The Help Chapter One: Help Wanted

I was getting too old to keep the shop running by myself, so I put up an ad for some additional help. Mainly, I wanted someone with a strong back and good knees to help me lift things up and down the stairs from the basement to the store floor.

Also, around the shop, a few things needed to be done, things that I had been putting off or couldn’t afford to pay someone to fix.

George, my late husband, was an asshole. I thought he took care of a lot of the financial things before he croaked, but no, he left everything half-done. I was buried in debt after he died.

Taking over the family’s bookstore was my only option to stay afloat, but it had been neglected for so long.

I had built quite a following and had some regular shoppers and readers. With a little help, I wouldn’t be just holding my head above water; I could reduce my debt.

The ad went up online, and I put a sign up in the window.

For weeks, no one came, and then I interviewed a few potential candidates from the online website, but most of them wanted more pay for fewer hours, or worse. It was hard to find good help; I had heard that all around the neighborhood, but I was desperate, so I kept forging forward.

Then, one day, one of my regular readers saw the sign. His name was Jeffery, and he was an avid reader of the fantasy section, which featured warlocks, Wizards, elves, and other such characters.

“What are you looking for?” he held the sign as I was checking him out.

“Just an extra pair of hands,” I grinned.

“I have hands,” Jeffery smiled as he held up his hands.

“You do a lot for me anyway; I couldn’t ask for more,” I said as I handed him the books.

Jeffery helped me decorate when I got started, and even helped me now and then to bring things up from the basement.

The store’s design was old. It was built in the 1940s, and the delivery dock was downstairs. Whoever built this area didn’t want the customers or clientele to see the dock workers or the trucks, so everything was delivered downstairs and then brought up by store personnel.

“I couldn’t,” I stared at the young man.

Jeffery was in his thirties and was a good-looking man. I had noticed many women staring at him. He was tall and muscular, not the big beefy kind of muscles, but toned and defined. He had a bald head, and his skin was a milk chocolate color. What got me was his eyes. Even though they were dark brown, I could see that he was a good person who meant well.

“I could do with the extra money, since Caroline left me,” Jeffery stated as he approached the counter.

‘Good riddance!’ I thought as I had always hated that woman. Every time I saw her, she had her head down and was looking at her phone.

She had asked me to follow her on her social media, and it only lasted a few days before I unfollowed her.

Caroline was always posting pictures wherever she went. There were pictures posted nonstop, and it was always the good angles, with lip gloss on and her hair perfectly framed. Of course, the camera pointed to her chest so she could show off her cleavage.

“I am sorry,” I lied.

“It’s okay,” Jeffery shook his head. “I know you didn’t like her.”

“I didn’t,” I admitted.

After a few moments of talking, I decided to give in and let him help around the shop. I needed the help, and I would be a fool to turn someone willing to do the work.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

“Thanks, Jeff,” I smiled as he came out from the basement with a new shipment of books, magazines, and other items.

“No problem,” Jeff wiped the sweat from his forehead.

It had been months since he started helping me, and I didn’t know how I would survive around here if he decided to quit or find something else.

The place was looking good after the renovations he had done, and the lighting had never looked better.

I took a bottle of water out of the fridge and handed it to him.

“Thanks,” he said as he took it. “So, tonight is the night, huh?”

“I told you I am not going,” I responded.

“It would be nice for you to get out,” Jeff told me.

A bunch of my friends were going out for a girls’ night out. It was nothing big; they were going out on the town, hitting a few bars, and seeing a movie.

“I am fifty-four, not twenty!” I exclaimed. “My days of partying and drinking have been over for a very long time!”

“You will have fun, and when was the last time you had fun?”

Jeff was right, just like my best friend Margie. It had been years since George passed away, and I hadn’t done anything for myself since then.

“Okay,” I surrendered.

“Good, now go, I will take care of things,” Jeff shooed me out of the store.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

I decided to get a makeover since I was going out for the first time in a long time. I got my hair and nails done and picked out a dress for the occasion. When I looked in the mirror, I could hardly recognize myself.

I had to admit that this was a good idea. After we hit the first bar, I got a few looks from some of the young men, and it made me feel even better.

I didn’t do much dancing, but I did drink, and I got a little carried away. After the third bar we hit, I knew I wouldn’t be able to drive back home.

The others felt the same, but they didn’t want to call their husbands, and Uber was running behind because it was a Saturday and there was a concert in town.

I decided to call Jeff and see if he would take us home.

“You’re the best!” I shouted as I got in the passenger seat.

“Yeah, you are,” Margie said from the back seat.

“So handsome!” Melanie said.

“He knows he is handsome,” Amanda smiled.

“How much have you ladies had to drink?” Jeff asked.

“A lot!” we all said in unison.

Jeff tolerated our loud talking and random conversations. He dropped us off at our destinations one by one until it was just me and him.

“Another step,” Jeff said as he helped me up the stairs to my house.

“Thank you!” I slurred my speech as I talked.

“You will be, okay?” Jeff asked as we reached my front door.

“Yeah, I will be fine,” I grinned.

I took out my keys but then dropped them. “I got it!” I shouted as I bent over to pick them up.

“Oh!” Jeff said as he quickly turned around.

“What?” I said as I stood up. “Oh shit!” I shouted.

When I had bent over quickly, the top of my dress had fallen forward, and my tits fell out.

I had been pulling on the top of my dress all night. “Sorry!” Jeff said as I turned the keys to the door.

“I am sorry,” I quickly put the key in the door and went inside. “See you Monday!” I shouted as I closed the door.

I heard Jeff going down the stairs, and then I looked out the window and saw his car leaving.

I had never been so embarrassed; the experience had sobered me up quickly.

I didn’t know how I would look him in the eye come Monday.