What can I say about this past week? I broke the cardinal rule in my house and watched the news. Everyone who’s been following my blog will know I turned the news off in May because it’s been nothing but a gong show, pushing panic so viewers stay glued to the box, fearing the worst and anxious that the world is coming to an end. I could go on, but that’s why I keep it off. (I also need to consider my autistic son. Although he doesn’t freak out and have behavior issues, the news is scaring the shit out of him.)
So why would I do something so stupid? It was likely because, in my world of writing, I don’t much hear what’s going on. Sometimes friends call to tell me the world is going back into lockdown, rising cases are out of control, the second wave has arrived in some areas, and new rules are coming down. I, of course, am always asking, “What new rules?” “Will there be police enforcement?” Because it seems no one is doing the same thing, and the rules are never equal for everyone. Politicians are fighting, being accused of playing politics with people’s lives. In BC, hearing the huge spike in numbers is alarming. I hear that social gatherings with friends and family are a huge factor in the increase. People aren’t staying put. They’re travelling, still taking vacations.
Now, my kids and I haven’t seen family since the lockdown eased and things started opening in June. The only exception was a funeral, where I saw my family but my kids stayed home. We’ve done our part, and we’re all healthy and doing well, but we haven’t socialized, seen friends or family, or invited anyone over in what seems like forever. My daughter is in her senior year at school and works when she’s not studying. My other two also work, but no one visits with friends or socializes. We go to the store for essentials we can’t buy online, such as fresh vegetables and fruit, but I have to tell you that most of my buying is done online and shipped to my door.
I’ve narrowed down my retailers because shipping to my door is my first priority right now. Unfortunately, where I live, if a retailer chooses to ship with Canada Post, the government postal service, the order is never delivered to my door, because we use tiny community boxes. No home delivery is available here with Canada Post, even if the retailer pays that shipping cost and is told they provide it. Instead, I get a notice in my community box that there’s a parcel for me to pick up, and I end up having to drive to the next city, which is quite a ways away, where the post office is in the back of an overcrowded and cluttered dollar store. It’s not close to me at all. Then I have to stand in a ridiculously long line where social distancing doesn’t always happen or can’t happen because of the small space. Some people wear masks, and some don’t.
Last time, which was a month ago, an elderly couple blocked the entire line, socializing and then visiting with the staff in the store. One was in a wheelchair, unmasked. There weren’t many options in terms of places to stand while waiting, so did I say something? Yeah, I finally did, not having a clue where the long line was supposed to start or which way it was supposed to go. After standing and waiting in the unmoving line for quite a while, I called out, “Excuse me, where’s the line? Where are we supposed to stand? How do I get my parcel?” There were something like four staff there. One ignored me and kept visiting with the older couple, and I understand she was likely trying to be polite to them. Another came out from in back to reorganize the chaos and move people around in another direction because no one could get around the wheelchair. Not one of them asked the elderly people to move over, not block people’s way, or, most importantly, put on a mask.
I have strong views about social distancing, especially with elders. In a pandemic, you cannot socialize in crowded public spaces right next to people anymore, even in stores where you’ve known Betty and Harvey for decades. Not taking precautions means putting your health and the health of others in danger. We won’t be in this forever, as I tell my kids, but don’t be an idiot. Some of the people I love are older and with questionable health, so doing my part is important. I would feel horrible if I were responsible for them catching this virus, ending up in a COVID ward, and dying. So, unfortunately, each time a retailer insists on shipping with Canada Post, they go on the list of stores to whom I’d say, “Sorry, I love your products, but I can’t buy from you anymore because I’m just not going to navigate the chaos in that ridiculous post office setup anymore.”
The biggest shopping days for retailers are coming up. I’m sure everyone has already heard that during the pandemic, retail sales have exploded across the board. They are making money, a lot of money! Believe it or not, during Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals, very few retailers are actually offering the kinds of discounts they did a year ago, because people are buying just about everything anyway. What happens for the little retailers out there, who are still counting on doing business the old way, with customers coming into stores and paying at the cash register? Those retailers don’t have online stores or shipping options—and, unfortunately, they’re going to slowly go out of business.
Just to give you an idea of ways some retailers are adapting, take the small restaurant where my daughter works. They’re still doing extremely well, and the one thing the owners did that very few have done in the area is created an online menu and an online automated ordering system. They offer not only takeout but also delivery right to your door. They have the “easy button.” They’re not a big chain, just a little guy with fantastic chefs and fantastic food. There is a way to survive this. In the digital age, online portals allow businesses to go virtual just about everywhere. It’s really important for the little guy to set up these online options and get onboard. I know I would prefer to buy local, but you have to deliver to my door.
