“Because it’s a healthier alternative to regular butter or cream cheese as a spread for pastries,” Shayla said. “I’m thinking of maybe canning it and selling jars at The Jazzy Bean if I can get the recipe just right.”
“That health-conscious menu is still working for you?”
“Absolutely,” she said. “Didn’t you see the chart on the community board I keep above the condiment bar? A bunch of my regulars have a fitness contest going on right now. They’re trying to lose a thousand pounds as a group by next year’s Founder’s Day Celebration.” She sent Paxton a cheeky grin. “I would say ‘I told you so,’ since you were one of my biggest doubters, but I’m much too nice for that.”
“That is so not fair,” Paxton said. “I never doubtedyou. It’s the people in this town that I doubted. You know most of them are stuck in their ways.”
“Well, I’m changing their ways one Zumba class at a time,” Shayla said.
When Shayla had returned to Gauthier to open her own coffee shop after working in the coffee industry in Seattle for years, Paxton thought it was both bold and brave but also the tiniest bit crazy. And when Shayla decided that The Jazzy Bean would only serve heart-healthy food items, Paxton was certain that her friend’s grand ideas would go down in a blaze of glory.
She had been proven wrong. And she couldn’t be happier about it.
Shayla had turned The Jazzy Bean into the kind of place that people from neighboring towns drove out of their way to visit. She was a marketing genius, which helped tremendously. In addition to great coffee, pastries and café-style food offerings, The Jazzy Bean also hosted Zumba classes three nights a week and live jazz music on the weekends. It was, without a doubt, one of the biggest success stories to come out of the revitalization of downtown Gauthier.
“I heard The Jazzy Bean was packed last Friday night,” Paxton said. “Did the high school’s jazz ensemble earn enough money for their trip to Washington?”
“They’re getting close,” Shayla said. “They’re going to perform again in a couple of weeks. Oh, did I tell you I landed Simone Thibodaux? She’s debuting her new album at The Jazzy Bean.”
“Seriously?” Paxton said. The performer was the daughter of famed jazz singer Madeline Thibodaux, whose French Quarter jazz club, Maddie’s Spot, had just been named the hottest new club in New Orleans by a local magazine. It was a huge feat in a city with an endless number of hot spots. “Will she be performing before I leave at the end of the month?”
Shayla shook her head. “Nope. You’ll just have to stick around longer.”
“Or I can just go to Maddie’s Spot and see her,” Paxton pointed out.
“But you would be so plagued with guilt for not supporting her show at The Jazzy Bean that you wouldn’t be able to enjoy yourself.”
Paxton’s head flew back with her laugh. “All joking aside, landing Simone Thibodaux is huge. Have I mentioned how proud I am of you?”
“Only a dozen times since you’ve been back,” Shayla said. “You’re slipping.”
“Well, I’ll say it again. I am so proud of you. I didn’t think Gauthier was big enough to sustain a coffee shop like The Jazzy Bean, and I am so happy that you’ve proven me wrong.”
“Aww.” Shayla set her paring knife on the counter, ran to Paxton’s side of the kitchen island, and wrapped her in a hug. “I haven’t forgiven you for moving to Little Rock, but I’m still proud of the work you’re doing, too.”
She gave Paxton an extra squeeze before returning to her side of the counter.
“How is the project going, by the way?” she asked. “You said Sawyer had to go into his office at the army corps this afternoon, right? Why didn’t you go with him?”
“It has to do with whatever project he was working on before they transferred him to this one.”
“So, how isyoursgoing?” Shayla asked again.
Paxton released a sigh. “How much truth do you want?”
Shayla’s hand stilled with her paring knife hovering above the red-skinned apple she’d started to peel.
“What’s wrong?” she asked. “You all found something bad, didn’t you? Is all of Gauthier poised to drown during the next big rainstorm?”
“It’s nothing like that.”
“Be honest with me, Pax. I’ve got a lot invested in this town. So does Xavier. He’s been turning down offers left and right in order to stay here and run the clinic.”
Shayla’s husband, Xavier Wright, was an implant from Atlanta. He’d come to the hospital in Maplesville to work as an ER doctor in conjunction with a program that supplied medical personnel to underserved areas. During the stint at Maplesville General, Matthew Gauthier had convinced Xavier to volunteer a few hours a week at a clinic that Matt had opened for low-income residents. Shayla had convinced Xavier to stay for life.
“Is he seriously considering other offers?” Paxton asked, suddenly troubled by the thought of Shayla’s leaving. Which was a bit cheeky on her part, since she was the one who had left first.
Shayla put her mind at ease with a casual wave of her hand. “Not really,” she said. “He gets them, but he’s more than settled where he is. Besides, he could never leave Kristi and Cass.”
