“Good. I do have a suggestion now for your business. Perhaps it’s time to move beyond the name My Favorite Mistakes since your business is moving beyond that idea.”
“What do you think would be a good name?”
“Seeing as I suspect you have a rather bright future in front of you as a jewelry designer, I would suggest a simple name. I would suggest your name. That is what all the fashion icons do. I think your customers will soon want to give and to wear Kat Harper necklaces.”
I smiled. “It has a nice ring to it.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
“Close your eyes.”
Bryan pressed his palms over my eyes as we reached the block with my parent’s store.
“Maybe you’d like to blindfold me?”
“I’ll do that later, don’t you worry.”
“Oh, I wasn’t worried.”
“Just keep them closed.”
“Since your hands are covering them, it’s safe to say I can’t see a thing. So don’t let me trip.”
“I won’t.”
He guided me along the sidewalk. I smelled the sea air, and it reminded me of long, lazy summer days here in Mystic. It reminded me of summer nights years ago falling in love. Right now with December upon us, the air smelled of pine and freshly falling snow. A few flakes drifted down from the darkening afternoon sky, promising a night by a warm fire and blankets of white in the morning.
I graduated two days ago. There was little fanfare, as is the custom with a business school graduation. I simply finished my exams, checked my grades online, and verified that I had, in fact, attained my MBA. The first person I called was Claire, who I now thought of as a super hero with a secret identity. She congratulated me and informed me that my necklaces were faring well the first week in her stores. The My Favorite Mistakes line was still selling online and in boutiques, but the Elizabeth’s customers favored my simpler styles. Rather than a star, a key and a sunburst jammed on one necklace, they were opting for single pendants, and embracing the European look of the charms, thanks to where I’d found them — the markets of Paris. Of course, there were shoppers too with quirkier taste, and for those the cat and dog charms appealed. Still others with a vintage flare liked the cameos and brooches. “Be charmed with a Kat Harper necklace,” Claire pronounced. “That’s the tagline.”
I’d have to remember to thank my parents for giving me a name that lent itself so well to jewelry, especially since I was starting to make real money from my work. I planned to pay off their loan in a few weeks from the revenue.
“Almost there.”
I held my hands in front of me, purple mittens keeping me warm. We passed the cafe. I could hear the bell on the door jingle when someone came out, and the tell-tale scent of coffee trailed behind.
“Here we are.”
I stumbled at the sight. He grabbed my elbow to keep me from slipping. Not only had Mystic Landing been transformed for the holidays, it had been totally transformed. As in a makeover and a facelift. There was a new sign made out of brushed metal, pretty window displays that married a sleek to a retro design, and a glass door that had been spruced up with the name of the store painted in my favorite color — purple.
He held open the door, and I wandered inside, mesmerized by the changes, my eyes the size of saucers. The old beige berber rug had been replaced by a warm cranberry carpet. The standard wooden shelves and displays had been extradited, and instead the frames and mugs, the books and cards, the vases and other gifts for sale were displayed on high and low wooden tables, some modern, some antique-y. It was the perfect mix of old rustic charm that had made this place a centerpiece of the town for many years, and a new twist to send the store into the future.
But that wasn’t all. The kitschier items — the little tchotchkes and such — had been banished. In their place were classier wares, small pitchers in brushed metal, a cute pink pot for making sauces, wine glasses with clever patterns on them. My favorite display was the his and her gift set, courtesy of Made Here and Kat Harper — a vintage key necklace coupled with a set of cufflinks fashioned from the padlocks from the lover’s bridge in Paris. It turned out Bryan and I were a good pair at a lot of things, including business partnerships. The chance to market this line of gifts together was Bryan’s proposition — that was all he wanted when he said I could make my necklaces at his factory. It was too good an offer to pass up.
My mom waved to me, and so did my dad. But neither one of them rushed over. They were too busy ringing up customers, and that made me so happy. Bryan had once said that maybe there was another solution to the store’s woes. It seemed he was right.
I turned to him. “Is my jaw on the floor right now?”
“Something like that.” He grinned, big and wide, and like he had a secret up his sleeve.
“Did you do this?”
He gave me a sheepish shrug.
“But how?” I knew he’d been out to visit the store and check things out. He’d told me that. He told me too that he was helping my parents figure out some new inventory plans. But this?
“That’s what I was up to. It’s a surprise. For you.”
“You did all this?”
He nodded.
“They let you?”
My parents were so stoic about taking help from me. I couldn’t imagine they’d accept it from Bryan, even if he was the boyfriend of their daughter.
“They did.”