I took a deep breath and tried to channel my inner boss babe as I grabbed a broom and went out into the early morning to sweep the sidewalk in front of my café.
"'I am an entrepreneur doing big things. These are four-inch stilettos, so don't even waste your time trying to bring me down,'" I quoted. But I wasn't wearing any stilettos, just my red slip-on Toms.
I looked down at my scuffed-up shoes. It was another reminder of the disconnect between who I wanted to be and who I actually was.
"I want pancakes. Raspberry dark chocolate soufflé pancakes," I yelled out to the empty street. One of the problems with having a failing café was that I ended up eating all the leftover food. And there was a lot.
"Don't make pancakes. Don't stress eat." I looked down at my white overalls. Slouchy artist had become my signature look since opening the café. Not because of any real conscious decision, but because I couldn't really fit into my other nicer clothes.
For a few weeks when I first opened, I had tried to serve breakfast, but I never attracted enough customers. I looked over at the brick building next to mine. A sign on the front said,Grey Dove Bistro, Coming Soon!
That was the other reason why I knew I was in the death throes of a failing business. Chloe Barnard, popular contestant on theGreat Christmas Bake Offand dessert-maker extraordinaire, was putting a franchise in Harrogate. And of course it was going right next to my business. Talk about a real boss babe. She was building an empire of cool restaurants. Her Instagram game was on point. She had a gorgeous billionaire boyfriend, Jack Frost, and an impeccably decorated penthouse.
When the Grey Dove Bistro opened, no one would ever come to my little café. I slumped down on the stoop.
The train from Svensson PharmaTech rumbled down the street. It was another quirk of Harrogate that I loved, the freight train that rumbled down Main Street several times a week. I waved to the train conductor, and he blew the horn. I sighed as he passed. I would miss that if I lost my café.
What I wouldn't miss were the several idiots who had taken to racing their motorcycles down the street in the middle of the night. I had to wake up early to make the sandwiches that Ida sold at her general store. On top of the humiliation from Archer's practical joke, I had a headache from lack of sleep.
"Did you call him?" Jemma called, walking down the street toward me.
"Keep your voice down," I hissed and pulled her inside the café. "I did call," I said.
"You did?" she squealed then added, "But it's early. He might have still been asleep."
"That was the plan," I replied, going to the large fridge to take out the deli meats, cheeses, and locally sourced vegetables to make the sandwiches for Ida. Jemma washed her hands and put on an apron. "But it was a joke," I continued, angrily slapping the loaves of bread onto the counter.
"What?" Jemma exclaimed as she started slicing tomatoes.
"He gave me the number to his mean older brother, and let me tell you, he was not amused I called him Donut Danish."
Jemma started laughing and almost dropped her knife. "You didn't!"
"Now I'm going to have to listen to my sister give me a lecture about not trusting Svenssons."
"At least he bought a painting!"
"He came in here like he owned the place," I grumbled. "He's just like those horrible art collectors in Manhattan."
"Money is money."
"I'd rather not take his money," I said. "Especially if Archer's just going to use it as an excuse to be a douche."
"We should have known," Jemma said. "Who wears sunglasses at night, right?"
"At least I have Ida as one nice customer."
"Ida said she wants as many sandwiches as you can make," Jemma told me as I smeared various fancy aiolis on the slices of bread. "Apparently a lot of people from Svensson Investment are coming into her shop to buy them. They like the cute names and the Instagram-worthy labels."
"Ida is so sweet."
"Olivia says Ida's driving her crazy. She said she's heard way too much about her grandmother's sexcapades."
I laughed, some of the tension easing out of my back.
* * *
Jemmaand I spent the next few hours finishing the sandwiches.
