Worth a Chance, page 4
My stomach sank. “That’s what every good coffee shop offers.”
I wanted to do something different, and I thought offering unique coffee beans would be the answer. But now that I’d seen Brooke’s business model, I wasn’t so sure. How would I sell coffee beans to people when I wasn’t exactly a people person?
Resolved to continue with my original plan, I said, “I want to stick with the basics. We’ll be known for selling good quality coffee and procuring whatever bean the customer is interested in. Brooke is trying to do too much. She’s diluting her brand with books and trivia nights. I don’t want to confuse my customer.”
Christopher’s brow furrowed. He disagreed with my conclusion, but I was the one with an MBA. I’d stick to what I’d learned in school and ignore the doubt, the voice that said Brooke had more real-time experience running a business.
“What do you think about a grand opening?”
“Can you see how much they want for planning it?” I asked.
“Sure thing, boss.”
Pride filled me at his words. Being a boss was a dream of mine. It was everything I’d worked for since I was a kid running a lemonade stand. I just had to stick with my original plan. Open a successful business and be home more for Cammie.
“Daddy!” Cammie called when I entered the kitchen at six on the dot.
“Just in time for dinner,” Mom said.
“Good,” I said, relieved I’d met my goal of being home earlier. In Philadelphia, Cammy had a nanny who stayed with her after school, made sure she ate dinner, and got to bed on time. Between my parents’ help and my goal of being around more, I hoped to avoid that.
I washed my hands in the sink. “Can I help?”
“I got it,” Dad said, grabbing the casserole dish and setting it in the middle of the table.
Cammy sat on her knees at the table. “Daddy, Daddy. You’ll never believe what I did today.”
I kissed her cheek. “What’s that, baby?”
“We went to a splash pad,” Cammy said to me before gazing at my mom. “Can we show him the pictures?”
“It’s open this early in the season?” I asked.
“It’s brand new, and it was warm today,” Dad said, taking a seat at the head of the table.
It had been warm, which made me realize tourist season would arrive before I knew it. I needed to be prepared.
“I’m glad you had fun,” I said to Cammie as she took the phone from her grandma and scrolled through the pictures. In each one, she was smiling wide. “I’m sorry I missed it.”
Cammie smiled sadly, and I knew she was thinking about her mom, who’d missed it, too.
“Let’s put the phone away so we can eat,” Mom said, sensing what I had, too.
We gave Cammie the space to explore her feelings, but we didn’t want them to overwhelm her. I made a mental note to find a new therapist for her in town.
Moving was a big transition for anyone, and she’d had enough changes over the last year.
“Let’s say one thing we’re grateful for, and then we can eat,” Mom suggested.
The therapist had suggested we do that with Cammie a few times a day. It was a gentle reminder for her to look for the good, not to dwell on the bad and everything she’d lost.
“I’m grateful for splash pads,” Cammie said, and we burst into laughter.
That is why I moved there. For family dinners, time with her grandparents, and a fresh start. One where we weren’t haunted with reminders of our past.
Cammie’s carefree smile said I’d made the right decision. Sure, it was a transition, but we had more support, and eventually, I’d have more freedom from work. At least I hoped so. Remembering how Brooke was with her customers, I wondered if I’d been premature in thinking Bean Rush would be an instant success.
“I enjoyed spending the day with my granddaughter,” Mom said.
“Here, here,” Dad added.
Cammie looked at me. “What are you grateful for, Daddy?”
I leaned over to tickle her in the ribs. “I’m grateful we’re here with your grandparents, and I got to eat breakfast and dinner with my favorite girl.”
“Daddy!” Cammie squealed when my fingers found a particularly ticklish spot.
“Enough of that. Let’s eat,” Mom said, but her voice was filled with affection.
They were just as happy as I was that we’d moved back. Mom wanted us to do it for years, but she increased the pressure when Cammie’s mother died unexpectedly. We’d still been reeling. I held on for a little longer, thinking I could do everything myself. But eventually, I realized I needed to slow down and be there for Cammie. Maria’s parents lived in California and didn’t often visit, so they weren’t close to Cammie.
Cammie kept up a steady stream of chatter about whatever shows she’d watched that afternoon while we ate.
After we’d eaten, I helped clean up.
“How are things at work?” Mom asked as she washed the pots and dishes while I dried them.
“We’re planning on opening in two weeks. Maybe even having a grand opening party.”
She nodded. “That’s a good idea.”
“It’s not my style, but it’ll bring awareness to the business. I’ve already placed several advertisements in the paper, flyers in the mail, and some ads on social media.
“Sounds like you thought of everything,” she said absentmindedly.
“I visited Java Coffee today to check out the competition.” I wasn’t sure how Mom would take my admission. She’d always thought Brooke’s and my competitive spirits were a little over the top. She thought it was cute when we were kids, but I wasn’t sure what she would think of it now.
Mom gave me a concerned look. “You know Brooke owns it, right?”
“I do now. She’s great with her customers.”
“Her mother said she remembers everything you tell her like her mind is a Rolodex of information.
“She didn’t know I had a daughter,” I said, remembering her reaction to that fact at baseball practice.
