Free Finding Sarah by Terry Odell Page B

the contents while she listened to Diana’s saccharine
voice. She recognized lien and foreclosure, but she’d have to study this—no,
she’d have to get someone to translate it. She stepped across the shop and looked
into Diana’s deep brown eyes. The one trait she shared with David. “What?”
    “It’s no secret I don’t want to
work here. And we both need money. Let’s face it. This place is half a step
from Chapter Eleven. I didn’t exactly come out on top after my divorce. So.”
She leaned forward.
    “Cut to the chase. I need to
finish closing.” Sarah flipped the door sign and went behind the counter to
settle the credit card machine.
    “So. We sell. Make it a Hallmark
franchise. You get to be the manager, and we split the profits.”
    Sarah felt like she’d gone over
the first drop of a roller coaster. She waited for her stomach to catch up. “Hallmark?
A card shop?” As if Diana had a clue how franchising worked.
    “Oh, come on. They sell other things
too.” Diana pointed to some bears. “Stuffed animals, like those.”
    “Those are handmade and
one-of-a-kind,” Sarah said. “Hallmark shops don’t sell them.”
    “You know what I mean. Come on,
Sarah. It’ll solve both our problems. I already know someone who’s interested.
He thinks this is a great location.”
    “Well, you tell that someone to
get uninterested. There’s no way this is going to be a card shop. It was better
than a card shop when we started it.” She whirled into her office and counted
to ten, then twenty, then wrote Diana a check. She put the checkbook into the
safe and kicked the door shut. The pain in her toes was worth it. She found her
sister-in-law wandering through the shop, fingering merchandise. Sarah shoved
the check into Diana’s hand. “There. You’re paid in full. I’ll see you next
month.”
    “Why is it so hard for you to
admit defeat and move forward?” Diana folded the check into thirds and slipped
it into her purse. “David’s gone. Why are you still hanging on?”
    “I’d think you, of all people,
would know about honoring someone’s memory.” The words came out sharp, clipped,
and thankfully, without a trace of crying.
    Diana tugged on her skirt and
sashayed to the door. “I’ll see you in a month.”
    Sarah let her take five strides
before calling out. “Diana? If you’re meeting someone, you might want to change
your nylons. You’ve got a big run in back.” Without waiting for Diana’s
reaction, Sarah closed the door. She leaned against it, afraid if she tried to
walk across the shop, she’d collapse. It took several minutes before her head
cleared.
    She’d been juggling money for
months now. She’d owe the artists from today’s sales, but she paid them
monthly. There was time to recoup what she’d given to Diana before she had to
pay them. First thing in the morning, she’d have to make sure today’s cash hit
the bank to cover Diana’s check.
    It had been a long time since
Sarah had been able to draw a line between her household and shop budgets,
although that had been one of David’s hard and fast rules. With a silent
apology, she ran the numbers through her head, starting with this morning’s
check to the locksmith. She’d have to insist the building manager reimburse her.
First, she called the police station and asked to speak with Detective
Detweiler. Almost relieved when the voice on the phone told her he was
unavailable, she left a message that she needed a copy of the police report on
the break-in. She hoped whoever gave him his messages didn’t report the way her
voice was shaking.
    She hung up and stared at the
phone for a long time before making the next call. She’d give herself one more
day.
    “Chris? It’s Sarah. Thanks for
the lovely flowers. Can we move dinner to Saturday?”

Chapter Seven
     
     
    Sarah sat in her office, fighting
off a rising feeling of anxiety as she rushed through reconciling sales and
getting her bank deposit ready for tomorrow.