She flicks my nametag. “I’m proud of you.”

“Me, too. Did you know that evening gowns hand-sewn by Teller City’s own designer Samantha Tan are affordable and one of a kind? She never uses a design twice. Local legend has it that her pieces are enchanted to make the wearer’s romantic wishes come true. A Cupid, if you will.”

She gives me a playful shove to the side. “Did you start that local legend?”

I grin. “And you don’t wanna miss Jackson County Ironworks’s spring collection. So many cool pieces to choose from! Your sculptures will be the talk of the town.”

“Stop or I’m going to make a citizen’s arrest. I’m serious.”

“Personally,” I go on, doing a twirl, “I never leave the house without my trusty Through the Snow at Twilight candle, unless I’m feeling fun and flirty, in which case I use their environmentally conscious vanilla bean wax melts.”

I’ve decided that being environmentally conscious is going to be My Thing now, as it’s one of the ways I can affordably better the world. I’m all out of yachts to auction off for charity, but I can still contribute. I’ve been drinking water from a stainless steel thermos rather than my beloved plastic Evian bottles, and so far today I’ve yelled at two different people to pick up their litter. You’re welcome, Mother Nature.

We cross the street, a breeze gusting Kaia’s short brown-blond hair to make it curl around the edges of her ball cap. On this stretch of Cottonwood Lane, snow never melts off the cars parked on the street because they’re chilled by the shadow of the Watson house rising far above. Grandma’s such a menace. I want to be more like her someday, but not the acting and accolades part, or the fake gravestones in my yard. I want to be an intimidating matriarch with loads of great-grandchildren underfoot to bring me the remote when I bark for it.

“I get it,” she laughs. “You’re shilling for Mary Had a Little Boutique now.”

“A shopping hot spot in the Colorado heartland,” I reply airily. “Don’t miss out on all their best steals and deals! For a limited time only you can get half off any purchase online if you use the coupon code BETTIE at checkout.” Mary’s on Etsy, as well, where she sells quilts and headbands for babies. Half of my job is double-checking shipping labels and making trips to the post office.

“I think it’s cool that the shop is going to let you sell your cards there, too. I’m happy for you.”

“Mary’s a gem. I won’t forget her when I’m being interviewed by Forbes someday.”

When she offered me a job, Mary explained that I’d be frequently communicating with local creators, who are the backbone of the store. I mentioned my Hughes & Co. cards, she invited me to bring in a variety box, and ended up ordering twenty boxes of fifteen cards each, with a special request for extra copies of one with an owl yelling i heard what you said about me. The adrenaline rush from my first sale was unlike anything I’ve ever experienced in a work environment. Looking back, passion was the missing component from all my other business endeavors. With my lipstick line, my Bettie Gardenia fragrance, the jewelry collaborations, I’d simply been throwing products at a wall to see which might stick. I didn’t get any creative fulfillment from them. These cards, however, are mine. I draw and package each one myself. I care as much about making them and having fun doing so as I do about selling them.