Sneak Peek
Who wants another sneak peek of THE STALKER? The next installment in The O’Connells series will be released next week, but you can read Chapter 2 now!
Dark secrets are resurrected in this new O’Connell novel.
Alison Sweetgrass-O’Connell believes she’s forever a misfit and will never fit in.
After struggling to recover from a teenage crush that dealt her a crippling blow, Alison watches from the sidelines in the small town of Livingston, Montana, which hasn’t been friendly to her. Silently, she believes everyone’s seemingly perfect lives have a dark side. And soon her beliefs prove true.
Alison meets young, attractive med student Bennett Warren, new to Livingston. Suddenly, Bennett is showing up everywhere she is—and then, in her good fortune, he turns out to have rented the apartment right next door.
At first, she’s convinced it’s fate, and maybe there is hope for her, but a suspicious turn of events has her fearing she’s being stalked by someone who knows one of her secrets, something no one should know.
She tries telling herself she’s imagining things, but she soon realizes someone has been inside her apartment, going through her very personal belongings. She finds herself looking over her shoulder, not knowing who she can trust. When she confides in Bennett, she’s convinced he thinks she’s crazy, too.
Then Alison comes across evidence that has her questioning not only her sanity but also the real reason Bennett showed up in Livingston—and even more disturbing is the possibility that him moving right next door to her wasn’t entirely coincidental.
Chapter 2
“I just need your parents to sign an agreement that if you can’t pay your rent, they will be responsible, including any damages you may cause.”
Alison ground her teeth and bit back the urge to swear under her breath as she squeezed her cell phone. Just down the road was the Bluebird, with customers coming out. Alison wore a black down coat with a faux lined hood, her black jeans, and the old lady black flats that didn’t hurt her feet.
“But it’s my apartment. Why would you need my parents to sign? That’s ridiculous. I have a job…”
“And you’re only eighteen, Alison,” Trish said. “You have no credit history, so we need someone to vouch for you. It’s just how things are done to protect us. Once you have some history behind you, as you pay your rent and look after the place, you won’t need a co-signer. At the same time, if this is a problem, there are others we can rent to. There’s always a long list…”
“Fine, I get it,” she said, cutting in, sensing the woman would go on and on about how irresponsible she expected her to be. “My parents will gladly sign. So how soon until I can get the keys?”
“After you pay the deposit and your first month’s rent, and after your parents sign the agreement. There’s an addendum you’ll have to sign about no smoking and no parties. We’ll need cash upfront for the deposit and first month, and then you can have the keys.”
For a moment, she wondered what else she’d have to agree to just to have her own place. “I can pay everything today, and I’ll ask my dad to call you and stop in today. I’ll come back after work.” She let it hang, wanting everything yesterday.
“Great! I look forward to hearing from Ryan,” Trish said, then hung up.
Alison sent a quick text off to her dad: Apartment lady needs you to sign your life away in case I screw up. Can you call her please?
It took only a second before she saw three dots. Her dad was texting something. Then the winking emoji appeared. Her dad was such a dork sometimes—but at the same time, she’d never seen her mom as happy as she’d been since getting back together with him.
She pocketed her phone, unable to keep the smile from her face as she went to pull open the door to the restaurant. At the same time, someone else reached for it. He was tall, with cropped dark hair and dimples.
“Hey there, pretty lady. After you,” he said, pulling the door open.
She felt her smile widen, taking in the charm that seemed to flash from the tall, dark, and handsome man. He wore a light gray wool dress coat.
“Well, thank you,” she replied. As she stepped inside the restaurant, the sound of cars passing over the slushy streets faded. This early December day was unusually warm. She’d just been there a few hours earlier with her dad for breakfast, and she spotted Nan and Chad running dishes to the back. Half the tables were filled with diners for the lunch rush.
“Alison, I’ll get you to start rolling utensils and polishing the glasses in back,” Chad tossed out over his shoulder as he strode past the bar. “The dishwasher called in sick, so I need you to pitch in there, as well.”
The hot guy was taking off his coat and sliding it over the back of a chair at the bar, which was empty. She hesitated a moment before heading into the back and clocking in, then putting
her stuff away in the cubicle where all the employees hung their coats and tossed their bags. She took in Vern, the chef, and Dax, who did everything else.
