Authors: Bettye Griffin
Chapter 3
A
va rose early Saturday morning. Armed with a pooper scooper, she leashed Khufu and took him for a brisk walk around the block. When she returned home she contacted the garage and made arrangements for her car to be picked up. They promised to send someone over to Beginnings to pick up the keys before noon.
After a light breakfast of a toasted bagel and orange juice
, eaten while she got the latest news from CNN, she dressed and prepared to walk the seven blocks to work.
There was a definite chill in the air
—the local weather segment on the Weather Channel gave the temperature as forty-five degrees. Ava dressed in layers of a tiny checkered blazer over a mock turtleneck, navy slacks and comfortable moccasins, knowing that walking always made her body temperature rise and also that by lunchtime the mercury would have risen to the sixties.
She unlocked the security trellis in front of her shop and pushed it to the side. Beginnings had quite a selection of wedding gowns and dresses for bridal attendants and flower girls as well. She also carried shoes, hose, garters, headpieces, faux pearls and other accessories, and prom dresses too. Hers was the most complete bridal salon in the county
, and that was how far future brides came in search of the perfect gown.
She put the coffee on and filled a plate with a variety of the thin tea cookies she kept on hand for her customers
. It was going to be another slow day. To help kill the time, she ran the vacuum cleaner over the deep blue carpet and did some general straightening up.
Her assistant, Winifred Woods, showed up promptly at eleven
. Woody, as she was called, was in her mid-fifties with three grown sons. Theirs was an alliance that worked well. Woody only wanted to work part time, where she could do her housework in the mornings and be able to get home and prepare dinner for her husband and the one son who still lived at home; while Ava needed someone who was capable of running the show if she needed to go out in the middle of the day, as well as allow her to keep Beginnings open on Saturdays, the busiest day, but a day when she sometimes coordinated weddings. Woody was the type of person who always knew the proper etiquette for any situation, and she loved weddings. “But with three boys, this is about as close to wedding planning as I’ll be able to get,” she had explained when Ava interviewed her. She was also an accomplished seamstress and did all the alterations. Her impeccable taste was quite handy when it was time to get a wedding organized, as well.
“
Any customers this morning?” Woody asked now.
“
Not yet. I’m glad you’re here. I was fighting the urge to go next door and indulge in some gossip, just to have someone to talk to.” The holiday party season in full swing, and Vanessa’s beauty shop was already busy when Ava arrived at work.
“
Don’t you worry; it’ll pick up,” Woody said confidently. “I’m going to make myself a cup of coffee. Then you can tell me all about Catherine’s party.”
Catherine
’s party.
Immediately Ava had a mental picture of the handsome Hilton White, which brought a smile to her lips.
Just as Woody had predicted, Ava had a customer just moments later
. A beaming young woman in her early twenties, accompanied by a female friend, came through the doors and greeted her.
“
Hello. How can I help you ladies this morning?” Ava offered.
“
Well…” The first girl giggled…“I’m getting my ring Christmas Day, and I just thought I’d come in and see what kind of gowns you have.” Her eyes quickly scanned the walls of the shop, which were lined with built-in air-conditioned closets with glass doors, the inside of which held gowns, gowns and more gowns.
“
Just about every kind,” Ava replied warmly. “What type of gown were you interested in?”
“
Oh, something with a fitted top and a real full skirt.”
“
Like a fairy princess.”
“
Yes, that’s it!”
“
Why don’t you have a seat in here?” Ava suggested. She led the pair to a sleek white leather sofa. “Pour yourselves some coffee. I’ll pick out a few gowns you might like.” Her seasoned eye did a quick appraisal of the slim young woman. “Let’s see…you’re a size eight?”
The prospective bride confirmed this, again flashing the smile that was almost foolish-looking
. Ava grinned back; the young woman’s happiness was infectious. Seeing all these happy brides-to-be was the nicest part of her work. Although her own marriage didn’t live up to the fairy tale, she would never regret having taken the step. Planning her wedding had been one of the happiest times of her life, when her whole life was in front of her and anything was possible…or so she had thought at the time.
Both young women thanked her and took seats
. Woody, coffee in hand, came and offered help.
“
Ball gown, size eight,” Ava said.
“
I’m on it,” Woody replied, and Ava knew she would be. That particular style of gown was in the higher-priced echelon, and they loved selling them.
It took the two of them less than two minutes to pick out four selections, including one with a
tight-fitting bodice with V’d front and back and plenty of sparkles sewn into both the bodice and skirt, giving it a fairy princess look. “Let’s save that one for last,” Ava suggested as they went to present them to the customer.
Ava let Woody handle the prospective buyers
. In addition to a salary, she paid Woody a commission on each gown she sold based on its retail cost. Woody was a wonderful salesperson. She had a way about her of making people feel immediately at ease. Ava supposed she would have that same flair in another fifteen years or so, when she would be old enough to project that motherly image…not that she was particularly eager for that to happen. Sometimes she could hardly believe she was thirty-five. Where had the years gone?
She looked up expectantly when the door chimes rang
. It wasn’t a customer, but her friend Kendall Lucas. “Hi there. I know
you’re
not in the market for a wedding dress,” Ava said. Kendall was a newlywed herself, having exchanged vows with the love of her life just a few months before.
“
Afraid not,” Kendall said. “As the saying goes, I was just in the neighborhood.”
“
Kind of early to be checking up on lunch, isn’t it?” Kendall owned Soul Food to Go, a drive-through restaurant just two blocks down Main Street.
