Stay Sweet(33)

But there was so much anticipation leading up to today; they didn’t know if they would even get to open on time, let alone have such a banner day. The girls came together and accomplished something huge, something practically impossible.

Amelia sends a text to Grady.

All closed up. I’ll bring the deposit bag up in a sec.

He responds almost immediately.

Don’t worry. I’ll come down and get it.

The younger girls are already scattering. Amelia clicks the padlock shut. Cate leans against the stand, picking away some peeling white paint.

A car pulls in. Amelia’s mother.

“Am I too late for a cone?”

“Any other day, I’d say no, Mom. But today, the answer is yes.”

Now that Amelia has a ride, Cate says with a yawn, “Peace,” and climbs into her truck. Amelia’s a little relieved that Grady doesn’t appear until Cate’s pulled out onto the road.

“Oh. Hello.” He leans down into the window of Amelia’s family car. “Are you Amelia’s mom?”

“Yes.”

“Nice meeting you. I couldn’t have done this without her today. She’s invaluable.”

Amelia’s mom beams at the compliment. Amelia blushes shyly.

She steps a few feet away and hands him the deposit bag. “We did it.”

“I kind of got the feeling that the girls were uncomfortable having me around.”

Amelia feels bad. There were a lot of laughs at Grady’s expense today. She keeps it simple. “It’s just not what they’re used to. Molly pretty much left us to our own devices.”

“I want to give you girls your space, but I want to be a part of this too.”

Grady’s earnestness catches her off guard. She quickly nods. “Of course. Totally.”

He nods, grateful. “Okay. See you tomorrow.”

Once they’re in the car, her mom says, “He’s quite handsome.”

“Is he? I hadn’t noticed.”

“Ahem. Well then, I’m happy to report that I was able to schedule another candidate for your interview slot at the bank today, even with your last-minute notice. We had several terrific applicants, actually. Not that you were worried about leaving me high and dry,” Mom says playfully.

Amelia presses a finger into her left bicep. Her scooping arm is tender to the touch. The soreness makes her smile.

Her mom is right. She wasn’t. Not one little bit.





CHAPTER SIXTEEN


THE SIGN ON THE ROOF of the ice cream stand is a large rectangle made of plywood, painted white with a pink frame border, MEADE CREAMERY spelled out in thick pink script. The paint is weathered and peeling in places from being out in the elements year-round.

The entire stand gets a fresh coat of white paint at the start of every season—Amelia figures she’ll work that into the schedule maybe next week—but painting the rooftop Meade Creamery sign is a special chore reserved for the most senior girls.

Amelia remembers Frankie Ko climbing up on the ladder that first summer, with Celeste and Johanna following right behind her. When they reached the top, the three of them stretched and took deep breaths, as if the air smelled better, fresher, just a few feet up off the ground. From their elevated vantage point, Frankie supervised the rest of the chores, tossing Starbursts down to the girls for jobs well done, waving to friends who drove past the stand and beeped.

Painting the sign doesn’t take much time at all, but the older girls always milked it, rolling the sleeves of their polos up so their arms would get tan, playing music on one of their phones, using small paintbrushes to make sure the line work was super crisp.

It seems to Amelia like a perfect way to start the day.

Cate’s not exactly brimming with excitement at the idea, but she perks up some when Amelia suggests Panera for lunch, her treat.

The girls working the first shift are surprised to see Amelia and Cate there an hour earlier than scheduled. The stand seems to be running fine, though the toppings sideboard is a bit of a mess—cookie crumbs scattered everywhere, peanuts low, rainbow sprinkles sprinkled on the floor. Amelia probably should have cleaned it last night. Anyway, the three girls are quick to apologize, but they had back-to-back summer camp buses pull up in the last hour.

Amelia nods sympathetically.

As Amelia and Cate hang up their things on the hooks near the walk-in freezer, they hear Grady inside the office talking to someone. Or, rather, listening to someone talk. The voice is deep, so Amelia figures it’s Grady’s dad, and she wonders what time it might be in New Zealand. He must want to check in on Grady, she thinks, make sure he’s settling in okay.

Cate holds a finger up to her lips and she and Amelia tiptoe closer to the office door. It’s open a crack and they peek inside. Grady’s sitting behind the desk, holding up his phone, FaceTiming. He’s freshly showered and dressed up again in a button-up blue shirt and a skinny black tie.

“Did you get the pictures I sent? Of the line? Dad, I even got to shake hands with the mayor. And she said if there’s anything I need from her, I should call her office directly.”

Amelia and Cate share a look at what a big deal Grady assumes this is. He’s clearly not from a small town like Sand Lake, where everyone has a touch on the mayor.

But if his dad is impressed, he doesn’t show it. “Have you calculated your overhead?”