There was an awkward pause, and then Faith cleared her throat. “What can I do for you, Judd? Is everything okay?”
“Everything’s fine, everything’s more than fine.” Judd cleared his throat. “I wanted to thank you.”
“Oh?” More compliments for her coupons idea? She grinned.
“Yes. You’ve been very helpful with the brewery. Your idea to send business back and forth between us and The Lighthouse Grill was truly inspired. It’s been working exceptionally well.”
“So Brady just told me.” Her eyes sparkled. “I’m delighted that it worked out as well as I’d hoped.”
Judd cleared his throat again. “And it’s not just that. I’ve heard about how helpful you’re being with the restaurant overall. I appreciate you stepping in like this. I know you’re doing it for Ryan, but our whole family—our whole business—is benefitting, and well, you have my gratitude.”
Faith’s grin widened. “It’s my pleasure. And I’m not just helping out for Ryan’s sake, although you’re right that he’s my main motivation. I also care about the brewery and I want it to succeed. And I have to say, you have your son to thank for most of the brewery’s recent success. I had one great idea and I’ve done a lot of fiddly work, but Ryan’s been juggling a great deal marvelously well. You should see how much the staff respects him. He’s been doing a remarkable job.”
“Oh, don’t worry, I can see that. I know he’s been filling my shoes very well. But behind every successful man is a fantastic woman, and it seems that Ryan has found one in you.”
“Well, that’s very kind of you to say.” Faith kept her tone smooth and polite, but she did a happy dance in front of her car after she said it. “I appreciate it, Judd.”
“Of course. I—well, I just wanted you to know that you have my blessing.”
She almost laughed, it seemed like such an odd thing to say, but she stopped herself. “Well, that makes me very happy to hear.”
She and Judd said goodbye, and she got into her car, feeling a spring in her step. She’d known the McCormicks liked her well enough for a while, but having their undeniable approval meant a great deal to her.
After all,she thought,someday they might be my family.
She sighed dreamily, wishing that she and Ryan could get engaged soon. She knew it wasn’t going to happen, since he hadtoo many other things to think about with the brewery, but the prospect made her heart ache in a sweet way. Smiling quietly to herself, she made her way homeward, looking forward to when she would see her boyfriend and tell him about her ideas.
CHAPTER TWENTY
Dean sat at his desk in Main Street Auto, tapping his fingers against his knees as he looked over the books.
“Looking good, looking good,” he murmured.
Business had been fairly good of late, although his personal finances had taken a hit because he wasn’t able to work on any cars during his recovery. Since he owned the business, he still made some profit from the overall income, but he always gave the main part of the money that came in to his mechanics, as commission.
He glanced up, through the indoor window in his office that looked out onto the garage. He watched his guys talking and laughing as they tinkered with an old Ford truck, and he sighed. He was itching to get back to working on cars himself, but there wasn’t much he could do about that at the moment.
Soon, he thought with a smile.Before I know it, I’ll be out there with them, feeling better than I’ve felt since before all of this started.
At the thought of doing more work, and along with it, making more money, Dean was reminded of how spectacularly disheartening his surgery bills were—especially when combinedwith the cost of the treatments that he had a feeling were the best choice moving forward.
He sighed again, tossing his pen down and leaning back in his chair. He shut his eyes for a moment, as if he could will away all of the problems in front of him by wishing hard enough. He felt worried about his recovery timeline, and about the bills. He worried that he couldn’t afford the treatments to speed up his recovery, and that he would end up being in pain on his and Noelle’s wedding day. He shook his head, finding himself wondering if the surgery had been worth it after all.
A moment later, he scolded himself.Stay grateful, Dean,he thought.Your body is feeling better. It was definitely worth it. I’ll figure this all out—somehow.
There was a knock on his office door, and he glanced at it, surprised. “Come on in!” he called, wondering who it was. He knew it wasn’t one of his mechanics, at least none of the guys who were working that afternoon, since he could see them all out in the shop.
The door opened and Noelle and Vivian stepped inside. Dean’s face lit up into a grin when he saw them, and he hurried to stand up and give them both bear hugs.
“So nice to see you,” he said, kissing Noelle’s forehead. “What a lovely surprise.”
“We wanted to drop by and say hello,” Vivian said, her eyes twinkling at him. “We were out looking for a flower girl dress for Macey with Julia and the girls, but she had to get on home because Quinn was getting fussy.”
“Sounds like fun.” Dean leaned against the side of his desk and crossed his arms, smiling. “Did you find the right dress?”
“Oh yes, and it’s just perfect,” Noelle said. “It’s a pale green, almost a mint, and it’s got flowers embroidered all along the hem. Macey looks darling in it.” She laughed. “And you should have seen how proud she was. She gave so many twirls.She definitely understands that it’s not just a dress, it’s for something important.”
Dean nodded, grinning. “I can’t wait to see how cute she is in it.”
