Joseph's heart skipped a beat at the excitement in his daughter's voice. Or maybe that was his reaction to Shona being here. Wiping his hands on a dishtowel, he headed into the hallway.
He enjoyed spending time with Shona. She had a great sense of humor, the ability to see the good in people, and dreams as ambitious as his used to be. And a smile that could disarm him in the blink of an eye.
He studied her face. Today, her smile was nowhere in sight. If anything, she looked like she was about to burst into tears.
“I hope it’s okay to stop by without calling first?”
“It’s no problem. Come in.” Holding open the door, he nodded toward the kitchen. “We were just tidying up. I'll make you a cup of coffee.”
“That would be lovely. Thanks.”
“We made meatballs for dinner,” Adele said proudly as they walked down the hallway. “There are lots of leftovers if you're hungry.”
Shona shook her head. “That's nice of you, but I had dinner with my friends.”
“What did you eat?”
“Andrea made a pasta dish. It was delicious.”
“We make pasta sometimes. Dad likes to have lots of cheese on his, but I don’t.”
Before Adele gave away too many of their secrets, Joseph handed his daughter the dishtowel. “Can you dry the rest of the dishes while I make everyone a drink?”
“Sure. Can I have a glass of lemonade?”
Joseph smiled. “Coming right up. Do you take cream and sugar in your coffee, Shona?”
“Yes, please. Before you make our drinks, I have some news from the bank.”
He turned away from the cupboards. Hopefully, the sad look in her eyes didn’t have anything to do with the loan. “That was quick.”
“Will they give you the money you need?” Adele asked.
Shona shook her head. “The loan officer was worried I wouldn’t be able to pay my bills.”
Joseph’s heart went out to her. “I’m sorry. I know how much you were counting on their support.”
Adele frowned. “Does that mean you can’t sell your quilts in town?”
“It does, but that doesn’t mean I can’t keep making them. I’ll just have to rearrange my sewing room to create more space.”
Shona looked so upset that Joseph wanted to wrap her in a hug. But that would cross the boundary of their new friendship and create issues he wasn’t ready to deal with. “What about looking for a grant from another organization? The church applies for funding all the time.”
“I’ll talk to John and Shelley tomorrow, but I’ll probably miss out on the cottage on Anchor Lane. Penny needs to lease it as quickly as possible.”
He couldn’t believe the bank had been so short-sighted. Anyone with half a brain could see how much better her sales would be if she had somewhere to display and sell her quilts.
There was another way Shona could still open her store, but he wasn’t sure she’d want to do it. “What if you found a private investor?”
“If the bank won’t lend me money, no one else will want to invest in my business.”
“I wouldn’t be too sure about that.” He poured Shona’s coffee. “A lot of people are looking for small mom-and-pop businesses to support. What you have is unique. You already have a solid customer base and a great reputation.”
“It will take a lot more than that to make people want to invest in my business.”
Joseph handed Adele a glass of lemonade. “Maybe, but you’ll never know until you try.”
“Granddad said Dad knows lots about money,” Adele said innocently. “He helped him—”
