When teatime is not enough ❤️

 

"Why is January so long?" Shelly practically wailed.

"Because it's winter," Mia shrugged with a sigh. Yes, it seemed sales were down for the month. The holidays were over.

"Precisely!" Shelly practically smashed her desk with her little fist. She meant business.

"But Valentine's day is coming?" Mia's smart smile was to the rescue.

"And?" Shelly smiled as if she needed a sure win for the holidays. "What do you propose?" After all, it was the two of them and she was certain tea would not help this brainstorm. "Maybe we need to go to the pub."

"I don't think so," Mia begged to differ. "We'll never get ahead, that way." After all, it might have been closing time at the bookshop, but it was a totally bad idea. "Weren't you on the boys' tails about this anyway?" Mia made herself comfortable in the hard chair across from Shelly's desk. "This is no time for a party, baby."

Shelly gave Mia a stiff upper chin. No one was to call her baby. No one. She was still the boss, wasn't she?

"I say we need a drink," she was adamant.

"No, we don't. We'll never get this sorted if we don't do it now." Mia gave her the eye. "Think about it, what do lovers need."

"Self-help books?" Shelly couldn't help but pull from her clouded consciousness.

"Possibly," Mia nodded as she smoothed down her sweater.

"Um, Colleen Hoover?" Shelly made a face of disgust.

"Oh, her books are already flying off the shelf." Mia shrugged. Shelly nodded. Mia mentioned Stu could make heart-shaped macarons. 

Shelly thought that would work. "And poetry mic night," Shelly said that would be a good lead into Valentine's day. Maybe they could put the love poetry books at half-price.

"I like it," Mia said she'd looked through the new romantic authors to display too. Finally, she asked about Brad and Kate. Were they on again?

"I haven't asked," Shelly didn't mean to be a snob, but she was certain Kate felt that way about her. "She is working. I bet he cheated on her. Why can't she get some balls like Miley Cyrus? You know like that new song of hers, Flowers."

"I don't think I've heard it?" Mia looked at her blankly.

"I guess we could have an anti-valentines day display, too." Shelly smiled at her effort to make February a good month, after all.