Chapter 7
SEVEN
Kendall
Just as I pick up my phone, a text comes in from Dane.
I wasn’t expecting to hear from him at all, even though I gave him my card.
My gut pushed me to do it. Not knowing what the hell I was doing, I handed it over.
Feeling conflicted, does he really want to get to know me, or is this part of his routine?
And then to just talk with the town’s building inspector and say, “I’ll be all set”, I don’t know what his angle is.
I’m conflicted. The whole thing gets under my skin.
His assuming I needed help is presumptuous and a big overstep in my eyes.
Yet, if all goes well today, it’s him I need to thank.
And I sigh hard, thinking about this entire situation I’ve gotten into over the past few days.
All I want to do is finish planning for my grand opening and build this business to support local workers and the community. I look around as I drive to the salon and realize that I’ve been in deep thought. I don’t even remember driving all this way. The salon is up ahead.
Thankfully, Blake, my general contractor, will be there with me.
As a woman business owner, I find it difficult to deal with the town, especially this building inspector.
I’m close to filing a complaint with the town manager’s office.
But since Dane stuck his neck out, maybe I don’t even have to worry about it.
I cross my fingers and hope that this meeting goes as planned and we get the final sign-offs.
Then we’ll have time to finalize the soft opening celebration with my closest friends and loyal clients the night before.
Hopefully, we will start getting reviews that will catapult us in the local market.
Being the only spa in a thirty-mile radius, it far exceeds the local competition.
As I’m parking and swing my legs out of my SUV, Blake strolls out of the back entrance of the building.
Looking good as usual, his dirty blond hair is in disarray in that ruggedly handsome way of his.
He’s been working a lot of hours to finish everything for this morning’s inspection.
An early morning for him starts at 6:30 a.m., so I’m guessing he’s been here since earlier than that today.
I admire his dedication to his work and to this project.
He knows how much this means to me. Approaching him, he glances over at me with his baby blue eyes.
“How was your weekend?” asks Blake.
My mind instantly goes to Friday night and how Miss Take-A-Risk met Dane in his hotel room. I don’t regret a second of it, but now that’s all I’m focused on. My core heats and my thighs rub together almost involuntarily.
I need to change the subject quickly to distract myself. “It was great. We had a girls’ night. How was your daughter’s game?”
“It was a close one, but they won.”
“She must have been excited.”
Blake is a single dad to his eight-year-old daughter, Olivia. She is his entire world and the only thing he talks about. I admire his work ethic and his commitment to his company and daughter. You don’t see that often enough.
“The entire team was cheering, and we went out for ice cream to celebrate.”
“That’s awesome. Are you ready for this meeting?”
“The real question is…are you ready for this meeting?” He turns slightly so I can walk by, and he follows through the back door. The meeting is in less than an hour, and the first stop is coffee.
“Can we take ten minutes and review everything? I’ll feel better if we can make sure there are no holes in our paperwork, the requirements, and the requests from them,” I say, and then make coffee.
“Of course, let me go grab the plans and folder.”
We’ve been diligent throughout the project. Now, all our files are in pristine condition. The work is done and documented from start to finish, along with any necessary inspections along the way.
“Kendall, I double-checked everything,” he says as he opens the job folder and pulls out the plans. “We should be good.”
The next hour passes in the blink of an eye. Roland comes in the front door with his clipboard in hand. Blake and I share a brief look. Since throat punching this guy is not an option, I decide to be overly friendly and shake his hand. It can’t hurt.
“Good morning, how are you?” I ask as pleasantly as possible.
Something is different about him this time around—he’s smiling. Even Blake glances at me with a smirk on his face and slightly shrugs his shoulders. At least we are on the same page. The last time he was here, he pointed out things that didn’t even pertain to the permits.
“Morning. Let’s get this done quickly for you.” He’s flipping through his checklist and doesn’t even bother to look up at us. “Okay, do you have the paperwork that we requested for this meeting?”
Blake shuffles through his folder, grabs a few pieces of paper, and hands them to Roland. “Here you go; that should be everything.”
