the éclairs in lacy paper cups.
Gustave goes back to the kitchen. As he passes me, I swear I hear him humming “That’s Amore” under his breath.
“Okay, I’m going.” Dean steals one last, quick kiss before stepping back.
“Can you still come to the café this afternoon?”
“I’ll be there around one. Just going to stop at the apartment to pick up some things. And we’re on for tonight?”
“Of course.” I think about my sexy lingerie and wonder which set I should wear for him. Just the thought of his hot gaze raking over my half-naked, lace-clad body has me pressing my thighs together to ease the ache.
“I’ll pick you up at six,” Dean says.
“Where are we going?”
“McDonald’s.”
“Big spender.”
“Only for you, baby.” He winks at me and turns to go.
For a good half hour after he leaves, I can’t stop smiling. The orchestra is already striking up a song.
“Well.” Kelsey puts her hands on her hips and studies the main dining room of Matilda’s Teapot. “With some redecorating, you’ll be in great shape.”
“We’re starting the remodeling next week.” I look at the spreadsheets and plans scattered over one of the tables. “It’s a huge undertaking.”
“Yeah. But Allie’s right. You couldn’t have a better location, and it sounds like she and Brent know what they’re doing.” Kelsey turns to pierce me with one of her perceptive looks. “The question is… how do you feel about all this?”
“Mostly excited,” I tell her. “I’ve never done anything like it before, but I know it’s a great idea. I love being in business with Allie, and I’m happy that I can finally contribute something of my own.”
She’s still watching me. “So what’s the problem?”
“It’s nerve-wracking. What if I just poured my entire inheritance into a new business and it fails? And what if I didn’t calculate the costs of working capital correctly and we run out of money?”
Kelsey pushes a chair away from the table and straddles it, resting her arms across the back. “You could find another partner.”
“Not one both Allie and I could trust as much as we trust each other. Dean offered to help financially, but he knows I’m trying to do this on my own and he would never ask to be a partner.”
“What about me?” Kelsey asks.
“What about you?”
“What if I offered to be a partner?”
I lift my head. “What?”
“I’d be a partner in your business.”
“Are you serious?”
“Am I ever
not
serious?”
“I can’t let you do that.”
“Why not?”
“It’s a bad idea. Mixing business with friendship.”
“You’ve never done it before. How do you know it’s a bad idea?”
“Everyone says so.”
“I don’t listen to everyone.”
I can only stare at her. Tears sting my eyes.
“Jesus, Liv,” Kelsey mutters. “Don’t
cry.
I’m offering you a partnership, not a kidney.”
“Sorry.” I grab a napkin and swipe my nose.
“Besides, you’re doing this with Allie, and she’s a friend, right?” Kelsey asks.
“I know, but you… you’re more like…”
“Like what?”
“Well, like family.” My heart clenches a little.
We both fall silent. Then Kelsey heaves a sigh.
“Okay, look. I’ll say this only once.” She digs her fingernail into a crack on the back of the chair. “I’ve never had a lot of close friends. I don’t like it when people start wanting to know shit about me. It’s annoying. But Dean’s never been like that. Never made me feel like I have to apologize for anything. And when he married you, I thought he’d change, that things would be different. I was all revved up to dislike you.”
“You were?” I can’t even imagine withstanding the force of Kelsey March’s dislike.
“Yeah,” she says. “But you made it impossible. The first time I met you was in LA at the farmer’s market. After Dean introduced us, you gave me this… this
Liv hug
and asked me to join you for crepes.”
She shakes her
Gustave goes back to the kitchen. As he passes me, I swear I hear him humming “That’s Amore” under his breath.
“Okay, I’m going.” Dean steals one last, quick kiss before stepping back.
“Can you still come to the café this afternoon?”
“I’ll be there around one. Just going to stop at the apartment to pick up some things. And we’re on for tonight?”
“Of course.” I think about my sexy lingerie and wonder which set I should wear for him. Just the thought of his hot gaze raking over my half-naked, lace-clad body has me pressing my thighs together to ease the ache.
“I’ll pick you up at six,” Dean says.
“Where are we going?”
“McDonald’s.”
“Big spender.”
“Only for you, baby.” He winks at me and turns to go.
For a good half hour after he leaves, I can’t stop smiling. The orchestra is already striking up a song.
“Well.” Kelsey puts her hands on her hips and studies the main dining room of Matilda’s Teapot. “With some redecorating, you’ll be in great shape.”
“We’re starting the remodeling next week.” I look at the spreadsheets and plans scattered over one of the tables. “It’s a huge undertaking.”
“Yeah. But Allie’s right. You couldn’t have a better location, and it sounds like she and Brent know what they’re doing.” Kelsey turns to pierce me with one of her perceptive looks. “The question is… how do you feel about all this?”
“Mostly excited,” I tell her. “I’ve never done anything like it before, but I know it’s a great idea. I love being in business with Allie, and I’m happy that I can finally contribute something of my own.”
She’s still watching me. “So what’s the problem?”
“It’s nerve-wracking. What if I just poured my entire inheritance into a new business and it fails? And what if I didn’t calculate the costs of working capital correctly and we run out of money?”
Kelsey pushes a chair away from the table and straddles it, resting her arms across the back. “You could find another partner.”
“Not one both Allie and I could trust as much as we trust each other. Dean offered to help financially, but he knows I’m trying to do this on my own and he would never ask to be a partner.”
“What about me?” Kelsey asks.
“What about you?”
“What if I offered to be a partner?”
I lift my head. “What?”
“I’d be a partner in your business.”
“Are you serious?”
“Am I ever
not
serious?”
“I can’t let you do that.”
“Why not?”
“It’s a bad idea. Mixing business with friendship.”
“You’ve never done it before. How do you know it’s a bad idea?”
“Everyone says so.”
“I don’t listen to everyone.”
I can only stare at her. Tears sting my eyes.
“Jesus, Liv,” Kelsey mutters. “Don’t
cry.
I’m offering you a partnership, not a kidney.”
“Sorry.” I grab a napkin and swipe my nose.
“Besides, you’re doing this with Allie, and she’s a friend, right?” Kelsey asks.
“I know, but you… you’re more like…”
“Like what?”
“Well, like family.” My heart clenches a little.
We both fall silent. Then Kelsey heaves a sigh.
“Okay, look. I’ll say this only once.” She digs her fingernail into a crack on the back of the chair. “I’ve never had a lot of close friends. I don’t like it when people start wanting to know shit about me. It’s annoying. But Dean’s never been like that. Never made me feel like I have to apologize for anything. And when he married you, I thought he’d change, that things would be different. I was all revved up to dislike you.”
“You were?” I can’t even imagine withstanding the force of Kelsey March’s dislike.
“Yeah,” she says. “But you made it impossible. The first time I met you was in LA at the farmer’s market. After Dean introduced us, you gave me this… this
Liv hug
and asked me to join you for crepes.”
She shakes her
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