Chapter Fourteen
Time Out
Cal tried to focus again on the paperwork spread out around him.
The Friends’ Weekend had been a blast, but he was dragging.
Probably a piss-poor idea to try to do anything mentally challenging today.
And doing it during the prime afternoon slump was madness indeed.
Although none of that stopped him from trying.
When Rachel showed up, coffee and bakery box in hand, he could have kissed her. The thought of doing so sat really well with him. Too well. It must be the caffeine and sugar coloring his reaction. Anyone would have felt the same.
“Hey Rachel,” he said after she knocked on the doorjamb. “Come in. I wasn’t expecting you.” He paused and eyed the items in her hand. “Did you show up here with Pie in the Sky intent on sharing, or am I just going to suffer and watch you gobble it all up?”
She laughed, and Cal felt his heart thump in response. Damn. If he wasn’t careful, he risked having some sort of Grinch reaction where his heart grew three sizes or some such thing.
“Not only do I come bearing sweets,” she said, brandishing the pale blue Pie in the Sky box. “I come with some afternoon pick-me-up coffee as well.”
Cal just about lunged for the box. “Bless you.” He opened it inhaling deeply and without thinking sighed, “I think I love you.”
Awkward silence descended for an hour, or at least that’s how long it felt to Cal. When he glanced over, Rachel’s eyes were wide and her mouth open. Oh boy. He’d done it now.
He cleared his throat and looked in the box, deliberately examining the contents. “I see you have a variety. Oh wait,” he tilted it slightly. “Is that a peanut butter fluff blondie?”
“Yes,” she replied, stepping closer with her hand raised. “That one’s for me.”
Cal moved the box away from her. He was getting suspicious. “And the cookies?”
Rachel dropped her hand. “There are two oatmeal raisin for you and Mrs. S sent test cookies along. If you have one of those, you’re required to provide feedback.”
Cal squinted. “So, you show up, unannounced, and bring me,” he peered at the side of the cup in her hand.
“An Americano coffee?” His eyes widened.
Now he was almost positive something was up.
His favorite coffee and his favorite cookie?
Oh yeah, she was up to something. But also, she remembered his favorites, and that struck a chord.
“And not one, but two oatmeal raisin cookies,” he continued. “And a test cookie to try?”
Rachel’s smile was weak, and she knew it. He saw it in her eyes. She was hiding something and was trying to butter him up with pastry. He would not admit it would totally work, but he would not make it painless on her either. He had a reputation to uphold. Besides, he didn’t want to seem easy.
“Would you care to tell me what’s going on now, or after I’ve been bought with coffee and cookies,” he laughed.
Her answering smile did things to his insides he refused to dwell on.
“How about during,” she offered.
“Fair enough.” He glanced down at his desk and the clutter that had made its way onto the chairs and onto any available flat surface. “Let’s go sit in the sunroom and eat. It’ll be nice to get away from all this for a little while.”
He indicated to Rachel to precede him out of the office, but they then fell in step walking down the hall. As good as the bakery box smelled, it was nothing against Rachel’s perfume. It was delicate and had a note of citrus that he liked.
Rachel started talking, forcing him to stop thinking about leaning in and taking a long breath so all he smelled was her.
“So obviously, I made a stop at Pie for reinforcements.”
He laughed. “I gotta respect that. I don’t like it, but I respect it.”
“Hey,” she argued. “Some of that is for me.”
“A little peanut butter courage as it were,” he smiled at her. Her blushing surprised him.
“The PBF blondie may have become my new stress eating coping mechanism.”
Cal frowned. He didn’t enjoy hearing that she was stressed, but it was obviously bad news for the project. Before he could grill her, she continued.
“First, let me tell you about what Mrs. S said,” she waited for his go-ahead before continuing. “She has a friend who may need a new venue for a gala.”
“Really?” he replied as they turned into the sunroom. Cal walked to a set of chairs off to the left. Placing the box gently on the table between them, he gestured for her to sit in the chair on the right. That one would give her a delightful view of the patio and garden.
Rachel sat and excitedly told him, “From what Mrs. S said, it’s a pretty well-known event and they lost their venue. I gave Mrs. S Trace’s name and number and she is going to pass along White Hall as a suggestion.” She sat back with a big, satisfied grin on her face.
