Ways to apologize to someone you care about:
- Say you’re sorry.
- Mean it.
- Bring them a gift.
- Forgive and forget.
- Make them laugh.
- Don’t make the same mistake twice.
- Fondle their ankle.
As Miss Josie sat, with the copy of The North American Indian still on her lap, Ms. Anne glanced at her watch. “I hate to leave you like this, but I’ve got to run. Are you okay, Josie?”
She nodded, her expression grim. “I’ll be fine. I have a collector coming later this afternoon to look at a few of the books in my vault. I’ll have to check and make sure someone hasn’t ravaged them, too, and I’m going to study this.” She pointed to the ledger, which rested on the table next to her. “Maybe something in here will tell me why Mr. Bartleby tore pages out of this book.”
Ms. Anne’s gaze went to Mr. Nate, who showed no signs of leaving. At his insistence, Miss Josie had put her foot back on his knee, and he gently pressed the ice pack against it, shifting it slightly when one spot got too cold.
“Okay, then. See you later.”
After Ms. Anne and Gracie left, Miss Josie and Mr. Nate spoke at once, their words coming out in a rush. “I’m so sorry.”
They laughed, and Miss Josie shook her head. “What do you have to be sorry about?” she asked. “I’m the one who was rude to you. I jumped to conclusions.”
“True,” he said. “But I was afraid your good opinion, once lost, would be lost forever.”
Her expression turned incredulous. “You’re already up to chapter ten?”
“Eleven.”
“Wow. I’m impressed. I’ll have to drink a lot more coffee to catch up.”
“We’ll consider the tea and the hangover smoothie I made you part of the deal, so you’re only a cup behind.”
He removed the ice pack, and she put her foot gingerly onto the floor. “It’s better,” she said. “Thanks.”
“My pleasure. Don’t overdo it, though. No disco dancing, pole vaulting, or hiking in the mountains. You won’t be able to run away from bears on a gimpy ankle.”
She put her face in her hands. “You heard about that?”
“I didn’t even realize there were bears in Beaver County.”
“Uh, neither did I, but I’ve also never hiked quite so far into the woods.”
“You were exceedingly brave,” he said. “It must have been terrifying.”
“I think I was more irritated than brave. Capone ended up being the one who jumped in and frightened the bear away.”
They both looked at me. “I told you Capone was a good dog,” said Mr. Nate.
“And you were right. About a lot of things.”
They stared deeply into each other’s eyes. Even I could tell it was a romantic moment. But then I burped, thanks to wolfing down the kolache, and broke the spell.
Mr. Nate patted my head. “Capone ended up being a hero twice in one week. First, he saved you from a bear, and today, he found the missing ledger.”
“So it seems.” Miss Josie sat up straighter in her chair, her hands folded neatly on her lap, and her eyes staring directly at Mr. Nate. “And you’re a hero, too. You’ve helped me so many times, including today, and I never thanked you properly.”
His gaze went to Miss Josie’s sweet, full lips, and for a moment she stared at him as if entranced. They were interrupted when Mrs. Steele returned, calling out a greeting as she headed to the back room to hang up her coat,
Miss Josie cleared her throat. “There is something I need to say. I haven’t been kind to you, Nate, and I’m truly sorry. Can we still be friends?” She reached out a hand, and he took it, giving it a formal shake.
“I’m sure I’m making a huge mistake, and you’ll probably think I’m a fool for saying this, but I’m tired of pretending.” He stumbled over his words, his face growing red. “I want to be more than friends, Josie.”
“But you’re leaving, Nate,” she said softly. “As much as I care about you, as much as I like spending time with you, we can’t…I can’t…”
She reached out and put a hand on his cheek. He closed his eyes like her touch was something he’d craved. For a second, I thought she might kiss him right then and there, but she didn’t. She sighed and lowered her hand, giving him a melancholy smile.
“Who are we kidding? You’d hate my tea and tofu and my obsession with books. I’d drive you nuts.”
“You already do.” He returned her smile, but his eyes were sad.
“So, I guess we agree.” I thought I heard a question in her voice, but I may have been wrong. He didn’t reply. I had to wonder if perhaps they weren’t in agreement after all. Miss Josie cleared her throat and turned the conversation to safer territory. “I need to apologize for a few other things as well. Mrs. Norris deciding to sell her shop and retire was not your fault.”
He shook his head. “No, it was not.”
“And the parking situation. It wasn’t your fault, either.”
“Let’s blame it on the city planners.” He folded his arms across his chest, his tone once again playful and bantering. “They did a poor job.”
“Well, since they mapped it out in 1802, there isn’t much we can do about it, I suppose.” She took a deep breath and blew it out slowly. “I’m sorry about a lot of stuff, Nate. Truly, I am. Will you give me another chance?”
He pretended to ponder it. “Will you let me continue to bring you coffee?”
She rolled her eyes. “If you must.”
“I must,” he said, getting to his feet. “I have to get back to work, but I’ll keep reading Pride and Prejudice. I’m enjoying it.”
She followed him to the door. “I’m glad. And even if I don’t like coffee, I think First Impressions is nice. Do you like working there? I read an article about it in the New York Times a few months ago. I don’t remember the details, but they said the founder is some kind of crazy genius.”
Miss Josie was rambling. It almost seemed like she didn’t want Mr. Nate to leave.
He leaned against the doorframe, a twinkle in his dark eyes. “He is a crazy genius, and I do like working there.”
She tugged on a lock of her hair. “And what do you do there exactly?”
He shrugged. “This and that.”
“A little vague,” she said with a frown.
“Not vague, mysterious.” He gave her a smile which brought out dimples in his cheeks. “My job is so boring I’ll spare you the details. I’d hate to put you to sleep in the middle of the afternoon. I’ve seen you sleep. It’s not pretty. You drool a lot, and you snore, too.”
Her jaw dropped. “Wait, what? Are you serious? I snore?”
He backed out the door of the shop, grinning, but she held the door open and he kept talking to her from the sidewalk. “A gentleman never talks about what goes on in the boudoir. Your secret is safe with me, Josie. I mean, I thought Jackson snored, but after hearing you the other night, well…wow. Just wow.”
He winked at the outraged expression on her face. Miss Josie tried to give him a stern look but couldn’t quite manage it. Neither of them noticed Cedric the Betrayer standing a few feet away, partially hidden by a tree, listening to them. He had an angry scowl on his face, and I realized something with a start.
He looked the way I did when the horses back on the farm got irritated and gave me a well-aimed kick in the belly. It took the air right out of my lungs and made me feel like I might throw up. Cedric the Betrayer, at this moment, looked like a big horse had kicked him, and since there were no horses around, I could only conclude one thing.
Cedric, the Betrayer, still loved Miss Josie.
Curse my empathetic nature. It almost made me feel bad for him.