Sweet Heat at Bayside(51)

     



 





Chapter Twenty-Two




SERENA TRUDGED INTO the office Monday morning thanking the heavens above  that she didn't have any face-to-face client meetings today. She'd been  up late last night talking to the girls, who had each pressed her for  details about her thoughts on Shift. Chloe had given her the best  advice. Don't think about Mom while you make this big of a decision.  Once she'd taken their mother out of the equation, her thoughts had  become clearer. She'd called Drake, and he'd tiptoed around their  earlier conversation. She knew it was killing him that she was suddenly  unsure of what she wanted to do with her future. Drake was a fixer. A  planner. A guy who had stepped back just so she could move forward. It  was that, and all the unknowns, that had kept her tossing and turning  all night and left her looking like a zombie this morning. Hopefully the  makeup she'd used to cover the dark circles under her eyes would do the  trick and no one would notice.

She checked in with Laura and Spencer, passed by Gavin at the coffee  machine and kept on going, ducking into her office to hide out for the  day. She was so exhausted and confused, she didn't trust herself not to  snap at Suzanne if the opportunity arose.

A hand with a coffee cup appeared in her doorway. "Is it safe to come in?" Gavin asked in a cartoonish voice.

"The coffee, yes. You? Probably not."

Gavin sauntered in with a cocky grin and a cup of coffee in each hand.  He guided the door closed with his foot and said, "I'll take my  chances."

"You're either brave or foolish." She waved to the chair across from her.

He set a coffee cup in front of her, then sipped from the other as he  sat down. He crossed an ankle over his knee, sat back, and said,  "Definitely both, but wow. You look awful. Breakup, nookie night, or  PMSing?"

"None of the above." She came around the desk and sat in the chair beside him.

"Don't get handsy with me," he warned.

She smiled. "I need advice."

"Should I get cookies?"

"Probably, but there's no time, so just go with it. Let's say you got an opportunity for a new job."

He wrinkled his brow. "Didn't we just play this game?"

"Different job, and it's in a place you love." She sighed. "It's too  hard to be hypothetical. I'm exhausted, so I'm just going to say it, but  it stays in this room."

He pantomimed slipping something over their heads. "Cone of silence. Go."

"The woman I used to work for, Justine, is selling her company, Shift,  the small design firm in Hyannis I told you about. I just found out  yesterday. She has an offer on the table and is supposed to sign the  papers Tuesday."

He leaned closer, listening intently. "My interest is piqued. That's the  place you said you loved working, but they didn't have the business to  hire you full-time, right?"

"Yes. But if I bought the business I could market it and, honestly, she  said she earns fifty thousand working part-time. I could live off that  if I needed to."

"But is she going out of business because the business is failing? Can  the local economy handle it? Was there too much competition?"

"No. She had a baby and wants more time with her. I know Justine. I know  how much she loves Shift. She built it from the ground up. But when she  had her baby, she changed. She became a mom, and I get that."

"Will she let you look at the books?"

"Yes, but I don't even know if I want to buy it."

He blinked hard, like he was trying to make sense of what she said.  "Doing what you love in the area you love. What's the issue?"

"A couple things. I have a solid job here."

"With a boss."

She was too tired for games. "What does that mean?"

"You have issues with authority. Did you not know that? Sorry. I thought you did."

She couldn't suppress her smile. "Okay, that's fair. I do, but only when I think my ideas are better."

"Like I said. Issues with authority. What else?"

"I don't know. That's the problem. What if I haven't given this place  enough time? What if things fall into place and my weekends become my  own? What if Suzanne eventually respects me enough to let me handle  Laura and Spencer the way I want to?"

He pulled out his phone, navigated around, then handed it to her. "This  is my schedule for last month. You tell me-will things change?"

She glanced at the calendar. He had appointments on almost every  Saturday, three evenings each week, and on one Sunday. She handed him  back the phone. "Then there's the biggest problem."         

