joking voice as they walked through two double doors out into the receiving area. “I’ve never se
en this part of the building before.”

  “The freight elevator,” Nadine said.

  “There’s a freight elevator?”

  “Are you surprised?”

  “I had no idea.”

  “It’s an old building. It’s been renovated a lot, but there’s still this old storage space down in the basement.”

  “Whoa.”

  “Yeah, and your task for the next few days will be to clear it out and get all of the stock down there priced and onto the shelves.”

  “Okay.”

  She pressed the button with the downward pointing arrow. It lit up. A few seconds later, there was a rumbling sound of the elevator reaching their floor. The elevator doors opened from a horizontal crack down the middle. They stepped in. Nadine yanked on a rope at the top that pulled the top half of the door down and the bottom half up. David looked intently at the process.

  “Have you ever been in a freight elevator before?” she asked.

  “No.”

  “Then you’re in for a treat. Pretty weird in here, huh?” Nadine didn’t ordinarily make small talk with the students but then again, she rarely put herself in a situation wherein small talk seemed appropriate. Usually, she merely delegated from her desk and got back to work. This task required a little more of her.

  Instead of buttons on the inside, there was a lever that she held down. She set it to ‘Basement’. There was another rumble and they were off.

  “Whoa. Neat,” David uttered. He sounded excited, as though he was on some kind of strange ride at an amusement park.