John picked up the proposal Joseph had given him. “Are you staying at the center for dinner?”
“Not tonight. After Adele’s writing group has finished, we’re going home. She wants to practice singing the Christmas carols for the competition.”
“Mabel will be thrilled.”
Joseph smiled. “That’s what Adele’s hoping. Along with most of the kids who stay at The Welcome Center, she’s adopted Mabel as an honorary grandma.”
John frowned. “Just be careful. If Mabel finds out you’re helping to fund Shona’s business, your cover will be blown.”
If that happened, Joseph knew Shona wouldn’t be happy. “We’ll have to be extra careful, then. Let me know if Shona comes to see you.”
“I will.” John moved around his desk. “I’ll head to the writing group with you.”
With his friend beside him, Joseph walked down the corridor. He had a lot to be grateful for, and living in a caring community was one of the most important.
* * *
Four daysafter speaking with the bank’s loan officer, Shona was sitting in Paris’ living room. “I spoke to Shelley and Pastor John. They’re sending my business plan to the funders they work with. Hopefully, one of them wants to be part of a quilting store.”
“What about the county?” Andrea asked. “Do they have a business team or some special funding you could use?”
“They do, but their next funding round is in three months. By the time they assess each application, it will be Christmas.”
Paris sighed. “And Penny will have found tenants for the last two cottages by then.”
“That’s what I thought, too.”
Andrea picked up their list of ideas for finding extra money. “What about starting a GoFundMe page?”
“Absolutely not,” Shona said firmly. “There are too many people needing money for life-saving treatments and surgeries. My business isn’t as important as staying alive.”
“A lot of people will want to help you.”
“I’m not doing it.”
Paris handed Andrea a pen. “Cross that idea off the list. What about the local business association? What did they say?”
“They can give me plenty of advice, but the county slashed their funding last year. They don’t have any extra money.” Shona picked up a copy of her business plan. “I looked at ways I can reduce my expenses. There aren’t many, but it made a small difference.”
“You can’t run a business on thin air,” Andrea said sadly. “You need some extra money in case your income isn’t as high as you’d budgeted or your expenses get out of control.”
Shona hadn’t seen her friend look so worried in ages. “Is everything all right with the café?”
“It’s fine. I just wish David wouldn’t work so hard. He’s spending a lot of time at the new BioTech offices, then doing my accounts at night. If he doesn’t slow down, he’ll have a heart attack before we get married.”
“He’s always worked long hours,” Paris reminded her. “David’s like an energizer bunny that never stops.”
“That wasn’t part of our plan when we got engaged. He wanted to enjoy life, not spend even more time behind a computer.”
Shona wrapped her arm around Andrea’s shoulders. “It will be better once the new building is finished.”
“I hope so. We’ve had so little time together that we haven’t even discussed our wedding.”
Shona put her business plan away. “Is there anything I can do to help?”
“I wish there was. I’m totally jealous of Paris’ wedding plans. I wish it were me getting married in a few weeks.”
“It’s not as great as you think it is.” Paris looked at each of her friends. “My dress has gone missing.”