Roland reads the pages, and after a few minutes of silence, he says, “This all looks to be in order.”
Almost everything that Blake handed over, we’ve given to him before.
“I’m sorry. What’s changed since the last time we met?”
Roland stares at me with curiosity. “You didn’t send down your attorney to take care of things with my office?”
“What? I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“You’re telling me you don’t know Attorney Dane Walsh.”
The realization flashes across my face. What did he say to this guy? I have so many questions.
Do I even admit to knowing Dane?
Yes, he was my one-night stand who decided to come and rescue me from the building inspector.
None of this is settling well with me.
“To answer your question…no, I didn’t send my attorney.”
I’m not even sure he believes me, but he says, “Okay, well, let’s keep the inspection moving along. There are a few things that I need to check.”
The entire process takes about thirty minutes. I haven’t seen this guy check things off his list this fast—ever.
“All the work looks great, and I’m signing off on my part right now. The office admin will have everything for you early next week to pick up.”
“That’s wonderful news,” I say, smiling.
Roland leaves, and Blake looks at me and says, “That went smoothly. I have no idea how. You must have a fairy godmother.”
“Apparently, this attorney is in fact my fairy godmother,” I say with an arched eyebrow and a slight shake of my head. I don't know how to explain it all.
“Okay, well, you should find that attorney and thank him. We just got the final sign-offs for your permits. Now you can finish planning your openings.”
I’m thankful he didn’t ask any further questions about the attorney. I really don’t want to get into it right now. “Yeah, I can’t wait.”
Rummaging through my bag, I dig out my to-do list and review it again to see what's left. My friends will be excited about this update. I promised them the VIP experience during the soft opening, so I text them the good news, which has me smiling widely and bouncing on my heels.
“Congratulations, Kendall. This place is going to bring a lot of business to the town.” Blake touches my shoulder and squeezes.
He’s the nicest guy and deserves someone special.
I wish one of my friends would give him a chance.
I can matchmake with the best of them, but that will have to wait until I have more space on my plate.
“Thank you, and yes, it really will. Come on, let’s go grab a coffee and breakfast at Saxville Coffee House.”
“Raincheck for later this week?” I regretfully ask to pass.
“Okay, I’m keeping you to that. I’m going to work on the shelving now while I’m here.”
“Excellent. I’ll be in my office if you need me.”
He turns and heads back to the storage closet. My heels click on the floor and echo off the walls of the hallway to my office.
Stepping inside, I shut the door. I slip off my shoes and slide onto my couch before digging into the pile of work on my desk.
Should I text Dane? Call him? I don’t know.
The mixed feelings swirl through my body. I’ll have my final permit next week, thanks to him. Still, he assumed it was okay to step into my situation without fully understanding what was going on. He could have made it worse. Frankly, if he wanted to help, why didn’t he say something?
I flip my phone around in my hands as I think through how best to address this with him. I went from thinking I’ll never see this guy again to where we are now.
I shake my head.
The best way to address this will be to send a text. I have other pressing items on my list that need my full attention.
Kendall:
I appreciate what you did. Thank you. The permits will be ready next week. I wish you had asked me first before assuming I needed or wanted your help.
Staring at my phone, I’m waiting for a quick response, which doesn’t come. I push myself off the couch and toss my phone onto the desk.
The next hour is spent in my office, tying up all the loose ends for both opening celebrations. After completing almost my entire list, I realized that most items were confirmations, which made it easy to check off. Taking one more look through the list, I’m all caught up for today.
The countdown to the soft opening begins.
With excitement rolling through my body, a huge smile crosses my face. It’s almost here, and I can’t help but feel my heart drop into my stomach. I remind myself that this is everything I’ve wanted for so long.
Stretching my arms over my head and wiggling my body, I place my hands on the arm of the chair to crack my back. I can’t wait for the massage therapists to be right down the hall. Until then, I rub my temples a few times and stand up. Snagging my phone off the desk, I take a quick look at it.
I scrunch up my nose, seeing that I missed the text Dane sent over thirty minutes ago. When I’m in the zone working, I block everything else out—unless you are right in front of me.