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“But you feel bad for all that you’ve done, and so you’re going to let me help you with this, and with whatever else you may need help with, for all the times you wouldn’t let me help you in the past. Isn’t that right?” he asked, and I scowled at his laughing father.
“Within reason,” I gritted out.
“Great, because I’d like to invest in The Daisy. We’ve got other locations to open up, after all.”
I groaned, tossing a limp fry at his smug face.
“Am I still invited to the wedding?” Franky asked.
“Of course you are,” Cole said. “Jasper will come around. Give him a little more time.”
“I’ll give him as long as it takes,” Franky said.
I closed the bar up and took Franky to my place. It was my turn to be strong for him, so I pulled back the curtains in my bedroom, undressed us, and held him under the blankets as we watched the rain come down.
“You heard, Cole,” I said, after an hour went by and Franky hadn’t said a word. “Jasper will come around. And we’ve got Cole on our side now. Jasper will listen to him.”
“I hope you’re right,” Franky said, and I tightened my arms around him.
“Hey, I’ve got an idea,” I said, shooting up, laying on the enthusiasm extra thick.
Franky rolled to his back, staring at me like I’d sprouted two heads. “Is this idea an attempt to get my mind off Jasper?”
“Yes, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t a good idea.”
He pushed up to lean against the headboard. “Okay, what’s the idea?”
“Getting your business up and running won’t be an overnight thing, but what if we can do something that’s more immediate? Get the buzz going before business even begins?” I’d climbed to my knees in my intensity, hoping my genuine excitement would be contagious.
“I’m listening,” Franky said, in the even tone of a party pooper.
“There’s an event space a couple blocks up. A storefront. Street level. Why don’t we rent it out and do a furniture pop-up shop.”
“A pop-up shop,” he said slowly, brows pinched.
“Yes. You’ve got all that inventory in your basement, and I’m sure you have everything you made in Seattle in storage somewhere. More than enough custom pieces to draw a crowd for a few days and still have plenty left to get things rolling when you officially open Kincaid Wood.”
“Kincaid Wood?” he said, cracking his first smile.
I shrugged. “It was the first thing that popped into my head. Didn’t help that your wood is actually on display right now,” I added, and Franky’s gaze dropped to where the blanket stopped below his hips. He barked out a hearty laugh then, and my heart unclenched.
Franky sobered and reached for me. I let him pull me onto his chest. “Thank you,” he said, kissing my nose.
“For what?”
“For being ridiculous just to see me smile.”
“Okay, it did start out as a way to brighten your mood, but it is a good idea. What’s stopping us? Give me one reason why we shouldn’t do it? We could even invite Cole and Jasper.” Bringing up Jasper again was a gamble, but I decided to bank on Franky being positive about him showing up, versus him sliding back into a funk at the mere mention of his name.
He thought about it for a while, sifting a hand through my hair as I waited. “Kincaid Wood,” he repeated again. “It does have a nice ring to it.”
“Is that a yes?” I asked, tickling his ribcage.
“Not if you keep that up,” he admonished, tensing under my moving fingers.
“Yes!” I said, jumping up and dashing for the living room.
“Do we have to get started on it now?” he complained as I returned with my laptop.
