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And painful is a good way to describe it. Not only have I maxed out my credit limit, I’ve also exceeded it, and right there in red, like a flashing neon ‘loser’ sign, is a juicy penalty for my overspending.
Last night’s zesty fun aside, I wonder if the bistro boys coming to see me about taking over my space was some kind of sign. And with a developer breathing down our neck, was that the confirmation I needed? Is the universe telling me to pack it in? Abandon ship like the sneaky people across the street who left behind unpaid bills and no forwarding address?
I could be as shitty as them.
But that’s not my style.
If Pawsh Pets is not destined for the harsh world of New York retail, I’ll go out with guns blazing and debt up to my eyeballs. They’ll have to literally drag me from here.
Which looks increasingly likely as evidenced by the pile of financial doom looming before me, like some sort of predetermined death sentence.
Before throwing in the towel, whether for the bistro boys next door or the soulless developer looking to cast me aside, I do have options.
Well, option. As inone.Notplural.
My brother-in-law, Carter, otherwise known as one half of the duo Kritter.
Nothing would make him happier than having power over his wife’s loser sister, the one with her head in the clouds and not an ounce of sense.
Yes, he said that about me. Krista told me.
Mr. I-know-all-about-business-because-I-wear-a-suit-and-tie would love for me to come begging for money and advice. In fact, I think he’s still bitter I didn’t come to him for help when I first opened Pawsh Pets. I certainly don’t know everything, but I prefer to muscle through making a few mistakes here and there than have someone breathing down my neck, especially when he thinks Pawsh Pets was a stupid idea, anyway.
His superiority complex reaches into every aspect of his life, and certainly doesn’t need any more feeding, especially not by the likes of me. It’s already a struggle to keep my spirits up on days like today without having him rub my failures in my face. Plus, with great satisfaction, I have no doubt he’ll tell everyone.
He’ll be especially vicious since I blew off his friend.
Yeah, no. My brother-in-law is no more an option for bankrolling my business than the homeless man down the street. Difference is, the homeless guy is way nicer.
The doorbell jingles and I look up to see Jewel fly in.
“Oh my god, I’m so sorry. My crystal healing class went over. I told the teacher I needed to bolt, but she just said do I want my energy field balanced or not.” She looks at me, clearly powerless in the face of such a challenge, and shrugs.
“Oh yeah. Must get the energy fields balanced,” I say.
I have no idea what she means and I’m not asking, although it’s likely she’ll tell me anyway. I slide the mail into my apron pocket for the time being, where I can forget about it, if just for a little while.
Jewel grabs the seat behind the cash wrap counter, and fiddles with a bowl of little cat collars. “So…” she draws out, “how was thepartay? Sorry I had to leave early.”
I wave away her concerns. It would have been great had she stayed, but it was a big day at her past life regression therapy course and I could see she was exhausted by it. Or was it her alien abduction meridian tapping class? Hard to keep them straight.
“It was good. Big turnout, the animals were all cute and well-behaved. I think we got the attention of the neighborhood, that’s for sure.”
She doesn’t need to know how the evening ended.
She gives me a sly look. “I bet that’s not all the attention you got.”
Oh no. Does she know?
I raise my eyebrows. “What are you getting at?”
I need to know.
She looks around like she has a big secret. “The guys.The EastSide guys.”
I keep my expression neutral, but the feeling of being a kid and getting caught doing something naughty washes over me. My face heats and I want to run back to my office even though it’s where the rest of Pawsh’s outstanding bills are stored.
She slams her hand on the counter. “Fuck yeah. I knew it. They like you, Livvy.”
