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“I’ll put everything I have into it,” I reassured him.
“I know you will,” he said, waving that off. “I also adjusted my business paperwork with my attorney. The girls know that they were going to get half, but they were the ones who suggested we include you when I changed all this. When I retire, or if the grim reaper comes for me, you’ll have a portion as well. And you’d get all rights to Teas by Eleanor Winters.”
“This is incredible,” I said in utter disbelief. This wasn’t just a simple change, Walter was essentially throwing it all in for me. “You really trust me this much?”
“I’m an old alpha, Ellie. I’ve been around the world a few times. I know good people when I meet them and I don’t make rash decisions. This has been thought through.”
The look he leveled me with had me swallowing down any further protests.
“Thank you,” I said as my voice cracked. That had his grumpy face back in place.
“Now don’t you start those water works on me. That sappy shit has no place in this office. Don’t you see the sign?”
Walter pointed to an old sign that was distressed to look vintage. It read ‘There’s no crying in business’ in big, bold lettering.
It fit the old alpha.
I wished I’d had a chance to meet his wife. I had a feeling she was a complete badass and took no shit from him. It would have been hilarious to see. Honestly, I think that was why he kept us around. Everyone he picked to work with him was snarky and unafraid of him.
“I’ve got everything behind your little desk. We have a new menu sign coming next week but I figured you can get started. Now, go. See what you can do.”
After giving him another thank you I was up on my feet knowing it was impossible to argue with the stubborn alpha and I was far too eager to see everything he’d gotten.
Seeing my name printed on all of the supplies was humbling and so surreal. I never considered any of this and the fact that he was offering me a percentage of sales was absolutely insane.
I wasn’t sure where to look first, there was so much crammed back there. It looked like Poppy sent over a starter box. She gave me a good amount of everything to start out. They were all in small paper bags and clearly labeled. She’d even included a master list of herbs with their purpose for me to quickly reference.
“I need to send her some chocolate or something, this is amazing,” I whispered in shock. It was overwhelming and amazing at the same time.
I closed those boxes and set them aside on the workbench before moving on to the next thing. There were tea infusers, business cards for my teas and Poppy’s shop, and a holder for them. The compostable tea bags he talked about along with bags for loose leaf were all the perfect sizes.
Someone had even included a DIY recipe book that was blank and waiting to be filled in. The fact it was paired with different colored pens made me stupidly happy.
When you get happy over things like pens and paper you know you’re officially an adult.
I snapped a picture of everything and sent it to Dean, knowing he’d appreciate it more than anyone else. He’d seen me geek out over tea already.
Dean: That’s amazing! Dad will be excited, he’s been telling anyone who stops by about you. He’s now calling you the Tea Wizard.
Me: Aw, I love Grant. He’s the sweetest. I take it everything is still working
Dean: More than working. Dad’s up and walking around more, the coughing is getting a little better. He has a checkup today, I’ll let you know how it goes.
Me: Thanks. I’ll hopefully be able to get this running soon enough.
Dean: You’re amazing. We’ll be your first customers
A smile stuck on my face the entire time I sorted through everything. Even as I started working on filling the recipe book I couldn’t help but think how lucky I was. I had real family now, and mates who genuinely cared about me in more ways than I expected. The support and genuine desire to know more about me was amazing.
Seeing my recipes and blends written out was the cherry on top. It no longer felt like a dream, it was a reality. These recipes would be the cornerstone of making this successful. And unlike my mom and ex told me, it wasn’t just some silly hobby.
When I left for the day I tucked the book into my bag, knowing I’d be filling it out at home later as well.
For now, I had to meet Collin at the storefront. Right now our pack felt so separate and new, yet every time I got to see one of them I felt myself falling even more. I knew with mates it was different, faster, that everything felt more intense.
But that was what made it exciting.
Ellie
