Irresistible (Cloverleigh Farms #1)(52)

Chloe burst out laughing. “Don’t look so scared, Mack. I think it’s fantastic. Frannie needs somebody like you. It’s good for her.”

I rubbed my face with both hands. “I don’t know about that. I keep thinking your dad is going to come after me with a shotgun.”

She dismissed that idea with a wave of her hand. “Nah. It’ll take him all of two seconds to see how crazy Frannie is about you. And what Frannie wants, Frannie gets. All she has to do is turn those big green eyes at him, and he’s a goner.”

All I could do was sigh. “Yeah. I know the feeling.”





Frannie





On my way up to my apartment, I did my best to work up my nerve. You can do this. Chin up. People believe in you.

Sitting at my kitchen counter, I went over all the notes I’d taken over the last week, the lists of needs and wants I’d made, the approximate cost of equipment, ingredients, and employee time. I’d need at least one helper to start, but I wouldn’t be able to pay anyone full-time. I’d been thinking maybe I could find a college student, or even a high school student who was interested in baking and had time on the weekends.

Finally, I called the number on Maxima Radley’s card.

“Hello?” She sounded like she was in the car.

“Hi, Mrs. Radley, this is Frannie Sawyer from—”

“Frannie Sawyer, how are you? You got my note?”

“Yes. I’m—I was really glad you came in.”

“Well, I’m telling you, Frannie, this is meant. To. Be. My entire honeymoon, I kept thinking of what I could do for you, and then the very morning I get back to the office, I got a phone call from the daughter of a friend of my mother’s. They were in pageants together or something.” She laughed. “Anyway, this girl, her name is Natalie Haas, has owned this little coffee shop downtown for years and it’s doing really well, but she’s got a two-year-old son and she’s pregnant again, and apparently she runs another restaurant as well, so she needs to cut back.”

“What’s the name of it?” I asked, wondering if I’d ever been there.

“Coffee Darling.”

“Oh, I know that place!” I exclaimed. “It’s adorable. That’s the shop for sale?”

“Well, she’s not sure if she should sell the building, which she does own, or try to find a reliable tenant. She was looking for advice. Her dream scenario, actually, is to find someone to partner with. I thought of you immediately.”

My heart had started to race. “Did you tell her about me?”

“Not yet. But I just couldn’t help thinking that with her experience, and all the equipment in place, plus a built-in clientele, and your fresh new ideas and youth and energy—I see a home run.”

“I’d love to meet her,” I said breathlessly.

“Great! I’ll set up a meeting. In the meantime, why don’t you see if you can get down there and check out the spot? Look at it with your vision in mind and see what you think.”

I sat up taller. “I’ll definitely do that.”

“Perfect. I have to run, dear, but I’ll be in touch as soon as I connect with Natalie again.”

“Thank you so much,” I said.

We hung up, and I set the phone down and sat there for a moment, my stomach a tangled but excited mess of knots. For the first time, I felt like this thing really might happen.

I jumped off the stool and hummed a tune as I went into my room and changed into sweatpants and a hoodie. All this nervous energy inside me needed to burn off, and I could use some time to think as well. A walk outside in the brisk cold evening air would be perfect. The farm was beautiful in the summer, but I loved it in the winter too—the rolling hills blanketed with snow, the evergreens tall and majestic, the sky full of stars you couldn’t see in town because of all the lights. Everyone complained about the frigid northern Michigan weather—myself included—but I loved the seasons up here so much, I could never leave. And what was better than hot chocolate or Irish coffee or whiskey by the fire after you came in out of the cold?

For a moment, I wished Mack was around to walk and talk with me, but I knew he was probably already on his way home, and if I wasn’t mistaken, it was a Therapy Wednesday. But I texted him quickly.

Great news! Call when you can.





Then I stuck my phone and earbuds in my coat pocket, pulled on my mittens, and went out the door.





*



After my walk, I was sweaty beneath my winter layers, bursting with ideas to write down, and hungry for dinner, but decided to try again with my mom and dad. I was excited and needed to share my news with someone, and since April and Chloe were already gone for the day—their cars were not in the lot when I got back—my parents were my only option.

My mother had worked with me this week, but she hadn’t mentioned the scene at Sunday night’s dinner. She hadn’t spoken to me much at all, really, and she’d pointedly ignored the envelope Maxima Radley dropped off. It was strange for so much tension to exist between my mother and me—we’d always been close, and I didn’t like feeling as if we were on opposite sides of a divide.

But I wasn’t going to back down, and she needed to know it.