Chapter 2: Molly

I laughed as I unlocked the door to the shop, giving my best friend Noel a sharp look. “I can’t believe you told him that. You were on a date and he was being decent. We don’t have a lot of men in this little town, so why run off the ones that are here?”

“I will not have some man ordering for me at a restaurant. I’m capable of making a proper decision for myself.” She leaned down to slide the muffins she’d made into the display case carefully, tossing her red ponytail over her shoulder.

This was our coffee shop, called Mountain Brew. Being that we lived in Mountain Home, it certainly wasn’t original but it fit the theme of our little home. We were surrounded by mountains after all and a lot of our customers made a living from those beautiful peaks. I thought the shop was cute with tables and couches sprinkled around the bright, spacious room. I had the idea of adding some bookshelves and taking in donated used books from people in town to give customers something to do when they were here. There were a lot of poor people living around here that didn’t even have books to begin with, so we could provide that. Noel had agreed to the idea, but I knew that she wasn’t thrilled with it.

I ran the front, and she did all the baking with my assistance. We got up early to be here, darkness settling around the cafe as we danced and sang in the kitchen. We drank too much coffee and laughed while we worked, making me so proud to have done this with Noel.

I went to college at the University of Idaho and got a degree in Literature, so the books were all me. Noel was more business minded and did all the paperwork and numbers for our shop and I filled in the blanks. I picked out the unmatched, used furniture for the room and decorated the walls with a lot of old pictures of the town. I also had some colorful prints to match the vibrant purple walls and cleaned up the old fireplace in the corner. It was cold here a lot of the time and we needed it, and the old brick mantel attracted a lot of attention. It was a beautiful place.

I smiled as Mike walked in. He was always our first customer and grabbed a coffee and a Danish before he went fishing. Mike was a retired hotel owner that opened fifty years ago and because of that, was very successful. He kept it up even to this day, and it did well while he fished several times a week and just enjoyed the beauty that surrounded us. “Good morning,” I told him as I straightened my dark ponytail, watching him walk to the front where Noel was finishing with the case.

“Good morning, my ladies.” He always greeted us with those words and I grinned at Noel as she reached for a coffee mug.

“The usual today?” She asked him as he pulled out his wallet. She got his coffee poured and grabbed his Danish while I turned on the sign that told everybody we were open for the day. I found a radio station that was light and fun and headed back behind the counter to get organized while Mike settled in the corner table with a newspaper. Noel went back to start making some sandwiches for the lunch menu and check on the soup that she started earlier today while I watched the front.

There were enough customers to keep us busy, and I loved seeing them every day. I felt like I was part of the highlight of their day as they came in to greet me like they hadn’t seen me for weeks. There were a few older folks that came in, some freelance writers that worked at our tables and just some readers like myself. I watched the writers, wondering if I should do something like that myself since I did have a degree in Literature.

I also had some things to write about. I had some things to release; issues that were going to ruin me if I allowed it.

Noel had saved me from hitting rock bottom after college when she suggested that I move back to her home town with her and open a coffee shop. Noel liked that small town life despite having a blast in college where there was a lot to do and wanted to return. We’d lived together in the dorm and become close friends quickly, so I agreed. I didn’t want to go back home to my parents in Malad City but also didn’t have any other plans. I was too broken to want to move forward with my life. I agreed, and she told me that I could stay with her at her parent’s ranch house and open something in the empty building with her.

I looked at Noel as she came out for a fresh cup of coffee, smiling at her as she looked at me. She was twenty-three and a natural redhead with bright blue eyes, thin and pale. Those looks had all the attention of the local men and she’d started dating a little once we were established in the cafe. She was a little too much for most of them so far and I just laughed and watched from a distance.

I had dark brown hair and whiskey colored eyes that were a bit wide for my taste. My skin was a shade darker than hers and I was curvier than Noel was, too. I joked with her about how much it irritated me that she could eat double the pastries that I could and not gain a pound while it went right to my hips, but it was mostly in jest. I exercised by hiking around here and doing some exercise tapes at the house, so I was a bit toned. Noel just never stopped moving to begin with.

I sighed and got back to cleaning the tables that were empty, thinking about the Starbucks that was located near the university. It was always packed with lines of people and didn't offer anywhere to sit, a fact that I brought up to Noel when she first suggested this. I didn’t want that.

She’s laughed and assured me that this town was smaller and slower. A coffee shop would do great but we wouldn’t be slammed like some of the places you see on every corner in other places. It would be a great place for people to warm up and relax on cold days and just chat on the warmer ones. The hours were early morning to the afternoon, so we had a lot of free time if there was any energy left after baking in the early hours of the morning. We were closed early on the weekends, only staying open until one as opposed the three o'clock like we did during the week.

By the time we were closing for the day, Noel had gotten a message from her date. He wanted to go to the movies tonight and she asked me what I thought about it as I drove her Jeep home to the large house.

“Apart from the meal, he sounded nice. I say give it a try,” I told her as I drove down the main road lined with shops and restaurants.

“When are you going to give it a chance?” Noel asked me as I stared forward at one of three stoplights in our little town. “It’s been two years, Molly. You’re not in college anymore.”

“I know but I am not ready,” I told her in a tone that made it clear I didn’t want to discuss this. I didn’t want to think about Lance and what he did to me in junior year; what any other man could do to me if I gave him the chance. I didn’t want to face any of it and I jammed on the gas pedal a bit hard when the light turned green, jerking forward as I pressed my lips together. “Sorry,” I told her, gripping the steering wheel tightly as I focused on the road. I was here because of her; working and driving this car, with a roof over my head. I didn’t want to ruin any of that and I forced the past out of my mind as I drove the rest of the way home.

Keith and Marta Jones were her parents. They were high school sweethearts that got married right after graduation, with Keith going to work for a construction company while she stayed home and did bookkeeping in their home office. He moved up to management and she got more clients and once they had kids, they moved into this house and made it in a small town. It was a dream for some people and Noel had a great childhood. Mine wasn’t awful and my parents were kind people, but we didn’t have a lot of money. I worked hard in school to earn a scholarship for college and sometimes wondered if it was worth it now.

I was working in a coffee shop. I loved it but it seemed like something that should be a part time job while I pursued my dream, but what was that? I could read a lot now, but I suppose I always thought I might work in a famous library or teach. I’d never say that to Noel, though. It was a fun job and I loved the customers but life was just a little stale sometimes. It seemed like I should have more being twenty-three with a bachelor’s degree, but a lot of people just worked normal jobs. Didn’t they?