Chapter Four
Briar
The soft opening went the way I would’ve expected the real opening day—in my dreams.
All twenty sign-ups arrived and fully participated. No way I would be able to remember everyone’s names but if they came back, I would learn them.
Memberships were purchased.
I offered a flat fee membership that covered three of the basic classes a week. Specialty sessions like atmosphere immersion and hot yoga weren’t included. Breath work classes were practically free and that was on purpose.
The next morning, I slept in. I had one more day until the grand opening, and I did so with my rest in mind.
Getting the studio ready and all the work that went into starting a new business was exhausting.
Sleep was one of my nonnegotiables, but getting enough rest while remembering not to worry about the future proved to be a hard goal to reach of late.
I gave myself a slow morning. Coffee and stretching in the garden out back. A long meditation. Centering.
And all the emails. The suggestion box was only a click away on my website, and even though there were only twenty people at the previous night’s class, more people had opinions and things to say.
Most were productive.
Yoga for seniors. Chair yoga. Other things I wasn’t an expert on. Meditation methods I’d never tried.
All of this was a learning curve for me. The suggestions offered a chance for me to grow and for my business to thrive.
Better than radio silence.
A buzz sounded from my phone in the other room. A text. My friend Darian wanted to have brunch but said he would meet me at the studio because he’d walked by and there were boxes by the door. Deliveries.
“Shoot!” I rushed to dress. I’d forgotten I had big deliveries coming in today.
Yoga mats with my logo. T-shirts. Canvas bags.
Yoga pants. Socks. More things I’d invested in.
Merch. At first, I’d resisted the impulse to sell things besides classes, but Darian had talked me into it.
He said people would want them, and as long as I charged a fair price, I had nothing to be ashamed of.
It wasn’t as if they could be bought locally, and why give the money to the big online sites?
Sprinting to the studio, I found Darian there, arms crossed over his chest. “Thank goodness this is a safe town.” He jutted his chin at the stack of packages.
“Thank goodness for friends,” I said, and we shared a hug.
While I unpacked the boxes, Darian walked across the street and returned with sandwiches from the little cart set up there. He said the person selling the food was new in town and wanted a food truck, but the money simply wasn’t there yet.
Sounded like the kind of person I wanted to support.
“I went on a date last night,” Darian mentioned while we folded the shirts and put them up on the shelves by size, displaying the logo. I had invested in oatmeal-colored T-shirts with the sage logo as well as tanks and cropped shirts.
“How did it go?” I was happy for my friend. I hadn’t known him for long, but he and I had formed one of those instant bonds where it felt like we’d been friends for years.
Darian sighed. “On the surface, it was lovely. A nice dinner. Flowers. Very gentlemanly.”
“The words are nice, but your tone tells me it wasn’t your thing.”
My friend shrugged, rolling up the mats to fit in the baskets I’d bought for the purpose. “It felt like just that—surface? It makes me sound like a snob but…performative? Like we were going through the motions but no depth. And there was a dealbreaker.”
“Which was?”
“Halfway through the appetizer, he started scrolling on his phone.”
That might’ve been okay with some people but Darian had a sore sport about alphas being on their phones, especially after having an alpha before who had a stronger relationship with social media and thirst traps than he did with his omega.
“Indeed a dealbreaker. I’m sorry. I know you’ve been excited about dating again.”
We continued to stock items and eat while talking. Everything was ready for the real opening tomorrow morning.
“What kind of caffeine were you on when you decided sunrise yoga was a thing you wanted to pursue?” He shook his head, laughing.
“It’s my secret. I’m gonna bottle it and sell it at said sunrise. It’s all business tactics.”
“Liar.”
I took in the place. Sometimes, it still seemed surreal. “I don’t participate in organized religion, but I have to admit, there’s something special about a Sunday morning. No work. Getting up before the rest of the world. Investing in yourself before the wild weekdays start.”
“Put that on your flyers. Hell, I’m about to come to the class myself.”
While we were locking up and parting ways, I noticed a couple sharing sweet kisses and smiling at each other as though there was no one else on earth but them.
“There’s something about this town,” Darian said, a look of longing crossing his expression. “There’s always love in the air.”
My heart skipped a beat. “I wish it was in the air for me.”
“It will be. Give it time. We have alphas out there, ones who will love us as we deserve to be loved.”
I hugged my friend again. “Tell them to hurry up.”