about it—”
“I don’t.” I picked Ella up from her carrier and held her to my chest. “Is Mr. Dixon taking Ella while you honeymoon? Where are you going anyway?” Maybe I didn't have the right but I was a little hurt Trish hadn’t consulted me about this.
A wistful expression transformed her face. “All I know is somewhere warm.”
“Bring me back some sand.”
“And a coconut?”
I laughed. “Yeah. A coconut too.”
“We talked about it and decided to take Ella with us.”
“I get it.”
“Andrew doesn’t want to be away from her, either.”
I kissed the crown of Ella’s head. “I'll miss you, but we’ll have some girl time when you get back.” The realization that Trish and Ella would be away and Mrs. Quinn was busy with Mr. Dixon brought on this feeling of incredible loneliness.
My phone trilled from inside my bag. I juggled Ella as I reached down for it.
“Hello?”
“Is this Baker Holland?”
“Um, yes.”
“I’m Juniper Montgomery. I picked up some of your lip gloss from the food truck on Park. I own a boutique down the street and wanted to see how I go about ordering the product for my store.”
I looked at Trish with wide eyes and pointed at the phone as I tried not to jump out of my seat.
“That’s terrific. I’m so glad you like it.” I struggled to contain my excitement and prayed that my voice sounded professional. “What kind of quantity do you need?”
The words came out as a bit of a squeal, and Trish did a fist pump.
“I’m thinking one hundred to start so I can test market. And can we discuss pricing? Is the retail price firm? Because if I’m being perfectly honest, it’s too cheap for the quality of the product.”
My heart thundered in my ears. Someone thought my product was worth more. It was one thing to hear that from the people I cared about and completely another from a stranger. Pride filled me that I’d created something of value.
“What do you think it should retail for?” I asked carefully.
“In my shop, easily the $8 to $10 range. Maybe more.”
I fiddled with the hem of my sweater, even as joy overflowed inside me. “It’s important to me that it be affordable.”
“I understand, but you shouldn’t sell yourself short.” A door chime signaled on the other end of the line. “I want to know more about the charity the proceeds go to. Do you have information I can display?”
“Yes,” I lied. “That’s no problem.” I flashed Trish an oh shit look.
“What’s the turnaround time if I order today?”
I swallowed hard. “We’re a little behind because of the demand, but I think I could have fifty to you in a week and the other fifty a week after that.”
A noise of dissatisfaction came through the phone. “No sooner?”
“We can try to rush, but I don’t want to make promises I can’t keep.”
“I respect that. Let me give you my details.”
“Please. I’ll email you the invoice later today.” I scrambled for a pen, Trish handed me a paper napkin.
“I’ve got a feeling about this,” she said. “If this sells like I think it will, be ready for me to double my next order.”
Next order? Double? Was this real? It was all I could do not to scream I was so excited.
“Thank you so much for reaching out and for the order.” My eyes got watery when I realized what this meant. My first order from someone I didn’t know. Wow. “I can't tell you what it means and how much I look forward to working with you.”
I tossed the phone on the table and smacked Trish in the arm.
“What is it?”
“An order for a hundred lip glosses. Because she bought some from your food truck and wants to sell it in her store,” I screeched.
Trish whooped. “And you promised her fifty by next week? Are you crazy?”
“Maybe.” I bounced Ella to settle my nerves. There was so much to do besides make the glosses. Trish was going to be out of town, so I wouldn’t have any help. Was there enough space at the apartment to start filling orders of this size?
And I didn’t have the money for supplies.
“How much do you need?”
Was she a mind reader?
“I can’t do that. You have your own business.”
She waved our waiter down and signaled for the bill. “Let’s go order what you need so it will be in New York when you get home.”
“I’ll pay you back.”
“I know.” She clapped her hands together. “Has Cricket finished the new logo?”
“She’s working