“Hey there, Alison,” Dax said. He had a heavy reddish beard and was an easy forty pounds overweight, with a dirty apron over his large belly. “Didn’t know you were working the lunch shift.”
“Chad put me back on lunch this week. Said you were short staffed.” She made a face.
Vern, who was frying something, glanced her way. She never could figure out what he was thinking. He towered over Dax. “Yeah, heard him redoing the schedule this morning. Seems the new guy lasted only three shifts before giving his notice.”
“Alison, for the love of God, get out here and stop dawdling,” Chad snapped as he stepped into the back. The door was still open, and the two other men fell quiet. She could see the way Chad looked at her and was sure he didn’t talk to anyone else the way he did to her. She felt the reprimand like a slap.
“I just got here,” she said. “You said you wanted the glasses polished and utensils rolled.” She gestured to the dish pit.
He only shook his head. “Well, it will have to wait. I need you out here now to get drinks and be the bus girl.”
Bus girl! She’d really been demoted. That was the job she’d started out with in her first days with the Bluebird, being everyone’s slave and getting no tips. She held her tongue.
Chad walked over to the line and tacked an order up for Vern. “I need you to take a ginger ale and one tea to table four with two glasses of water.”
“Okay,” was all she said, and she didn’t miss the look Vern passed her before she walked out of the back.
She took in the handsome man sitting at the bar, alone, as she reached for two glasses and filled them with water. He was wearing a light blue knit sweater. Handsome was an understatement.
“Have you been looked after yet?” she asked.
“Not yet,” he replied. “Seems I’m waiting for you.”
She hesitated a second, because it seemed like he was flirting…but that was impossible. No one flirted with her. She lifted another glass for the soda. The way he was looking at her, the edge to his smile, he was teasing her—or maybe he wasn’t. He leaned back and crossed his arms. Even his chest was impressive.
“What can I get you to drink?” she said as she filled a glass with ginger ale and set it on the tray with the waters, then reached for a mug and small metal pot for the tea.
“Just a coffee, actually, and water and a menu.”
She reached for one of the laminate menus stacked behind the bar and rested it on the counter beside him, then set a mug and saucer before him and lifted the coffee carafe to pour.
“Cream and sugar?” she asked. She filled another glass with water and rested it beside the coffee.
He just shook his head as he reached for the mug. “No, no, black is fine.”
As she turned back to the tray, Chad appeared behind her. “Hey, I told you to get those drinks over to table four! What’s taking you so long?” He settled his hand on her back, that spot between her shoulder blades. She could feel the reprimand from him along with the reminder from her dad.
“I have them ready now,” she said, “and please don’t touch my back again.”
He pulled his hand away, and at the expression on his face, she feared what he’d say. But he just angled his head, took a step back, and held his hands up. “Wasn’t sure you were hearing me. I was just trying to get your attention. There was nothing inappropriate there, Alison. You do have a tendency not to hear. If you have the drinks, then get going,” he said rather sharply and pointed to the table.
She lifted the tray. As he walked away in back, her tension spiked.
“That was bullshit, you know.”
She turned to mister good looking, who was gazing right at her. His hazy blue eyes against mocha skin seemed to add an edge to just how attractive he was.
She just stared at him for a second. “Excuse me?” was all she could think to say.
He leaned on the counter and gestured with his mug of coffee behind her. “Your boss, I take it? Yeah, that wasn’t cool, touching you that way, and his explanation was bullshit, the way he flipped the blame when you called him out. Good for you for speaking up. At the same time, I didn’t hear an apology from him. Don’t let him get away with that,” he said. With the strength that seemed to radiate off him, she felt as if she wasn’t totally alone.
She glanced over to the door and then back to the super hot guy. There seemed to be chemistry between them. “Ah, thanks, but when I get fired, being right isn’t going to pay my rent.”
He laughed as she strode away with the tray over to table four and delivered the drinks. When she glanced back, he was talking to Nan, who was taking his order.
Chad was still in the back. Maybe her dad was right. Everyone seemed to think she had no boundaries, but for the first time, speaking up, she felt as if she’d put Chad Hargrave on notice, and it felt pretty damn good.
As the rest of the lunch shift passed, she rolled the pile of cutlery. By the time she was finished, she glanced up and took in the now virtually empty restaurant. It was close to four thirty. She felt the vibration of her phone in her back pocket and pulled it out, seeing her dad’s text: Signed the required X. You’re good to go. See you tonight at Marcus’s. Don’t be late.
