The Robin's Nest by L.C. Maxie

Author:L.C. Maxie [Maxie, L.C.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Spoon Creek Press
Published: 2024-07-22T00:00:00+00:00

twelve

By late August, the main floor’s two special collections rooms were framed in, then covered with painted drywall, providing two windowless spaces in the middle of the shop. This created a large open space in the rear, with its south-facing windows, providing light that made its way up the wide hallway to the front. The two closed rooms added interest to the space and would provide cozy reading and study spaces for the most valuable books.

Toward the shop front, the area nestled outside the smaller room formed the perfect space for a children’s nook. To decorate it, Harper had bought a large, colorful rag rug, small rocking chairs, and a bright red armchair and matching loveseat. The entire front section of the shop was painted a pale shade of buttercup yellow. The open back space was sky blue, while the smaller rooms were bright spring green. The displays Harper was experimenting with in the front windows were drawing a lot of attention. As she considered her progress so far, Harper was pleased and excited by how things were shaping up. But there was still a lot to do.

For the first few weeks after they met, the faeries had given Harper plenty of space. When she’d asked about the pills on her dresser after her trip to the brewery, they found it amusing.

Earl Grey stood up and patted her lightly on the arm. “Well, you see, Tarryfoot and me, sometimes we get a hankering for beer. We head up to the brewery to breathe in the fumes, so to speak. We were surprised, but delighted, to find you there enjoying a few pints with the neighbors!”

The thought of the Fae hanging about the brewery struck Harper as amusing. And at least she knew they weren’t following her around.

Even so, as they got to know one another better, Harper became increasingly concerned about her privacy. She’d moved to Whippoorwill Gap to create a new life for herself, on her own terms. She knew the faeries wanted what was best for the shop. And they seemed sincerely concerned about her welfare. While they hadn’t made any effort to influence anything she’d done, she wanted to continue having the freedom to make her own choices and live with the consequences. Though she knew it wasn’t fair, she found herself increasingly wary and on the alert for incursions.

She was torn about letting them do so much for her. Their habit of popping in and out of her apartment bothered her most of all. They weren’t terrible about it. Some of them, like Ivy and Ash, had never once showed up unannounced. But others, particularly the brownies and the sprites, seemed to feel entitled to show up whenever and wherever they wished.

One morning, when walking out of her bathroom wrapped only in a towel, she flew into a tizzy after almost tripping over Tiptoe and Tarryfoot, who were preparing to repair a bit of crown molding on the ceiling that hadn’t been nailed into the corner to their satisfaction.

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