I can feel my mum’s gaze on me before she even speaks.
“It’s not… a terrible amount,” she says gently, her voice careful, her fingers smoothing over the edge of the letter. “It’s more than we’ve ever had in savings.”
A heavy pause.
My breath catches.
She’s actually considering it.
My pulse hammers in my ears. “Mum—”
She doesn’t look at me right away. Instead, her gaze drifts around the cafe, the vases lined up by the window, the shelves ofribbons and wrapping paper, the framed photos of past events we’ve catered to. She exhales softly, and for the first time, I see it—the exhaustion settling into the lines of her face.
“I’ve been here for over twenty years, Lila,” she murmurs. “I’ve seen children grow up, get married, come back with their own families… I’ve provided flowers for weddings, funerals, new babies, every milestone, every moment.”
She trails off, her fingers pressing lightly against the counter. A sadness flickers in her eyes. “Maybe it’s time.”
No.
No, no, no.
She smiles, but it’s the kind of smile that aches.
“I love this place. I always have. But… I won’t be here forever.”
My heart stumbles.
I grip the counter, my fingers digging into the wood. “Mum—”
“I’m just saying,” she continues gently, setting the letter down like it suddenly feels heavier in her hands. “Maybe it’s time we ask ourselves how much more we can fight.”
The words hang in the air, pressing in on my ribs, squeezing the breath from my lungs.
I can’t speak.
For a second, just a second, I let myself picture it. The cafe without us. The sign coming down. The shop silent, empty, erased.
A future where this place, our place, doesn’t belong to us anymore.
Ben Ashcroft gets exactly what he wants.
The thought makes me sick.
I snatch the letter from the counter, crumpling it into my fist.
“No.” My voice is firm, steady. Final. “I don’t care how much it is. He thinks he can throw crumbs at us and we’ll take it? Screw that.”
Olivia grins. “There she is.”
Sophie shakes her head. “He really thinks he can just buy you out that easily?”
Willow, who’s been quiet up until now, frowns. “But why offer this little? If he wants the property, why low ball it?”
I inhale sharply, my anger simmering just beneath the surface. “Because he wants to see if I’ll break first.”
He’s testing me.
Seeing if I’m desperate enough and I hate that he thinks I might be.
