Cozy Book Haven
When William and his group arrived, Alice was still in the store, transcribing two medical texts by Celsus.
The two texts from Celsus on medical techniques aren’t extensive, but copying them a thousand times is sure to tire out one’s hand. Now that Alice had firmly decided to learn from William, she wouldn’t give up easily.
Ignoring William’s age and the way he treated her, at least what William could teach her was something no one else in the world could possibly offer.
Having calmed down while sitting in the bookstore earlier, Alice had come to understand this. .
William’s cold and strict demeanor towards her was perhaps beneficial. Wouldn’t it push her to take her studies more seriously? If William were too kind, showing excessive concern, or making inappropriate advances, wouldn’t that be even harder to stomach?
“This place is quite nice,” William commented as he looked around after entering. The bookstore was spacious, and the books were neatly arranged. Simple and clean.
Seeing them come in, Alice put down her pen and greeted them with a smile, “You’re here? Come and have a seat.”
William had mentioned that Evelyn might be his future wife. The Celsus texts were gifts from William, so there was no point in hiding them. Besides, she hadn’t brought the original manuscripts, and all she had were her handwritten copies. Even if Evelyn saw them, it wouldn’t matter.
“Hello, Alice,” Evelyn greeted Alice somewhat nervously. On the way here, she learned that William’s friend was Alice, meaning if she were to work here, Alice would be her boss.
“Hello, Evelyn. I heard from William that you’re looking for a job. I happen to need some help here. Why don’t you join me?” Alice offered.
Feeling a tad nervous, Evelyn took a seat and asked, “Alice, what are the working hours here?”
“Well…” Alice stole a glance at William before clearing her throat, “When are you available?”
Evelyn hesitated before replying, “I have classes during the day. My only free time is at noon and in the evening.”
Being in her second year of college, she didn’t need to attend night study sessions. Studying at the bookstore would be just as effective. But the bookstore’s regular business hours were probably during the day, and she wasn’t sure if they’d hire her for just the evenings.
“In that case, come in the evening, whenever you finish classes. The previous owner often stayed here but would head home early due to his age,” Alice chuckled, “Did you know the former owner of this bookstore was a past dean of Hudson University? He sold it to me on the condition that I wouldn’t change its function. He visits often, so you can seek his advice too.”
While her words were directed at Evelyn, Alice’s main intent was to update William on the situation.
William bought this place, paying a hefty sum just to provide a job for Evelyn while pretending it had nothing to do with him. Alice rather admired such a move.
“Alice, are you referring to Edward Taylor, the former dean?” Evelyn’s eyes lit up. Was this bookstore previously owned by Edward Taylor?
Edward Taylor, the former dean of Hudson University, was a true scholar. A history professor and a PhD supervisor, many now find it hard even to get a glimpse of him. Who would have thought he was hiding in this little bookstore?
Alice nodded, “Yes! That’s Edward Taylor.”
William remained silent upon hearing Alice’s words. It seemed that he and Edward Taylor had some sort of connection.
Of all the bookstores in New York City, Alice had chosen this one. It was conveniently located near Hudson University, so Evelyn wouldn’t have to travel far for work.
“Hmm, may I ask, what is your expected salary?” Alice asked cautiously. In her eyes, William bought this bookstore specifically to arrange a job for Evelyn, didn’t he?
It didn’t matter how much the salary was; William was wealthy.
Evelyn bit her lip and tentatively said, “2000…2000 dollars, is that alright?”
“2000 dollars?” Alice’s voice involuntarily went up a couple of notches upon hearing this number.
Startled, Evelyn quickly corrected herself, “1500 dollars is okay too.”
“That won’t do!” Alice glanced at William, and seeing that he didn’t say anything, she continued, “5000 dollars, 1500 dollars is too low.”
Alice came from a wealthy background. When she was in school, she had a monthly allowance of 10,000 dollars, and in college, her monthly expenses were tens of thousands of dollars.
2000 dollars seemed to her like something that could be spent on a single meal with friends.
William had gone to the trouble of buying a store to arrange a job for Evelyn; how could he offer such a low salary?
“…” It was the first time Evelyn had heard of a boss thinking the salary offered to an employee was too low. She glanced at the silent William and finally said sincerely to Alice, “Alice, I just want 2000 dollars. You don’t have to give me more money just because of William. I should be paid for the work I do, and I don’t want what’s not mine.”
“2000 dollars!” Alice took a deep breath, and finally said to William, “Fine! William, you’ll get 2000 dollars too.”
William nodded. He didn’t have high expectations regarding his salary; as long as it covered his living expenses, it was enough.
He had already earned quite a bit of money working at the bar, which covered his daily expenses.
“So your daily tasks will be tidying up the store and serving customers when they come to buy books. If there are no customers in the evening, you can close up,” Alice briefly explained their duties. “During the day, someone else will look after the store, so you don’t need to worry about it.”
Since it’s a bookstore, she couldn’t close during the day and open at night. She still had to maintain appearances. Hiring someone to take care of the store during the day was easy for her.
“Is that all?” Evelyn felt that the job was incredibly easy.
Alice shrugged and laughed, “There isn’t much to do, really.”
Cozy Book Haven spans more than 3000 square feet, and there’s also a loft. In such a prime location, other businesses could undoubtedly be profitable, but running a bookstore would undoubtedly lead to losses.
The profit margins for books aren’t high.
“Thank you, Alice,” Evelyn said, feeling that Alice was genuinely trying to help her. However, she didn’t know that all of this was arranged by William.