I laughed at his old pet name for me as I traced my finger back and forth over the touch pad of my laptop. I hadn’t gotten much sleep, if any, for the past couple of days. I put business plans together for a living, but when it wasmybusiness plan, I was so lost in the weeds of the Excel rows, I’d had to force myself to put it aside and close my eyes.
“You love running the Palace, right? You’ve never regretted it?”
“Well, we’ve had some rough times, especially when we had to shut it down and only do takeout orders a few years ago. But regrets, no. You know that restaurant is almost as much of a child to me as you are. Are you saying you’re thinking about working with us?”
“No.” I winced, both at my immediate reply and having to shoot down the excited lilt in my father’s voice. “I’m thinking about buying my own business. Up here. The only bar in town is for sale, and I think it’s a great opportunity that’s being wasted if it closes its doors.” I sucked in a deep breath when my news was met with silence. “I don’t know much—or anything—about running a bar. But I have watched you over the years, and I worked at the restaurant during enough summers to have a good idea about the service industry.”
My heart strummed in my ears in a way it never did when I spoke to my father, even during all those times I’d gotten into trouble as a kid.
“I think I have enough savings to qualify as collateral for a small business loan. The place is in good shape, but I’d like to do some renovations to make it my own. Maybe not right away, but eventually. Peyton’s husband would give me a good contractor’s price—at least, I’m pretty sure he would.”
More silence from my father after my nervous chuckle made my stomach bottom out. Before I’d been laid off, I hadn’t been an indecisive person at all. I just did what felt right and never pondered much beyond the current moment. But I’d been in a strange limbo ever since I’d arrived—until Larry cracked a joke about buying his bar and I couldn’t think about anything else after.
“What are your ideas?”
I was taken aback by his first reaction. I’d expected something along the lines of “So that means you’re moving up there?” or “It takes a lot to own and run your own business. Are you sure about this?” The fact that he didn’t immediately attempt to talk me out of it was a happy jolt to my exhausted system and—I prayed—was another sign I was on the right track.
“I want to change the name and some of the decor, but the bones are good. I won’t do anything too drastic. I’ll keep it as a bar, but it wouldn’t hurt to make some things a little more modern. The wooden seats are uncomfortable as fu—hell. I’d like to update that and maybe add some couches and small tables to make it cozier.”
I let a long moment of silence go by before I continued.
“It’s literally the only bar in Kelly Lakes, and everyone in town goes there at one time or another, from all different generations. Larry, the owner now, said the staff would probably stay for a new owner, so I’d have some help right from the beginning.”
“That sounds like a solid plan. I’m not going to lie and say I don’t hate the thought of you moving, but I want you happy. Wherever you are. Since you lost your job, and even before that, you sounded so defeated every time I spoke to you. Now, you sound like my Claudia.”
“And what does your Claudia sound like?” I asked around the sudden lump in the back of my throat.
“A woman who can do anything she wants better than anybody else. And you sound like you want this. I’m behind you a hundred percent, and your mother will be too. We’ll miss you, but we’d rather you be happy and far away than miserable and close by.”
“Thanks, Dad. That means a lot.” I blinked away tears. This decision was monumental enough to make me a sap. “It helps, especially when I’m about to make an appointment with the bank.”
“Unless you’ve touched it, you should have plenty of money to put up as collateral, with some left over. Let me know how much they tell you that you need, and I’ll contribute.”
“No. I have plenty, thanks to you. And if not, I’ll figure something out.”
“Listen, you don’t want to start out a business being in the poorhouse.”
I laughed before it hit me.
The Pour House. Halman’s was the name of the twice-previous owners, and Larry said he’d kept it because he couldn’t come up with anything else. He stressed how all his customers, no matter what their ages were, just wanted a good pour. Maybe it was a cheesy play on words, but I loved it. When I took over, all of Kelly Lakes could still come in for a good pour.
I stilled at my second epiphany.WhenI took over, notif.
Maybe there was a greater power leading me to where I was supposed to be. How else could I explain tearing up here after I was fired and lingering for weeks, as if something were keeping me here?
“Does your plan include staffing?”
“Yes. Larry gave me a ballpark of the rate he pays his employees and how many hours a week they put in.”
“Sounds like you have it all figured out.”
“Oh yeah, Dad. I’m flying by the seat of my pants with this, but you’re right.” I slammed the laptop shut and ran my hand through my tangled hair. “This is the most like me I’ve felt in a long time.”
“So you finally live in the country.” I heard the smile in my father’s voice. “I had a feeling you would eventually. You visited Peyton quite a bit the past couple of years. You seemed to gravitate up there.”
“Maybe that’s what I’ll call the bar. Claudia goes country,” I joked.
“Claudia can do whatever the hell she wants. Keep that in mind when you meet with the bank. If they don’t want to finance you, someone else will. You never liked hearing no, and when you take on something like this, you have to refuse to.”
