“Now, honey, I have been around for a bit, but I think I can manage leaning up against this rail for a few more minutes.”
Kenya laughed.
“So, my friend has some offices around the country and has been able to offer her services to well-known clients. You should see her designs. They are incredible, but we both see the growth and potential in this area. Huntsville, your big sister a few minutes away, has been voted one of the best places to live for the past few years. And my friend and I have always wanted to go into business together, so here we are. And here you are. We want to combine the best of the bakery-café atmosphere with bespoke boutique creations. Our desire is to create a mini-showroom experience introducing customers to exclusive seasonal lines that they can customize while they sip on teas and house-made pastries.”
“That sounds like my kind of business.” Kenya grinned.
“I was hoping you would say that because the missing piece was who would manage all of that on this end. That is the main reason I came on this tour. I had a sense that the agency that had sent out those creative invitations and organized an unforgettable itinerary would have someone on their team this launch might be a good fit for. Fay will be so excited.”
“What did you say your friend’s name was again?”
Althea beamed. “Fay. Or, rather, Favour Anruchi of Fayson Couture. Have you heard of them? She started off big in Lagos but has since gone global. We met here at Alabama A&M before she moved back home to Nigeria.”
Kenya’s heart sank. “I’m not very good at managing.” And especially trying to manage anything that Favour Anruchi was a part of. There was no way Solomon’s mother would be okay with her involvement.
Althea leveled a no-nonsense look at her. “Young lady, you are a creative woman who can see the big picture. Your gifting then helps you to take those big pictures and make them experiential and tangible for people from all walks of life. That is what we want our brand to be. I want you to be our brand designer and ambassador. Not only do I see you infusing this launch with your creative ideas, but we want you to help tell the story. I want you to have fun, dream big, look out at the people in the city, and help us design with them in mind.”
Kenya opened her mouth, closed it again. Her thoughts were a jumble and a mess. How did one pray or even think about something like this?
Althea looked at her like a woman who’d had struggles of her own. She took Kenya’s hand and patted it. “You can say no, but baby, you also have the permission to say yes.”
Kenya gazed out over the park a few moments after Althea walked back into the building. Saying yes felt like a dream, but if she left her agency, would she be running away again?
33
MOM,POPS?”
Solomon stepped into the foyer of his parents’ home. Instead of the smells of cooking food wafting toward him, the fragrance of his mother’s favorite imported diffuser filled the space.
“They are not here.”
Solomon turned to his left and saw Simon sitting in the study through the French door.
“Mom left to have dinner with Aunt Thea. Pops is on his way from a meeting.”
His shoulders tensed. “Okay, I will talk to them later, then.”
He couldn’t tell them what happened with his test over the phone. It needed to be in person, but he would have to wait until another day. Might as well be on Sunday with the whole family.
His brother looked at him expectantly. It was unusual to see him sitting down in front of something other than a computer or without a phone in his hand. “What are you reading?” Solomon asked, stepping inside the West African–themed study. He sat down on one of the tufted-leather accent chairs.
“Just a book on team management.” His brother placed the book down. “Got to learn these skills somehow, since I don’t know what the future will hold.”
Solomon pressed his hands together. He looked around the room. Out of all their houses, this was the one that held their family’s most personal effects. This was the place that his parents never rented out to anyone else. Over the years, he’d wondered why his mother had been so adamant about having a home base here. But since coming here for his physical therapy program, he’d seen firsthand the charm of Huntsville and especially Hope Springs. Each month that passed made it harder to even consider moving to New York. And once he’d gotten a second chance with Kenya, disguised foolishly as fake dating, moving away from her seemed impossible.
“How is your girl?” His brother moved from the desk to the adjacent chair.
“I don’t know.” Gone was his need to deflect or deny. “We spoke sometime after the wedding, and I haven’t heard much from her since. But I haven’t tried either. Had some stuff to finish.”
Simon nodded, his eyes assessing his big brother knowingly. “I felt really bad for her. Being with our family, our people, isn’t easy. And then she was so nervous to be on the mic.”
Solomon sat back, spread his arms out across the chair. “I should never have put her in that situation.”
“Why did you?”
“She shouldn’t have been there at all. I reconnected with her and pulled her in to distract Mom and Dad. Thought if they saw me in a relationship, they would let me breathe in other areas of my life.” It sounded foolish to his ears.
“Like the business.” Simon turned forward, his eyes scanning the bookshelves behind the desk.
