Joanna laughed. “It is, although not under these circumstances, obviously.” She thought of Vivian, and all the books she’d given Joanna over the years. “I owe Vivian a lot.”

If there was a way to help, then she was going to help. And it wasn’t as if they were likely to be busy.

Turned out she was wrong about that. By the time Mary-Lou reappeared at the end of the day, Joanna had served an endless stream of customers and hadn’t had time to use the bathroom.

“You come back when you’re ready for the sequel,” she told a girl of seven who had just bought the first in a series of ballet books. “I’ll keep it right here for you.”

“Will you put my name on it?”

“I’ll do that right now.” Joanna pulled the book off the shelf, tucked a note inside and slid it behind the counter. “There. It’s waiting for you.”

The girl’s mother smiled. “Thank you. This was fun.”

Joanna waited for them to leave and then turned to Mary-Lou. “How is Vivian?”

“Nothing broken, thank goodness. She’s going to have bruises, and she needs to take it easy for a while, but it could have been a lot worse. She sent her love to you. Said she hoped you’d stop by and see her soon.”

“I’d like that. Mary-Lou, you look exhausted.”

“Just worried. I’m going to have to close this place for the next few days so that I can stay close and help her.” Mary-Lou rubbed her hand over her back. “Thanks for stepping in today.”

“Don’t close. I can cover this, although I’ve made a list of things I need help with so I don’t lose you money.” Joanna grabbed the notepad and quickly ran through her questions.

Mary-Lou hesitated. “If you’re doing this, then I’m paying you.”

“I don’t—” Joanna was about to say she didn’t want payment but then she saw the stubborn set of Mary-Lou’s jaw. Independence, she thought. She knew all about the need for that. “Sure. Pay me whatever you feel is fair.”

“It will be a meaningless amount to you.”

“Money is never meaningless,” Joanna said. “And this is my dream job.”

Mary-Lou laughed. “Well, in that case, you’re hired. You start at eight tomorrow. Unpack any new stock and shelve it. Clean the place. It’s time to change the window display—we have a signing next week, so if you feel like flexing your artistic talents you can work on that.”