“No.” Susanne knew what she wanted to give her. She glanced at the locked display case, where a dozen expensive fountain pens gleamed like diamonds. Her gaze zeroed in on the one in the middle. “I want to buy the BMW pen from you.”

“BMW doesn’t produce pens. You mean the Porsche ones?”

“No.” Susanne walked over and tapped the middle of the case. “I mean this one.”

“The Meisterstück Solitaire? Are you sure? It’s our most expensive pen.”

Susanne hesitated but not because of the price tag. Expensive fountain pens were like jewelry, Anja had said to the customer looking for a Valentine’s Day gift. If she gave Anja a pen for her birthday, would she be making a promise she might not be able to keep?

It’s a pen, idiot, not a wedding ring. Even if Paper Love could be saved, Anja would probably never make enough money so she could afford to blow two thousand euros on a pen. This was something Susanne could give her, and she wanted to buy Anja the pen with an intensity that scared her a little.

“How about this one?” Uncle Nobby tapped the case above the writing instrument to the left of the BMW pen. “It’s a Montblanc too, with the same great nib, and I can sell it to you for four hundr—”

“No,” Susanne said firmly, decision made. “It has to be this one. And don’t you dare sell it to me below cost. I’m paying what’s on the price tag.”

Uncle Nobby stared at her. “Wow. You weren’t kidding, hmm? You really like her.”

“Yes, I do. So will you sell me the pen?”

“I might not be the best businessman in the world, but I’d never say no to a sale like that. I’ll slip it into your laptop bag when Anja is on her lunch break.”

“Thanks. I’ll transfer you the money tonight.”

They nodded at each other.

“When she opens that particular present, she’ll either kiss you or kill you,” Uncle Nobby predicted.

“Let’s hope for the former. I’m pretty fond of my life…and of her kisses.” She sent her uncle a grin, but doubt began to take root. Would Anja be able to accept and enjoy the gift when she couldn’t promise her anything else?

She took a long gulp of coffee, hoping it would help against the lump in her throat. Guess I’ll find out next week.

This morning, Anja had looked forward to the evening, when she could have Susanne all to herself, but as closing time approached, she wasn’t so sure she had anything to look forward to.