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Hook and Needle Club.
    “Not a Burly Boy!” Peggy moaned. “Not in Stony Point. What’s that going to do to business at The Cup & Saucer?”
    “What’s it going to do to our quaint little village?” Annie pressed her lips together. “I can’t believe the town council would allow that. Ian would never even consider such a thing.”
    “My guess is that Burly Boy made it well worth their while to reconsider some of the zoning restrictions.” Mary Beth’s smile was wry. “I guess our town is a little strapped for cash too.”
    “Then we just can’t let it happen,” Alice said. “We’ll all chip in and help you keep the shop.”
    “We want to help,” Gwen said when Mary Beth started to protest. “After all, we all love A Stitch in Time too.”
    Mary Beth squeezed her arm. “That’s sweet, but it’s not your problem. It’s mine.”
    “But we can help, Mary Beth,” Peggy insisted. “We already—” She broke off, eyes wide.
    Mary Beth looked at her and then at the rest of the group. “Yes, Kate told me what you were already doing.”
    “We were just going to see if we could raise some money,” Annie admitted when no one else spoke up. “It was supposed to be a surprise.”
    Peggy cringed. “Sorry.”
    “All we did was gather up some stuff to sell,” Alice said. “It’s not a big deal.”
    “Not a big deal?” Mary Beth shook her head. “You all amaze me. Thank you all for trying to help, but it’s really something I’ll have to figure out for myself.”
    “We’ve been worried about you,” Alice told her. “We could tell you haven’t been yourself lately.”
    “We didn’t want you to lose the shop,” Kate admitted, her head down and her dark hair falling to one side, concealing her face. “We just … . We wanted to do something to help you.”
    Annie took Mary Beth’s hand, pulling her down into the empty chair next to hers. “We’re your best friends, Mary Beth. We know when something’s wrong.”
    Mary Beth looked up at the ceiling, her eyes blinking rapidly. “You’re not supposed to make me do this.”
    Peggy handed her a tissue. “There’s nothing better than a good cry, I always say.”
    A quick dab of the tissue was all Mary Beth would allow herself. Then she straightened in her chair and put on a determined smile. “I love you all, really, but this isn’t the end of the world. I’m a big girl, and this is my problem to work out. All I can do is work hard and pray hard and see what happens. You haven’t sold any of your stuff yet, have you?”
    Annie shook her head. “We’ve just been gathering things up.”
    “Well,” Mary Beth said, emphatically, “then you ungather all of it. I mean it. I’m not going to have all of you giving up your nice things just because I hit a rough spot in the road.”
    “We can at least help you figure out what to do,” Alice said. “I could always get you on at Divine Décor if you want me to.”
    “I don’t know,” said Mary Beth. “I’m comfortable with people I meet here in the familiar surroundings of my own shop, but I don’t know if I could do what you do, Alice. Going to a different place for each customer’s ‘party’ would seem like starting a new job each time. I suppose I could get used to it, if I had to.”
    Alice smiled. “I know what you mean,” she said. “I felt the same way for a while when I started out, but you do get used to it, and the people who host these sort of parties are so nice.”
    “Or maybe you can move the shop,” Gwen suggested. “If you found a cheaper place, maybe things wouldn’t be quite so tight.”
    Mary Beth sighed. “I wish it were that easy. Besides, I don’t think I could find a cheaper place. Not here in Stony Point. Mr. Huggins has been great about not raising my rent. He says getting paid regularly and on time is raise enough for him.”
    “I’m surprised by Jeb Huggins selling out this way,” Stella said. “He’s had this place for years now.”
    Mary Beth