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Dad stood, hands in his pockets, looking up at the building. I realized I was holding my breath, like all those times I had as a little girl. See me, I wanted to say. Be excited for me.
“It’s going to need a lot of work,” Dad said, looking at me.
I waited. He didn’t say anything else. I tried not to be disappointed. I couldn’t blame him, right? Of course he would be hesitant about this. I knew it was a longshot.
“This is wonderful news,” Mom said. “Just wonderful.”
“Well, it isn’t a done deal yet. I have to apply for the loan and put a bid in on the building. And depending on the loan, I might need to try to find some investors. There’s a lot that could go wrong,” I said.
“But there’s so much that could go right. Allen, look at this. Our girl’s an entrepreneur again,” she said, reaching over to shake Dad’s arm.
“I hope it works out, Tillie,” he said seriously. I smiled. I knew he meant it. But I also knew he was worried. I knew it was a flashback to me being eighteen and leaving for an unbridled dream and the city.
“Me, too, Dad. I can’t afford for it to fail, though. So, I’m going to work so hard,” I said. “I’m going to make it successful for the long run.” The conviction was in my voice. I needed to fight to keep it in my heart, too.
“I know you will,” he replied, nodding. I smiled at the affirmation. It was everything, even if I wanted to think I didn’t need it.
We headed back to the car, Mom talking a mile a minute about ideas and coffee. I looked out the window, still feeling the nervous tension in the air emanating from my dad.
I would make him proud. I would make myself proud. I had to—because there was no backup plan at all, and I wasn’t that eighteen-year-old who lacked a sense of how life worked. I knew how hard it would be. Still, my heart felt happy at the thought. When I got home, I called Leo to see if he wanted to meet for dinner.
I put on my best dress, some red lipstick, and headed to the front of the building to wait for him to pick me up.
Things were finally falling into place. I could feel it.
Chapter Thirty-Eight
“I love seeing you this excited,” Leo said, kissing my hand from across the table. It wasn’t cringe, though, like it sometimes was in the movies—or at least from my perspective, it wasn’t. It was endearing.
Leo had picked me up after I’d called to tell him all about meeting my parents at the building to reveal my business plan. He insisted it called for celebration. It was nice that he had the same idea, since I’d already put on the red dress and lipstick. After months of wearing the Tino’s uniform and then sweatpants from my injury, it was energizing to put on a cute outfit, even if I still had a cast as an accessory.
Our waiter delivered our pasta dinners to the back corner of the restaurant where Leo had reserved a seat. The soft Italian music playing and the candlelit atmosphere screamed romance but not as much as the man staring at me from across the table. Maybe I was just in a good mood because I finally felt like I was picking up the pieces of my life, but I didn’t think a second coffee shop was the only reason I was feeling like I was in a fairy-tale setting. It was Leo. It was the way he looked at me, the way he kissed me; we’d shared quite a few in the car before coming in. It was in the way he listened, the way he rooted for me.
It was just him, period.
“I love you,” I said. “Thank you for encouraging me. Without you, Tillie’s Seaside Brews wouldn’t be possible.”
