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half the year,” Lucy said. “Trouble is we turn down jobs when it gets too busy.”
    “We get backed up,” Aurora said, shrugging. “No big thing.”
    “That’s a shame,” Christine said, hating the idea of inefficiency or lost profits. Maybe this was an area she could help. “Do you have a Web site?”
    “No. And no computers,” Aurora said. “We’re not a factory, Crystal.”
    “I’ve been telling her we could do a lot better with a Web site,” Lucy said, her eyes lit with energy.
    “That’s absolutely true,” Christine said. Aurora snorted.
    “Take this order for wind chimes.” Lucy motioned at a cardboard box full of ceramic bells. “This guy has a gift shop in Sedona. He looked for our Web site but no luck. He stuck to it and tried the phone book, but who knows how many sales we lose that way?”
    “The kiln only holds so many pieces,” Aurora said.
    “Not if we add more shelves,” Lucy insisted.
    “And what about the crew? Huh?”
    “We hire more when we need them,” Lucy said. This was obviously an argument they’d had before.
    “Maybe I could help with that,” Christine said, not wanting Aurora to get upset. “I can probably get the design guy at my agency to put up a simple Web site for free. If we buy a cheap computer, you could see how it would work.”
    “Let’s just get through a week or so,” Aurora grumbled, shooting her a look. “Bogie’s not up to much in the gardens and someone should supervise the animals—feeding, milking, collecting eggs. Plus, you have your own work, don’t you?”
    “If I can help your business, I want to.” Aurora’s dismissal of her ideas hurt, but she refused to let that show.
    “We’re fine as we are, Crystal.”
    Behind Aurora, Lucy shook her head. No, we’re not.
    “We were fine before you came, we’ll be fine after you’re gone. Because you are going…right?”
    Before she could answer, the plea in her mother’s question stopped her cold. Her mother wanted her to stay?
    Christine felt her jaw drop. That made no sense. Aurora was as uncomfortable around Christine as Christine was around her. They’d be lucky to survive the summer without tearing into each other and Aurora wanted her to stay? She must be more frightened than Christine realized. Her heart squeezed at the thought.
    “How about this? Before I leave, I’ll be certain any change is dialed in tight. What do you say?”
    “I don’t know….” Her mother’s pride surely would keep her from admitting she needed help.
    “Marketing is my profession, Aurora,” she said gently. “I’m good at it. Why not let me see what I can do for you?”
    Aurora heaved a sigh. “No changes without approval from me or Lucy. We can’t have a bunch of crazy stuff disrupting our operation.”
    “Of course not,” she said, irritated by her mother’s insult. Crazy stuff. Really. Enough already. She wanted to say so, but then she remembered what Marcus had said.
    Focus on the work. He was right. The important thing was that there were improvements she could make here. And Aurora was feeling weak and out of control in the place she usually ran. “I won’t do anything you don’t approve of, Aurora,” she said.
    “As long as we’re clear, then all right.”
    Behind Aurora, Lucy did a yes fist pump, which made Christine smile. Aurora lowered herself onto one of the benches, her breathing shaky. Was she too tired? “Lucy can show me the operation from here,” Christine said. “Maybe you need to head back inside.” To bed, to rest. Please.
    Aurora waved off the idea. “You ever throw a pot, Crystal?”
    “Throw a…?”
    “Work with clay. Create something with your own two hands.” Her mother’s eyes were bright now, and full of mischief. “You want to see the operation, you gotta get your hands dirty.”
    “Okaaay…”
    “I didn’t start in until after you left, you know. It took a while to develop my style. Better late than never for you.” Her mother pushed to her