Chapter 39 #2
The party was about a fourth as big as it should have been, given the unconventional location, and we didn’t just miss out on the people drinking. We missed out on the merch they might have bought. The six-packs.
And even though the guys saved us from a substantial water removal bill, the floors and drywall are noticeably damaged. That won’t be a small expense…
“I don’t think so,” I say softly. “I estimate we’d need at least thirty thousand dollars to fix everything, beyond what I can contribute from my savings. And that’s not even factoring in the amount of time we’ll need to be closed.”
“So what you’re saying is that we still need twenty grand, plus salary for the staff and enough money to cover a few zero-income weeks,” he says. “I guess it’s a good thing we have so few employees.”
“You’re going to put your own savings into this?”
“Of course,” he says, cupping my cheek. “I take my ten percent stake very seriously.” He smiles. “And my girlfriend.”
My gaze catches on the photo that’s still propped up behind the bar. My father’s image has no place here.
“There’s something I need to do,” I say, then slide behind the bar to take the photo down.
“More fuel for the fire?”
I smile, but get distracted when I notice the list of rules that was wedged behind it. I’m hit with a swell of nostalgia, but it’s time to destroy our old rules, just like we destroyed my father’s in the fire.
I glance at Liam, and he gives me a knowing nod. “Yep, those have to go too. Into the fire, or you could shred the list in a fit of rage. That’d do too.”
Smiling, I tug the paper toward me, but when I do, a little collection of scratch-off tickets is revealed behind it.
“More of Ann’s scratchers?” Liam asks.
“No, actually.” I hand them to him. “They’re yours. I got them for everyone as holiday bonuses. But you left early that night.”
“Seems to me I got a special bonus.” His lips quirk upward. “Maybe I should give them to Ann.”
I’m hit with a strange feeling of déjà-vu. Ann had that dream about landing a winning ticket, and it was a Big Boy Bucks, like the ones he’s holding.
“Liam,” I say, excitement catching in my voice. “What if…?”
“Oh, Briar.” His expression is full of fond disbelief. “No one ever wins with these things.”
“Please.” I take a penny from the give-a-penny, take-a-penny dish. “Maybe it’ll be…”
A karmic intervention, but I can’t bear to say the words. I named my cat Karma because I wanted to believe in it, and yet…
Standing here, with him, I can’t let the dream go.
He takes the penny from me, squeezing my hand. “There might be another way.”
I nod at the tickets, my hopeful heart lodged in my throat.
“All right.” He scratches through the first four without winning anything. There’s one left, and he turns to me. “I’m not giving up. It doesn’t matter if we don’t get the money.”
“Scratch the ticket.” I clutch his arm, anchoring myself.
He scratches the coating away and looks up sharply. “We actually won something.”
Wonder seeps into me, but then I look at the total prize. It’s a thousand bucks. It’s welcome and needed, but it’s not enough to save us.
I smile at him, but there’s a sob caught in my chest. “I knew it was a long shot. It’s nice that we won something, though.”
He kisses me as my eyes begin to well, but I hold back the tears. It feels wrong to cry when I have so much of what I wanted.
Dottie pushes through the front door, but she stays put in the entryway. “Oh dear, am I interrupting a private celebration?” Her brow furrows when she sees my face. “Shouldn’t this be a happy occasion?”
I force a smile. “I’m so grateful to you, Dottie. You and Ann have done so much for us. This place has been as much yours as ours these last few weeks, and Otis and Constance—”
“This is not a funeral, Briar,” Dottie says. “It’s a celebration of life.”
“That is a nicer way of looking at it,” I agree, my throat catching as I survey the damp room.
“A celebration of life and of rebirth, because you’re making a completely new version of Silver Star.”
“We…” I will myself not to cry. “We’re not going to be able to stay open any longer, after the organic issue and now the flooding. I’m going to have to close the brewery.”
Before I finish, Dottie’s already shaking her head. She walks toward us with purpose. “Now, my dears, I know you’re anxious to do this all yourself, and I admire that. Of course I do. I’m an independent woman myself. I also know you won’t take charity.”
The door opens again, admitting Ann, who’s wearing one of the star sweaters under her fuzzy, faux-fur coat. She has on a teetering six-inch-tall silver New Year’s headband.
“But would you accept an investment?” Dottie continues. “I, for one, would very much like to invest in Silver Star, and I know I’m not alone in that.”
“Are we doing the hat thing now?” Ann asks.
“Yes,” Dottie says, still staring at us. “I think it’s time for the hat.”
Ann opens the door again and shouts, “Eugene, Dottie needs your hat!”
“Good gracious.” Eugene steps inside, takes off his newsboy cap, and holds it out to Dottie. “You don’t need to shout in my face.”
“What’s all this about?” I ask as the door opens again and my great-aunt comes in, followed by Hannah and Travis, Sophie and Rob, Otis, and Nora. Cormac enters last, alone.
“Well,” Dottie says, puckering her lips. “I had a talk with a few parties I thought might also be interested in investing in your business. You know, we’ve all tried the beer. It’s simply divine, and we love your ideas about using the barrel room and releasing future beers on a weekly basis.”
“I’m not about to stop working here,” Ann puts in. “I’m having the time of my life, and Otis only just started showing me how to use that Golden app thing. It’s only been a few days, but I already met a hunky silver fox.”
“And I’m so proud of you and your man with the nice ass,” Great-Aunt Sky says, beaming at me.
“I’m very invested in keeping my brother employed,” Hannah adds with a smile.
“I’d like to keep working here for now, too,” Otis says. He nudges Sophie’s shoulder, adding, “and I had this idea that maybe Soph and I could do some pop-up crafting events here.”
“So it makes sense for our crafting business to invest,” Sophie says in a no-nonsense tone.
“And I’m going to twist your arm to put my ginger beer on tap,” Nora says before glancing at Liam. “Because I sure as hell want your beer permanently on tap at The Ginger Station.”
“We all want to invest,” Cormac blurts, then frowns at the hat his father is still holding out. “But what are we supposed to do with the hat, Dad? No one uses paper money these days. I figured we’d be Venmo-ing.”
“It’s symbolic.” Eugene murmurs something about kids these days and then shrugs. “And Dottie printed out the brewery’s Venmo code and put it inside. But we should hurry this up. My woman’s out there with a bunch of young single men. She might rethink everything if I’m not careful.”
Nora gives him an approving look; Cormac says, “They’re probably looking for young single women, Dad.”
My eyes fill with tears as Eugene starts to pass the hat around. “You guys…I can’t believe this. You don’t have to—”
“No,” Dottie says firmly. “But we want to. We believe in you. We all want a part in what you’re building.”
I nod, the tears falling down my cheeks. I have to hug all of them. I have to make them cookies and light candles for them and lift them up, because of everything they’ve done for me. They’ve become the family I never thought I could have. But first…
I turn to Liam, peering up at him, and he grins down at me.
“They’re our miracle, Briar.”
Then he picks me up, twirls me around, and kisses me in front of everyone.
And I let myself believe again, fully, that I can be truly happy—that I can have the man I love and my dream.
“Oh my God, now you’re kissing in front of me too?” Hannah moans.
Liam laughs. “Yeah, and I’m going to do it again too.”
He tips me backward and kisses me again, and I really do feel like a princess.