“Are you suddenly on a break?” Chad snapped as he strode past her. His gaze and reprimand hit their mark.
“Sorry,” she said, shoving her phone in her back pocket. “I’m done here with the cutlery. Anything else you want me to do?”
Chad lingered, the distance and tension between them apparent. “Wipe the tables down, and the two booths need cleared. Then I guess you’re done for the day.”
As he walked away into the back, Nan strode out, carrying a tray filled with dirty glasses. She raised a brow and took in the swinging door behind her before dragging her gaze back to Alison.
“Well, haven’t seen Chad that off in a while.” She stopped right beside her. “You did good today and held your tongue, considering you were suddenly demoted to bus girl instead of waitress.” She rested the tray on the counter of the bar and reached into the pocket of her short black apron to pull out several bills. “Here’s some tip money, which you were denied. Thanks for helping. I’ve told Chad many times to keep his hands to himself. You were right to say something, but next time, do it in private and not in front of the customers. That’s why he’s so pissed. You embarrassed him.”
So she’d heard.
The front door to the restaurant opened, and she spotted Belinda Lee dressed in a long black skirt and red winter jacket, which she unzipped. Her blond hair was pulled back in a tight bun,
and her face was the kind of perfection that had Alison wanting to punch her. She smiled brightly, and Alison wondered if she snarled, as she felt Nan’s hand on her arm.
“Hi, Belinda, you ready for your first day?” Nan said with that friendly tone of hers.
Belinda stopped at the bar and dragged her gaze over to Alison, then shrugged happily. “Can’t wait. Although I’ve never been a waitress before, Chad assured me I’ll have no trouble catching on. Hey, Alison, how are you? Are you working tonight, too?”
Why did she have to be so damn friendly? But then, she’d always been like that—to her face, right before planting a knife in her back.
“No,” she replied. She could have said more, but the last thing she wanted was to have any conversation with the girl who’d lied about her in a way that could’ve ended with her facing charges that would’ve ruined her life. The gossip had never gone away. Tension lingered.
“Well, Belinda, Chad is in back,” Nan said. “You should check in, and he’ll walk you through what you need to do.”
Belinda dragged her gaze back to her, firmed her lips, and then walked through the back door.
Nan was standing right beside her now, so close, resting her arm on the counter of the dark wood bar. “You want me to say it?” she said, and Alison wondered whether she was in for another scolding.
“What, that I’ve worked here for a year to land that evening waitress job only to have it ripped away and be reduced to a bus girl, while Belinda walks in with no experience at all, bats her lashes at Chad, and gets the premium shift? Like, what gives?” she said. The anger she’d kept at bay was suddenly simmering to a slow boil.
Nan let out a sigh, one she knew well. “Word of advice: Let it go. I told him not to do it, but he says he sees something in her. I’ve been working a lot of years, and I haven’t always been this happy. There are a lot of Chads out there, but there are also a lot of bosses who are way worse, and I’ve worked for all of them. I’ve been passed over for a lot of opportunities I should’ve had, and I was angry for a long time because of that. Your anger over today is justified, but at the same time, the only person you’re hurting is yourself. Do your best, Alison. What you give out is what you get back. I told you before that if you want to be happy and have people treat you fairly, decently, then you need to do the same.”
She wondered if it was the expression on her face and the way she pulled back that made Nan angle her head and raise a brow.
“Don’t be angry at me,” Nan said. “This was my gift to you today. And another thing: There are a lot of Belindas out there, waiting to shove a knife in your back. They seem to be born with the gift of wrapping a man around their finger, but one day…” That was all she said before she lifted the tray.
The door opened to the back, and she heard Chad and Belinda’s laughter.
Nan shook her head. “Focus on you, Alison. Take a deep breath. See you tomorrow.”
As she strode into the back, past the swinging door, Alison just stared, considering what the older waitress, her mentor, had said. How did she make it seem so easy, as if nothing ever got to her?
Her phone dinged again, and she took in the time on the clock behind the bar. She thought of the keys she’d be holding shortly. Soon, she would have something that was just hers. Maybe Nan was right. Focusing on herself really did make her feel better.
The O’Connells of Livingston, Montana, are not your typical family. Follow them on their journey to the dark and dangerous side of love in a series of romantic thrillers you won’t want to miss.
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