“I don’t go to Java Coffee. I drink tea here, so I haven’t seen her other than bumping into her at the store, which isn’t enough time to get into grandkids. I haven’t spent time with Nancy in a long time. We just grew apart.”
“Makes sense.”
“You think you can compete with her store?”
“The town has historically supported multiple stores selling the same products. I don’t think a second coffee shop will be any different.”
“At least you’re both local. I can’t imagine what would happen if a box store showed up,” Dad said, joining the conversation as he leaned his elbows on the island counter.
I shuddered internally at the thought. “Hopefully, that doesn’t happen, and the box stores stick to the bigger towns and cities.”
When we were finished with the dishes, Dad said, “I’m just happy to have you and that little girl home.”
“Me too, Dad. Me too.”
I couldn’t take Cammie away from her grandparents. The store had to stick. Otherwise, I’d be moving back to Philadelphia or commuting to Baltimore or D.C. None of those options was conducive to more time with Cammie.
Chapter Five
BROOKE
After Ben left, I hid in my office, needing a minute to relax. Having Ben in my space rattled me, even though I’d kept my cool. Something about his head bowed over a book had my heart racing and my skin tingling, but the rational part of my brain knew he was there to scope out my weaknesses. I hoped he didn’t find any, but that was a foolish conclusion.
Ben had worked in the city. According to the customers talking about the new coffee store in town, he had a fancy MBA to back him up. He’d gotten an advanced degree while raising a daughter. It was impressive.
I’d worked at a coffee shop near my college campus, soaking up everything I could so I could open a store at home. Near my sister and Hunter.
I had dreams of an advanced degree, too, but the embarrassment of my divorce and my desire to help my sister trumped any more time spent away from home. I didn’t regret it, but I worried it would give Ben an advantage.
I tried to imagine what he’d seen. A coffee shop that sold books. An owner who wasn’t afraid to work the counter and socialize with the customers. Would he find my business model trite?
We challenged each other, but for the most part, we were respectful. Then there were moments when I actually thought he cared about me. There was that one time in high school when I was sick and missed a big test. Ben stopped by to see if I was okay.
We never spoke about it, and as far as I knew, he didn’t realize Mom told me he’d come by. That was when I got it into my head that something else was there, and I allowed myself to dream about him asking me out, but he never did.
I’d made so many assumptions over the years—that Abby’s husband would stay and raise Hunter with her, that my marriage to Levi was real. I wouldn’t make the same mistakes again.
I looked up when I heard a quiet knock on the door. “What are you doing hiding in here?” Hailey asked.
She was my best friend. She’d sold her grandmother’s business, the Spice & Tea Shoppe, a few months ago and now worked as my assistant manager while writing fantasy novels in her spare time.
My heart thumped in my chest. “Ben stopped by.”
Hailey’s eyes widened as she plopped into the chair across from my desk. “Why?”
I shrugged. “To scope out the competition, I guess. He took a coffee to go.”
A part of me was dying to know what he thought of the brew.
“Do you know when he’s officially opening?”
“The sign out front just says coming soon.” I’d never admit that I walked or drove by his store once a day to check it.
“Everyone’s talking about it.” Hailey winced when she caught my expression. “Sorry.”
“Don’t worry about it. It’s a small town. People are bound to talk about a new business.” I just hoped they weren’t predicting my demise.
Hailey tipped her head to the side. “What are we going to do to counter his opening? A trivia night?”
“Should we do a monthly trivia night? I just worry it won’t be as popular as the ones held in bars. We don’t have a liquor license.” Not that I wanted to serve beer on top of coffee.
Hailey pointed a finger at me, her gaze filling with excitement. “Actually, that’s not a bad idea.”
“Serving alcohol?” I asked skeptically.
“Branching out into other options in case he takes business away from you.”
I’d toyed with a different business model over the years, but the coffee shop was doing so well that there was no need to explore it further. “I’ve thought about selling specialty items: spices and popcorn from Ocean City and local items like crab soup.
“It’s a nice idea, but not enough to counter a potential loss in customers, though.”
I held up a hand. “I’m not saying we do it yet. But I’ll investigate how much it would cost, what we’d need to do to add a small kitchen. I could serve wine and appetizers.”
Surprisingly, Hailey didn’t scoff at my ideas. “Let me call in a couple of contractors, get some quotes, and you can run the numbers on your end.”
I loved having options. For the first time since seeing Ben in my store, my chest felt lighter. There was a store by the harbor front that sold liquor and wine, but it was more of a liquor store. It didn’t serve food. There was nothing similar.
“Would you miss Java Coffee, though?” Hailey asked.
“I don’t know. I want my business to be successful, but I’m not sure I want the hours that come with servicing wine. Plus, I want to be present for Abby and Hunter. She needs help in the evenings.”
Some things are just dreams. They don’t ever see the light of day.
Hailey chewed her lip. “It’s perfect for me. I could write in the daytime and work here in the evenings.”
“You’d be okay with that?” I asked. “What about your writing?”