“Rachel,” he said, far more moved than he wanted to let on. She’d gone to bat for him. That type of support from an almost stranger left him feeling unsettled. “I really appreciate you recommending us and giving her the information.”
“It’s my pleasure, Cal,” she murmured, her eyes meeting his briefly before darting away.
Had he noticed before how green her eyes were?
Leaf green with swirls of emeralds. He wanted to reach over and grasp her chin so he could look his fill.
Before his hand could move of its own accord, he shook his head to clear it of this train of thought.
Grabbing a cookie, he took a big bite and couldn’t help the groan.
“Right?” she exclaimed. “Everything there is so good.” She grabbed the blondie from the bag, breaking off a piece to pop into her mouth. They sat in silence, both enjoying the treats.
“Maybe I’ll swing into the bakery in a few days,” Cal said, sipping his coffee. It, too, was perfection. “One, to get some more of these cookies, but also connect with Mrs. S and see if her friend has questions.”
“Oh,” Rachel said. “Maybe that will be blueberry buckle day.”
“I’m sorry. What? Blueberry buckle?”
“I know, I know.” Rachel put up a hand. “I had never heard of a buckle, but my friend Lisa’s been preoccupied with the new blueberry buckle Mrs. S said will be ready soon. The girl is seriously around the bend about this pastry.” She paused, her head tilted. “Or pie? I’m not sure.”
“But Lisa hasn’t had it yet?”
“Nope. But then again,” Rachel gestured to the cookies. “Everything there is great, so I can see why she’s so excited.”
“Amen to that,” Cal said. “And seriously, I’m grateful for you recommending us. Our business has really only been weddings and I’d love to branch out into other types of events. Booking an event like a gala would be a massive win.
"Obviously, it would be good for the revenue, but it also sounds like the exposure would be great. Charity events help build a good reputation. That could be very helpful come distillery licensing time.” He paused. He had to be practical. “That is, if that’s ever a possibility,” he sighed.
He saw a million questions cross her face but chose not to entertain any of them, so he continued quickly, “So, why don’t you spill the beans and explain why you’re buttering me up with baked goods?”
Rachel popped another piece of blondie into her mouth. Her stalling technique was obvious, but he was a patient man. He would just wait her out.
He reclined in his chair and unbuttoned his sleeves, slowly rolling them up to his elbows.
As he was doing it, he caught Rachel’s eyes tracking his movements, her gaze lingering.
It was good to see he wasn’t the only person affected today.
Whatever was happening between them, he wasn’t alone in it. Or at least not entirely.
Rachel finally swallowed and said, “The treats were not completely about buttering you up. I needed an afternoon snack, anyway.”
“Right. Right,” Cal grumbled skeptically. “Tell me the bad news.”
“It’s not terrible news,” she replied. Seeing his obviously disbelief, she added, “There will be more work.” She talked above his groan. “It is a small amount of work, but in the end, it will make things easier and save you time.”
Cal leaned back into his chair, “Okay. You’ve got me interested.”
“You mentioned the issue with the invoicing and a few other back-end system issues. I’ve been attempting to collect the financial information we need for the assessment. Not just the budget, but overhead, vendor pricing differences. Information like that.”
She paused until Cal acknowledged he was still with her. “What would solve all of those issues is a new software system.”
“Absolutely not,” he interjected. No way in hell was he going to spend time putting in a system. It was always time consuming and led to more issues. Not to mention he’d have to learn a new system and train Trace on it. Lord help him.
“Cal,” Rachel started.
“Rachel,” he countered. “Putting in a new system will take a lot work. And that takes time. Time I don’t have.”
“I understand, Cal. I really do. But compare the time it will take to implement with the time we would need to gather the needed information. What we need is scattered throughout the system or, in some cases, not in there at all.”
Seeing he was about to interject, she raised her hand.
“And you will have me and the associates at the firm here to help you. So, I promise that, while it will be work, we won’t leave you to do it alone.
And I can guarantee that the new system will save you time.
It’s a much more intuitive and automated process. ”
Cal’s jaw tightened. It wasn’t that he was fundamentally opposed to a new system.
He knew the one they had was lacking. But he was still attempting to convince his parents that his strategy for the property was financially sound.
Taking the time to implement a system was a waste of time, money, and resources.
Besides, they weren’t sure this business would exist long enough to reap the benefits.
His parents could shut it down at any moment based upon Rachel’s recommendations.