She left the bank in a fog. She got into her minivan. The entire dream was gone, in a second, with a few sentences.
Hope felt foolish. All the starry-eyed research she’d done to find the truck, the recipes she’d created to fill her menu. What a joke!
She didn’t cry in front of Archie. Heck, she didn’t even blame him.
He may be a crappy businessman, but he didn’t cause a global recession.
She didn’t cry in front of her girls; they were about to go out into the world. Their mother’s disappointments weren’t their burden.
But she did cry.
She cried alone in her minivan.
ChapterNineteen
Hope, Present Day
She was so happy she could cry.
Hope walked through the restaurant. Each table, chair, and candle were placed where she’d selected. The tables would eventually have pussy willows in little milk jars as the centerpieces in spring. Then the pussy willow would switch for Forsythia or Queen Annes lace. All the wildflowers she knew were right outside the doors and along the roadsides of Irish Hills.
“You still need a name.”
Hope turned to see Libby and J.J. had arrived. They both seemed just as proud as she was of how it was coming together.
“Yes, you know my catering was Venerable Catering. Maybe just Venerable’s?”
“Hmm, nice ring,” J.J. said.
“Well, so, now the rubber meets the road. Today’s interview day.”
“What’s your dream staff?” Libby asked.
“I need a sous chef, probably three to five servers, a busboy, and a dishwasher.”
“The former towel girl over at Hairdo or Dye, she’s on the list. She was really sweet, might be a great server,” J.J. said.
“I’m excited to meet Keith’s son,” Hope said.
“Oh, he’s so talented,” J.J. chimed in.
“He made us dinner the other day,” Libby agreed.
“Why did it take him so long to apply? I’d have hired him on day one based on that hospitality degree from Michigan State and that work experience at Zingerman Farms.”
Braylon Brady was a dream candidate in Hope’s estimation.
“Keith had to give him a little push. Braylon returned to Irish Hills when his mom was sick. He’d been working at the marina since she died. Keith says they relied on each other a lot in those early days after she passed. But Keith knows Braylon’s heart isn’t in it. Maybe, someday, if they open a restaurant at the marina. But boat sales, storage, repair, those are Keith’s thing, and his son Cole’s. Braylon needs to be in a restaurant, and Keith told him this kind of opportunity doesn’t come along every day.”
“Beautiful! I just hope he likes me. He sounds perfect.”
Hope was a little nervous about the interviews. She wanted the right mix of people in the restaurant. She knew the staff, more than any other element, would make or break the place. She poured Libby and J.J. a cup of coffee and decided to pick their brains for a moment.
“So, any advice on interviewing employees? You both seem to be amazing at mentoring people, me included. Despite my advanced age I’ve pretty much only been a one woman show.”
“Count the number of rings they’re wearing. Four rings fine, five rings, watch out, troublemaker. Take it to the bank.”
Libby raised an eyebrow at J.J.
