“Sweet Treats is the closest café to Anchor Lane. I hope Megan and Brooke will be okay with what I want to do.”
“Brooke only started selling coffee because there weren’t many options in town. I don’t think she’ll mind if you open a café.”
Andrea sighed. “That’s good, but there’s another problem. I don’t have a lot of money to invest in the store. What kind of expenses did you have?”
Paris walked across to the front counter and opened her laptop. “I’ll print you a copy of my business case. The layout changes I needed were covered by Penny. It didn’t add a lot of extra cost because the construction crew hadn’t been working on the cottage for very long. I found the shelving and furniture on eBay. The only things I had to buy locally were the materials for the displays, the flowers, and the boxes and paper I use. Which cottage are you thinking of leasing?”
“The one beside yours. The small strip of lawn in the front of the building would be perfect for a few tables and chairs. I could hang baskets of flowers under the veranda and string fairy lights around the trim.”
“That would be lovely. Have you been inside the cottage?”
Andrea shook her head. “Not yet. I wanted to see if you thought it was a good idea before I do anything else.”
“Well, you’ve come at the right time. Do you want to go exploring now?”
“I’d love to, but I don’t have a key.”
Paris opened a drawer. “This one will work. Richard changed all the locks, so they’re the same as my cottage. If the construction crew can’t get inside, they ask me for this key.”
“That makes sense. Do you think Penny will mind?”
“We’ll know if a few seconds.” Paris took out her phone and called her friend. After she’d finished speaking, she found the hardhats Richard had left in her store. “As long as we wear these and sign the safety register, we can have a look.”
Andrea grinned. “If I open the café, I won’t have far to go if I don’t know how to do something.”
“And I’ll know where to go for a hot chocolate and a delicious muffin.” Paris shut the door behind them. “Keep an open mind when you see the cottage. I’m not sure what the construction crew has done.”
“As long as it has running water and electricity, it has potential.”
Paris couldn’t guarantee either of those things, but Andrea had a good imagination. If anyone could make an old cottage into a gorgeous café, it was her.
The first thing Paris saw when she opened the door was the kitchen. The original wooden cabinets were still there, along with an orange Formica counter that looked like it belonged in the 1970s. “This is worse than the kitchen that was in my cottage.”
“It’s not too bad.” Andrea opened a cupboard and peered inside. “I’d have to replace everything with commercial grade appliances and surfaces, but some of the cupboards could be reused.”
“Is the kitchen big enough?”
“I think so.” She held out her arms and stood in front of a wall. “I’d put an oven here. If I buy an upright, multi-level model, it won’t take as much room as a conventional oven. Two microwaves could go here.” She moved to the next wall. “Refrigerators and freezers here, and the sink and commercial dishwasher could go under the window.”
“That won’t give you much counter space.”
“It will if we move the wall out a couple of feet. That would give me enough room for a stainless steel, free-standing counter in the center of the room. I’d take the doors off the cupboards and make them into open shelves. It will look amazing, but it will be expensive.”
“Can you buy second-hand appliances?”
“I’d have to.” Andrea turned on a power switch and two fluorescent bulbs sprung to life. “That’s a good sign.”
They wandered into the next room.
“I was hoping it would be the same as your cottage, and it is.” Andrea smiled at the brick fireplace nestled against one wall. “It’s perfect. Even with extending the kitchen, there’s plenty of room for the tables and chairs. If I removed the walls on either side of the hallway, it would open up the entire front of the cottage.”
“It would look gorgeous.”
Andrea stared at the same pressed tin ceiling that was in Paris’ cottage. “The only issue I have is the cost.”
“Why don’t you speak to Brooke? She would have gone through the same thing before she opened Sweet Treats.”
“Good idea. And if I do some of the work myself, it might make it less expensive.”