I didn’t want to detract from her dream. Not when she’d already spent so many years living someone else’s—specifically her grandparents’ Spice & Tea Shoppe.
Her nose wrinkled. “That won’t pay the bills for a while. It’s something I enjoy, but I don’t know I’d want the pressure of making a full-time income from it.”
“It’s too soon to know.” She’d finished her manuscript but was going through lengthy edits and getting discouraged. She was overwhelmed with the self-publishing process.
“Ryan works late nights anyway. And if the idea takes off, you could hire more people. You could still work a few nights a week. Especially when Hunter doesn’t have practice or games.”
“Maybe.”
Hailey snapped her fingers. “I got it. You can serve coffee in the morning and wine in the afternoons and evenings. It could be a dual business.”
“You just got out of a business you weren’t crazy about. I don’t want to pull you into another one.” As much as I appreciated her help, I refused to let her waste any more time on something she wasn’t passionate about. She’d just sold her grandparents’ shop because she wanted to focus on her writing.
“Let me worry about what I want,” Hailey said pointedly.
“Let’s do the groundwork, then. I like having the option if we need it.” I made a note on my daily to-do list. I had several Post-it pads on my desk. One for my daily to-dos, one for my long-term to-dos, and one for my employees. If it wasn’t on the list, I’d forget. I preferred writing them down so I could cross them off when I completed them, but I had notes on my phone for when I thought of something outside the store.
Hailey clasped her hands together. “I’m so excited to get started. I know you’re worried about the competition, but I think this will be an amazing opportunity for you.”
I’d always thought Ben brought out the best in me. Maybe I’d gotten complacent as the only coffee shop, but I wasn’t ready to credit Ben for motivating me to step things up.
“We make a good team,” Hailey added.
“We do.” I think it was because she wasn’t emotionally invested in my business. She could see the bigger picture, the possibilities and risks, that I couldn’t.
Hailey’s expression turned serious. “Can we talk about something personal?”
I leaned forward in my chair. She and Ryan recently got together, and he had an eleven-year-old son, Corey. I couldn’t help but wonder if she was pregnant. “Of course.”
“I saw how you reacted to Ben showing up at the garage,” Hailey spoke carefully.
It took me a moment to respond. I wasn’t even sure how I felt when I saw him. “I was just surprised to see him after all this time,” I finally said.
Her brow furrowed. “Was that it? It seemed like you were attracted to him.”
I scoffed, hoping she didn’t see under my bluff. Heat coursed through my body at the fluid way he’d unfolded from his sports car, my brain sparking with possibilities until I recognized his face. “Trust me. I’m not attracted to Ben Monroe.”
“Why not?” Hailey tipped her head to the side as if she were merely curious.
I searched for the right words to phrase what he was to me. “He’s my competition.”
He was the one person who could destroy everything I’d worked so hard to build.
“For now. When you expand into a wine market, he won’t be.” Hailey smiled triumphantly.
I shook my head. “I don’t even know if it’s a possibility.”
Hailey smiled. “The more I think about it, the more I love the idea.”
I shook my head, resisting her excitement. “Things like that take time. I need to make sure we have the funds required, that the business can run during construction, that customers would like the change, and the big one, that the coffee shop can thrive in the meantime. If Bean Rush takes all our business, I won’t have the cash flow for an expansion.”
I had to depersonalize what was happening with Ben as much as possible. I needed to focus on his business as a storefront, not as a single dad with an adorable seven-year-old girl. That rabbit hole was fraught with obstacles.
Hailey tipped her head slightly. “You’re so practical all the time. For a business owner, you’re afraid to take risks.”
The observation hit me square in the chest. “I opened a business. I’m not risk averse.”
Was she right, though? Ever since Levi walked out, I’d been scared to make any moves. I didn’t trust my judgment anymore when I’d always been so decisive.
“Aren’t you? You won’t consider Ben as anything more when you’re obviously attracted to him. I haven’t seen you interested in anyone since I’ve known you.”
“You know why.” My jaw ached with the pressure of grinding my teeth. Hailey was one of the few people I’d confided in about that situation, and I disliked talking about it. I wanted it to settle on the bottom of the ocean of my brain and never let it come to the surface.
“Just because one guy is bad doesn’t mean they all are.”
“Hmph,” I grunted, placing my disagreement in that one sound.
“You can’t blame everyone for what Levi did.”
“That’s not what’s happening.” But I shifted on my chair. I was pretty serious about not getting involved with anyone, much less with someone like Ben. He wasn’t a safe bet.
She gave me a look.
She wouldn’t let me get away with it. “I might be a little risk averse.”
Sympathy filled her face. “I get that, and I’m not going to push you, but please run the numbers on the expansion. I think this could be good for the store.”
I breathed a sigh of relief that she was letting the subject of dating go. Just the thought of trusting someone again gave me chills.
Hailey had been the force I needed lately, encouraging me to sell books in addition to coffee and pastries. I’d lost some of the initial excitement about opening a business. As a result, my ideas had shriveled up. I’d been stagnant, doing the same thing every day.
“The question is, what are we going to do to maintain and increase customers now?” Hailey asked.
