“I’m Jake Brown, Chase’s assistant. He wanted me to get you guys settled. He’ll join us in a few minutes. He had something to take care of.”
I was relieved to know there would be another person at the table. Less pressure on me to talk to Chase. I noticed Parker wasn’t moving. She was ogling the man. He was an attractive guy, tall, dark, and handsome, but in a less polished way than Chase. There was a scar that cut through his eyebrow and another one just above his lip. I imagined he was one of those wild boys as a kid and literally had the scars to show for it.
I nudged Parker and got her moving. We sat down at the table, and Chase rushed in a minute later.
“Have you been here long?” he asked.
“No, we just sat down,” his assistant answered.
“The chef will be delivering the food shortly,” Chase explained. “Everyone please give your honest opinions.”
An appetizer of bruschetta and freshly toasted bread was delivered. I was starving and couldn’t resist the smell of it. I took a bite and nodded. “Amazing.”
Chase was looking at me, his eyes locked on my mouth. “Then it stays on the menu,” he said in a harsh voice.
I dabbed at my mouth with the napkin, suddenly self-conscious about everything. “We should get right down to business. We have a very short timeframe to work with. My first question is when will the construction teams be out of here? We can’t start working on marketing with all that stuff in the way. I need a better idea of space.”
Chase looked to Jake. “Two days tops,” he answered. “There was a mix up with paint colors.”
I nodded, relieved to know the end was in sight. “Great. Parker and I have been coming up with some ideas we wanted to run by you.”
Chase held up a hand. “You don’t have to run anything by me. Whatever you want, go for it. I’m trusting you, both of you.”
That seemed pretty dangerous. He didn’t even know my work. Before I could tell him some of our ideas, Cori came rushing in.
“Sorry I’m late,” she gushed.
I wasn’t aware she was coming at all. The more the merrier indeed. It meant I would have more than just one or two buffers. Cori’s energy would keep the conversation going without me having to speak directly to Chase. I was confident it would get easier to be around him. We just needed to get over this awkwardness.
“It’s fine,” Chase said. “We were just getting started.”
“I’ve got a rush on some branded merchandise to sell in the pop-up. It is going to be so cute. Socks, notepads, teddy bears, and ornaments to name a few.”
“Are these all for the pop-up?” I asked.
“Yes, well, they can be in the gift shop as well, but I was thinking the pop-up should have some exclusive items.”
“I agree,” I said. “If you have images of what these things look like, Parker and I can get started on creating displays that will complement them.”
Cori was bobbing her head up and down. “I do. I have them on my iPad.”
“Great.” I turned to Chase, finding him staring at me. I gulped down the nerves. “Do you have anything specific in mind?”
“As far as?”
“Do you want a specific color? Theme?”
He shook his head. “You do whatever you think is right. My only goal is to give guests an experience they can’t get anywhere else. I want them to be comfortable and excited to come back. I want to make sure it isn’t just about spending Christmas here but New Year’s and Easter and so on. The goal is family. The goal is luxury. The goal is unique and inviting with peace and quiet but not staunch. Does that make sense?”
The rest of the table was looking at him like he was crazy, but I understood. “It makes sense. I think we would want to create a softer image of the place. You want families to feel like they are welcome, but you don’t want the retired couple looking to splurge feeling like they are going to be overrun by crying kids.”
“Yes, that’s it!”
“We’ll put some stuff together for your approval.”
“I’m serious. There isn’t a budget. I’m pulling out all the stops for this. When you get an idea, run with it.”
I smiled at him. “We’ll do that.”
“No more shop talk,” Cori said, waving a hand. “I’m starving, and you’ll give me heartburn if you start talking