“
No, I’m not here for that. We’re so busy with the Sundowner and Robinson’s, I’ve hardly had time to look at the books lately. I hope David’s not skimming.” Kendall laughed. Her younger brother was running both of her restaurants, the original one on Main Street and the larger one in Nile Beach. Kendall and her husband, Spencer Barnes, operated Nile Beach’s leading night spot and were the new owners of Robinson’s Bar, which had been a fixture in downtown Palmdale for nearly a half century, having purchased it from original proprietor Harry Robinson after he retired.
“
How was the party?” Ava asked.
“
Oh, it was fun. We had a full house. Tonight we’re having Prime Cut perform. More than half the tables have already been reserved.” Prime Cut was a popular local band who performed classic R&B material. They usually filled the house wherever they appeared. “You should come by for a while.”
“
I might do that. So what brings you downtown?”
“
I need to go by the art store. You know how we decorated the walls of the Sundowner reception area with pictures of well-known black folks?”
“
Yeah. I thought that was a nice touch.”
I thought so too, but so many people were grumbling about Clarence Thomas
’s picture being up, Spencer got annoyed and took it down. I have to get a replacement to fill in that space.”
“
You mean you couldn’t come up with a picture of somebody else besides ‘Uncle’ Clarence?” Ava asked, laughing. “My father used to say he was the darkest white man he’s ever seen in his life.” It had been three years since her father had passed away, and it felt good to remember the many humorous things he used to say and laugh about them.
“
All right, so maybe he was a controversial choice. So was Louis Farrakhan, but nobody complained about him. It’s just that I didn’t want to go too heavy on the sports and entertainment figures. We have all the people we used to learn about in school every Black History Month, plus more recent people, and of course Barack Obama. Those pictures are small, Ava, only five by seven, which is why we need so many to display. It’s hard coming up with politicians and historical figures that people recognize without having to read the fine print.”
Ava
’s thoughts went to Hilton White. With the prominent cheekbones that gave him an almost sculpted look, he’d look great on anyone’s wall.
She chided herself for thinking about Hilton again, for the second time in a very short period
. She’d better get hold of herself.
Then she remembered something
. “Oh, Kendall, my car’s in the shop. Do you think you could give me a ride home tonight? I walked in this morning, but it’ll be dark when I leave at six, and I need to stop at the bank to make a drop.”
“
Sure. I’ll be back at six. Maybe we can grab some dinner and chat for a while before we get tied up with Christmas and Vicky’s wedding.”
“
Sounds good.”
****
Although the young bride-to-be was fascinated with how she looked in the fairy princess gown, she said it was still a little early in the game to actually purchase a dress. She did verify with Woody that the dress would still be available in the spring.
“
I wouldn’t be surprised if she comes back for it,” Woody said. “She looked absolutely gorgeous in it. Even her friend said so. But I suppose she does need to make sure she gets her ring first. No sense in putting the cart before the horse.”
A number of prospective brides came in to browse
. This was certainly a good season for jewelers, Ava thought as she noticed all the sparkling solitaires. But she wasn’t envious, for she knew business would pick up after New Year’s, when the spring brides traditionally came out in full force.
She did sell one gown, an off-white tea-length lacy creation, to a woman who planned to be married for the second time on New Year
’s Day. “I was going to do the beige suit thing,” she confided to Ava, “but everyone talked me into getting a pretty dress instead.”
“
You won’t regret it, I’m sure. Especially when you see the look in your intended’s eyes,” Ava assured.
“
It’s lovely, isn’t it? And entirely appropriate for a small ceremony at my parents’ home. I’m just glad I was able to find something on such short notice. I can hardly believe how excited I am. You know, when I was divorced I swore I would never do this again.”
“
I guess time really does heal all wounds,” Ava remarked. She wished the woman well, and after she left wandered to the window and looked out at Main Street. She felt a little hypocritical making that statement. It was true she no longer loved her former husband, but walking away from him had been the hardest thing she’d ever done. Still, she was convinced she had done the right thing, especially now that she’d seen what he had accomplished with her out of the picture.
It had been nearly ten years since her marriage fell apart, and although she dated occasionally, in all that time she had never once considered remarrying
. She was firm in her belief that marriage was not for her. Her wounds may have healed, but the pain still lingered…and the memory was so strong she knew she would not risk a recurrence…at least not until it was safe to do so.
Downtown
Palmdale was really shaping up to be a nice area, she thought as she noticed someone in the jewelry shop across the street cleaning their windows. It had been a full decade since it was deemed a historic district, but only a few brave souls had dared to invest in the stately but decayed Queen Anne and Victorian-style homes that lined the streets, and in those early days they spent a good deal of time dodging bullets. But now houses were being snapped up, refurbished and sold at a steady pace, and the area had been cleaned up considerably. Ava was confident that her modest two-bedroom home would one day be worth considerably more than what she’d paid for it once the real estate market rebounded.
She was still looking out at the street scene when she saw the child mugger from the previous night
. He was walking down the street, eyeing everyone he passed. Ava knew right away he was up to no good.
She watched as he spoke briefly to an unsavory-looking bearded man wearing dark glasses and with massively thick hair worn in long dreadlocks, then continued on his way
. Something about his body language suggested desperation as he studied the passers-by. That was one emotion no child should ever experience, Ava thought.
She ran to the back room for her purse
. When she returned he was almost in front of her store. “Woody, keep an eye on things for me, will you?” she called. “I’m going to get some lunch.”