Even that wasn’t totally relaxing. More and more people wanted coffee from me, and I needed a bigger machine and space to do it. It was something I was saving up for, but I wasn’t sure how long it would take.
“All right, I need to head out, love.”
“That’s fine. I have a meeting with Mitch.”
“Business or personal?” I asked. Mitch and I had no issues. He’d not been the one to tell everyone who I was, yet he still apologized. Ever since he’d broken it off with Joey, he seemed happier. He’d come out here a few times and was always friendly.
“Business, mostly. I have another novel for him, but I’m sure we’ll be on the phone for a few hours.”
“Call me if you need anything,” I said before giving her my usual goodbye kiss.
It didn’t take me long to get to The Reserved Bean. I went straight into the back after saying hi to Paxton and Kelsey. Putting headphones in, I listened to one of Piper’s audiobooks while I got to work.
While the beans roasted, I handled a few things online. I was a few hours in when Kelsey poked her head into the back.
Pulling out an earbud, I raised an eyebrow. “Hey, everything okay?”
She made it a point to always try and handle things herselfbefore she came and got me. If she was asking about something on a roasting day, it was serious.
“There’s someone who wants you to sign for something.”
“Me?”
“Yep. You. I tried to, but they want an ID.”
Frowning, I came to the front. True to Kelsey’s word, I did have to sign for an envelope.
“What’s that?” a woman asked. I turned to see Jade leaning against the counter.
“Nosy today?”
“I’m nosy every day, but that looks super official. Please tell me it’s not to do with you-know-who.”
“Everyone knows about my family. You can say it.”
She waved her hand. “Still. I’m trying to decide if I should go get Piper for you.”
That was a fair point. With a sigh, I turned back to the envelope. When I opened it, I half expected to see some kind of court summons.
Instead, it was a check.
“What the fuck?” I muttered. “Where’s Marjorie? She’s pranking me, isn’t she?”
“Her and Marj are on the trip that they won.” Jade shook her head. “The Facebook group has never been quieter.”
“Then who else would ...” I flipped over the papers, eyes going wide.
All of us at the STM grant would like to congratulate you on your success with The Reserved Bean. A woman named Marjorie wrote to us to ask for funding for a new roasting machine. We’re also willing to add more space for your expanding needs at no additional cost to your lease.
“Them, again?”
I jumped back. “Jade? Did you read that?”
“Sorry, should’ve respected your personal space.” She put up her hands. “The curiosity got to me. Did you know they also funded the trip Marjorie won?”
“They did?”
“Oh yeah. And they paid Grace and Dean a lot of money to cover a bunch of different expenses.” She crossed her arms. “It’s just so weird.”
