Lord of Rain (The Dragon Demigods #5) - Charlene Hartnady Page 0,53

an amazing boss. I would have fired me. I need to be on my best behavior from here on out. I can’t get overly familiar, or assume he’s flirting with me when he’s really not.

“Anything else I can get for you?” Angel asks me, drawing me back from my thoughts.

“I’ll also take a coffee.” They have one of those big fancy machines. It must have cost a small fortune.

“No problem, you can make your choice from the board behind me.”

Mother-of-freaking-pearl, they have a ton of options. Tall or regular. Skinny, chai, iced, double, single, frozen…the list goes on. “I’ll have a tall cappuccino with hazelnut syrup.”

“To go?”

“Yes, please.” I glance behind me and see that the patrons sitting at the tables have glassware and cutlery. They run a tight ship here. I think it’s lovely. I thought a franchise unit would be cold and unwelcoming.

“Your name please?” She lifts her brows.

“My name?” I panic. Yes, apparently, I panic often. At least, lately I do. I can’t give them my real name.

“Yes, for your coffee, so you know when it’s ready.” She has a sharpie in her hand.

“Of course.” I snort-laugh, glancing to my left. The lady next to me is clutching a Chanel bag. “Chanel,” I almost yell.

“Okie dokes,” she says while she writes. “That’ll just be a few minutes.” She rings up my order. I pay and thank her. I move over to the side to wait. More people are in the queue. My food is neatly packed in a bag, which I put on the floor next to me. Then I look at my receipt and almost fall over.

Fudge.

Double fudge.

Fudgey fudge.

I really want to swear right now, for real, and loudly. Their prices are higher than ours. Higher! I bite down on my lip. This can’t be right! It’s the one thing we were so certain about. The one reason we had to explain why they were taking our business…and it isn’t true. I wonder if it’s the same for the corporate clients we’ve lost.

I take my phone out of my purse, and before I can think too much about it, I type a text to Bolt. It ends up being very long, but I send it anyway. I’m completely flustered. And afraid. I’m so scared Buns is headed down a one-way street.

Me: I’m sorry to bug you on the weekend, but I had to let you know that you were right! Your advice was spot on. Sweet Things is fantastic. I’m surprised Buns has any customers left at all. I still have to taste their products, but I’m sure they’ll be delicious – I insert two crying faces. Worst of all, their prices are higher than ours. At this point, I feel my eyes well and my throat clogs up. It’s going to take much more than I thought to turn things around. I’m ashamed to say, I insert a couple more crying faces. I think Bolt will understand.

I stand there, blinking like mad behind my sunglasses, trying hard not to cry when my phone vibrates.

Bolt: Of course I was right. It’s what I do for a living. Sorry to hear. Make sure you have a plan. What do you need to change at Buns in order to remain, not only competitive, but also to take the advantage?

It’s excellent advice, but such a pity that any plan I come up with won’t be actionable. Forget about it! We would need to have, as a bare minimum, the same offerings as they do, at similar prices. How? We’d need to rebuild or move premises. We’d need a complete overhaul, along with the extra equipment. Not to mention the fancy coffee machine, and those cost more than my car did.

Me: I would need to rob a bank.

Bolt: Maybe you can get a loan.

Me: Doubtful

Bolt: It’ll all work out. You’ll see.

Me: Thanks again. Enjoy your weekend – smiley face

Bolt: You too! Oh and BTW, your advice about my mom was spot on too. I’m going to her house later to oversee the roof contractors. Guess what? She’s quite happy to let them fix the leak with me there. I’ll stay for dinner afterward – eye-roll emoji. I have so much work to do!

Me: Time off with loved ones is important.

Bolt: You’re right – smiley face

I smile for a moment because he smiley-faced me, and then I frown. I’m already assuming things when I told myself I wouldn’t do that. Stop it, Ashley! I’m happy things are going better with his