Destined Read Free Page B

am going to manage it
for him,” I finished proudly, and waited for the
welcome-fellow-merchant-to-the-neighborhood that was undoubtedly to follow.
    “Oh,” was all he said.
    He stood in silence, his curiosity
apparently fulfilled. Or perhaps he had just run out of steam from all that
talking. I felt disappointed and a little annoyed.
    “OK, well, got to go to work now!” I
said, sidling toward the doorway.
    He continued to stare at me.
    “You tell him, good,” he said, raising
his hand and pointing toward the “Books & Etc.” shop.
    “Good luck?” I asked.
    “Good…to open again!” He folded his
hands together across his chest.
    “Good to reopen the store?   I’ll tell him,” I smiled, sipping my
coffee as I went out the door. “I’m sure he’ll be glad to hear that the
neighbors approve!”
    I waved cheerfully and left my
taciturn new friend as two Asian women entered the store, talking loudly to
each other in a language I did not understand. I crossed the street and made my
way to number 33. It still appeared dark and deserted.
    We will change that soon enough, I
thought. My knock on the door echoed. Nothing happened, so I repeated it. This
time, the latch clacked and the door sprang open.
    “Here she is!” my new employer
exclaimed, “Right on time! What did I tell you?”
    “Good day to you both, then, Henry,”
said a second man, who was standing just inside. He stepped back and held the
door wide as I entered. Dark and tall, probably in his late twenties, he nodded
at me politely as I slipped past. I glimpsed a handsome face with a flashing
smile and then he was gone, out the door and down the street.
    “Farewell, my friend!” called my
employer, with a wave at his visitor.
    Mr. Paradis beckoned me inside and led
me into the sitting room, chattering about paperwork and tax forms. We sat down
and filled out various documents for the U.S. government. He seemed totally in
control of all these details, I was relieved to note. I saw his full business
name on one of the papers: Henry Paradis Imports, Inc. . Then he bundled everything into a
folder and sat back in his chair.
    He took off his reading glasses and
fixed me with his eye. “Well, Emily, have you decided where you want to start?”
    I was confounded. I had assumed I
would be told. I rallied quickly, however.
    “Um, I thought, maybe, to dust and
vacuum, you know. Then I will know more about the, er, merchandise?”
    “Very, very good. Excellent plan,” he
said and stood up, grabbing his pile of papers. “I’ll be off then.” He rapidly
headed across to the front hallway. “Getting myself out of the way,” he said, “Be
right up here if you want me! Don’t hesitate to call if you have a question.”
He pointed at the ceiling again, then he disappeared.
    So much for interfering bosses, I
thought. That will obviously not be the problem here! I was back to doing the
cleaning again, but this time I was actually eager to get started. I felt a
burst of optimism.
    I left my jacket and bag on the coat
rack in the corner and slowly entered the showroom. It looked dirty and
jumbled, and for a moment I was daunted by the mountain of work ahead of me.
    Then I found a brass switch plate on
the wall and I slowly pushed the buttons, one at a time. Three beautiful art
deco chandeliers glowed, hanging from the faraway ceiling. They were gorgeous
works of art radiating golden suffused light, very elegant and flattering.
      The jewel tones of the Oriental rugs looked warm and rich
now. A sense of adventure and discovery began to percolate through me.
    Walking around the room looking for a
closet, I made my way through the obstacle course of crates and boxes to pull
back the heavy velvet curtains that covered the two big display windows.
    A flood of bright natural light poured
into the room.
    The sun shone from behind the rooftops
of the buildings across the street. This street, Crescent Street, was mostly
residential and it looked relatively