"I know, right?"
"Okay, enough. It's time to make ice cream and clean. If you actually help instead of sitting around and looking pretty, we might get out of here in time to pick up a pizza and go home for that movie night you've been wanting to have."
"You say that like I didn't just go through a year's worth of financials for the shop in one morning!" I said, my tone defensive.
Cam laughed and rose to her feet. "Okay, so you've earned your keep for this week. Now it's time to work off next week's."
"I'm a partner, not an employee. I don't need to earn my keep," I retorted. "And don't you need to call this Lee person about the job?" I pointed out, wondering if Cam had already forgotten she needed to call her mom and get Lee's number.
Cam dropped back down into her chair with a sigh. "Good point."
She picked up her cell phone again and scrolled through. I had a pretty good idea who she was calling, so I didn't ask. Sure enough, I could hear the faint tones of her mother's voice coming from the speaker.
She responded to her mother's question by saying, "I'm good. I was wondering if you had Lee Prescott's number?"
I listened to them talk for a few minutes, laughing quietly to myself when Cam had to walk her mother through the process of sharing a contact from her phone via text.
Finally, they finished and Cam looked at me, "I have no idea how to call someone and invite them in to interview for a job that they didn't apply for and that they may not get."
"Let me handle that," I said, holding out my hand for Cam's phone.
One of the perks of having a broken filter between my brain and mouth was that I was used to weird conversations that I initiated.
I clicked on the number that Colette had sent and lifted the phone to my ear.
"Hello?" The voice was low and smooth. And she definitely didn't sound as young as Cam said she was.
"Hello, my name is Sierra Watkins. May I speak with Lee Prescott, please?"
"This is she. What can I do for you, Ms. Watkins?"
She was so matter-of-fact and cool that I hesitated for a moment.
"Are you calling about cleaning service?" she asked.
Her question broke me out of my weird pause. "Um, no. Actually, I'm Cameron McClane's partner at Crave. Have you heard of the shop?"
"Yes, I have."
"Wonderful. The reason I'm calling you is that we are looking for an assistant manager for the store and Natalie Phelps recommended we call you. But it sounds like you might already have a job."
This time it was Lee that was silent for a protracted moment. "I do have a part-time cleaning job, but I would definitely like to hear more about the position you mentioned."
I grinned. "That's great! At the moment, the position will only be about twenty to twenty-five hours a week, but we will need someone full-time within the next year."
Cam gave me a wide-eyed look. I waved her off. Despite her reluctance to allow me to invest further in the business, we were going to do it. It might take me a while to wear her down, but it was going to be done.
"Would you be interested in the position?" I asked.
"Yes, I think I would," Lee replied. "Do I need to come in and fill out an application?"
I glanced at Cam and mouthed the word "application". She shook her head. Okay, so apparently she didn't have one.
"Actually, I was hoping you could come in for an interview. Since you have another job, what day would work best for you?" I asked.
She hesitated. "About my other job, will it be a problem to work out a schedule to accommodate my working both?"
"I think we can manage that," I said. "What day could you come in?"