     



 

"I know. The whole too-good-to-be-true thing."

She rolled her eyes.

"No Kane's Donuts around the corner?"

"Crap. I hadn't thought about that. She named a doughnut after me and  Drake. Perpetual Bliss. Pretty cool, huh? I bet Abby would mail them  overnight delivery if I asked."

"First of all, that's wicked cool, and second, maybe you can convince her to move to the Cape."

She sipped her coffee and said, "Look at you, strategizing my life."

"Someone has to."

"That's just it. Nobody has ever had to figure things out for me. I've  done it myself forever. That's why this is throwing me off so badly."  She got up and went to the window, gazing out over the city. "This was  what I thought I wanted. A big city, posh clients, and a job with a  big-name firm. I wanted everything my mother didn't want to achieve."

She'd told Gavin about her mother the other night, and it hadn't fazed  him in the least. He'd said, Every strong woman I've ever met had a  parent who failed them, a parent who did well by them, or siblings to  compete with. There's no magic. We all become who we are because of  someone else.

She turned around, taking in his sharp blue suit and shiny shoes. She  had fancy clothes, but she still felt like an imposter in them. Her  heart would never be in this company.

"I know what I want, and it's not this," she said confidently. "I want  to go to work every day without the fear of being hamstrung by a boss or  having to take on projects I don't want to. I don't care about the  money. I care about doing what I love and being around family-Drake,  Chloe, Mira, Rick, Emery. The whole gang."

"Great. So what's the issue?"

She plunked down into the chair again. "I have savings, but not quite  enough, and I'm not sure I want to sink every penny into something so  risky."

"I thought you said the business was solid."

"It is, but what if I mess up?"

He laughed, then coughed to cover it. "Wait. The woman who has no issue  going up against Suzanne Kline has confidence issues? Baloney. What's  this really about?"

"Okay, fine. I know I won't mess up, but something could go wrong. The building could catch fire. The economy could change."

"Both true. So you get good insurance, and if the economy tanks you get a  new job. Or you can sit around here, work six days a week, and hustle  to and from the Cape, and if the economy tanks, you start over anyway."

She assessed his words and his expression. She trusted Gavin to be  honest. He had no ulterior motives to get her to stay or leave. "So you  think this is actually a good idea?"

"You don't belong here, Serena. You keep telling me that in different  ways. ‘If this were my company, I'd do this,' and ‘If I were the boss,  I'd do that … '"

"I know," she finally admitted. "I think I'm just scared to get my hopes  up. What if I can't pull it off? What if Justine doesn't want to change  course and goes with the other buyer? What if I can't get a loan?"

"Do you want a loan?" He sipped his coffee, casually watching her.

"Nobody wants a loan. You get them because you have to. She's asking  fifty grand, and I have thirty-two, but I'd be left with nothing. I  don't have a car payment or carry any credit card debt. I figure I can  probably borrow twenty-five and still have a few thousand left of my  savings. It means giving up the hope of buying the cottage I've rented  for the past several years, but that's a trade-off I think I'm willing  to make."

"There are other ways to make businesses work. Would you consider a partner?"

"Like Drake buying the business and me being a kept woman? Never." She crossed her arms against the idea.

"I said a partner, not a sugar daddy." He leaned forward and brushed something from her shoulder.

"What … ?" She looked at her shoulder.

"Nothing. Just trying to get that big ol' chip off your shoulder."

She sighed. "Okay, I'm stubborn. No secret there."

"Serena, I'm being serious. I think you've got a chance at something  awesome. I'd love a shot at partnering with you. I don't have contacts  at the Cape, but I've got plenty of contacts here in Boston that aren't  affiliated with KHB. And in case you haven't noticed, clients like me. I  can work the system. I'm an honest guy, and you and I get along well. I  know when to toss you cookies and when to back off. I know you're razor  sharp and your ideas are usually spot-on, but when they're not, I know  you can handle a little criticism, if worded correctly."