Return to Glebe Point

by Patricia Paris

  “I don’t need help. I’ll be just fine, and I’m starting to get tired of everyone trying to run my life.”

  Pushing his chair back, Justin stood up and then shoved it back under the table. “No one’s trying to run your life! We’re all just a little worried about you! You disappear without any word for three years, and then you just show up again, won’t tell any of us where you were, what you were doing, and looking like hell. What do you expect us to do, ignore that someone we love is in some kind of trouble?”

  She spun on them. “I’m not in any trouble, and I don’t need everyone hovering over me and worrying as if I’m going to break apart any minute, so just…just stop!”

  Justin dropped his head. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to snap.” He glanced over at Blake. “Maybe we should get out of here.”

  As he walked past her, Justin stopped and put a hand on her shoulder. “Don’t be mad, kid. We just care about you, that’s all.”

  She nodded, fought off the tears that pressed hot against the back of her eyes. Justin walked out of the kitchen, and a moment later she heard the Inn’s front door open and shut again.

  Charlie glanced over her shoulder where Blake still sat at the table. He got up and came to stand next to her.

  “Don’t shut us out. We’re family…all that’s left. You’re ours, we’re yours. We do for one another, don’t forget it.” As Justin had, he rested a hand on her shoulder a moment, gave it a gentle squeeze, and then turned and left, the way his brother had gone.

  Charlie stood in the big open kitchen alone, her heart pounding, tears welling up in her eyes. She dashed them away with the backs of her hands. She heard the sound of Blake’s truck starting up outside and ran for the front door.

  Throwing it open, she dashed out onto the porch and ran down the front steps just as they began to pull away.

  “I’ll come take a look at your damn building tomorrow,” she yelled after them.

  Justin stuck his hand out the passenger window and gave her a thumbs-up.

  Standing alone in the gravel driveway, Charlie watched until the truck turned and disappeared from view. What would it hurt to look? The least she could do was humor them. Then, when they realized she was right, they could all move on again and put this foolish dream behind them.

  She heard the Inn’s front door open and turned around to see Mary standing just inside.

  “Your pancakes are getting cold, dear. Why don’t you come back inside, and I’ll heat them back up for you. It will give us a chance to catch up before things get too busy.”

  MONDAY EVENING Charlie stood in the middle of the empty storefront with Justin as she took in the space. She wished she couldn’t imagine how perfect it could be. Wished she couldn’t already envision glass cases displaying her unique creations, a couple of small wrought iron café tables for customers to sit at while they enjoyed a cupcake with coffee or tea, lemonade or soft drinks for the kids.

  It was ridiculous to be considering what colors she’d paint the walls, or trying out different store names in her head.

  “Hey, Charlie, come take a look at this.”

  She went into the back room where Blake had gone a couple of minutes earlier. When he saw her, he swept his arm in an arc. “Look, it’s already set up as a kitchen. We thought there was a good chance it still would be since it used to be a deli and nothing’s been in here since.”

  “So I see.” She didn’t want to get excited, but the space already had all of the major appliances she would need. There was a large commercial refrigerator and freezer, two ovens, a large grill, which she probably wouldn’t have any use for, and oversized twin, stainless steel sinks.

  In the center of the room was a large prep island with plenty of room underneath for storage. If all the appliances were in good working order, she could save a bundle on equipment costs. She’d still need mixers, cooling racks, pots, pans, baking sheets, bowls, and all the other baking paraphernalia. That could run several thousand, seven or eight maybe, but with what she’d saved she might actually be able to handle that and have enough left over for a start-up.

  If she could work something out with Mary to continue living in the cottage until she made enough money to afford a place of her own, she just might be able to swing it. She wasn’t going to get her hopes up yet, but it wouldn’t hurt her to look into things. Once she had a better handle on what her real costs would be, she could go from there.

  “So what do you think?” Blake angled his head, probably could tell her wheels were spinning. He had a hopeful look in his eyes, and if his hands were behind his back, she’d just bet he’d have his fingers crossed.

  “I don’t know.” She heard footsteps and glanced around to see Justin come walking through the doorway.

  “So we were right about the kitchen.” He ambled over to the refrigerator and opened both doors. “No lights, but it’s probably not plugged in. If all this stuff works, that’s a major score.” He looked at Blake, nodded, and then at her.

  “So what do you think?”

  Charlie laughed. “You two don’t happen to be related, do you?” Justin wrinkled his brow. She hitched her head toward his brother. “That one just asked me the exact same thing.”

  “What’d you tell him?”

  Blake grinned. “I think she’s interested.”

  “I didn’t say that. I didn’t say anything. That was when you came in.” She looked between them, two expectant faces waiting for her to take the bait they’d dangled in front of her.

  She brought her hands to the top of her head and held them there, eyes closed, biting down hard on her lower lip, considering. “Okay, look, I still think this could all be a wild goose chase. There’s a lot of other stuff to consider, other costs, licenses, permits, stuff I don’t even know of, I’m sure…a lot of stuff.”

  “But you’re thinking about it?” Justin asked hopefully.

  Charlie dropped her hands to her mouth. She knew if she said yes, they’d interpret it as full steam ahead. But after hearing her cousins’ offer, and seeing the building, the impossibly ridiculous idea of going into business for herself didn’t seem as impossible anymore.

  “I’m not saying I’m going to do it, but I guess it wouldn’t hurt to look into things. I’d have to figure out supply costs, and tools, you know, mixers, bakeware, all that. If you’re serious about letting me work out some kind of a commission deal with you in lieu of rent—because I’m not even going to consider it if you don’t—and if all this stuff meets code and is in good working condition so that I wouldn’t have to fork out the money for commercial appliances, then maybe, just maybe, it wouldn’t be as impossible as I thought.”

  “I think you’re making the right decision, cuz.” Blake and Justin gave each other a high five. “And we’ll all help get the place ready—me and Jus, Delaney, Gab—the four of us have talked about what would happen if you decided to go for it, and we want to help.”

  Charlie nodded, a little overwhelmed they were all so willing to spend the time it would take to get the place ready if she took the plunge. “I know you do, and if I decide to go for it, which I haven’t yet so don’t go making all kinds of plans yet, but if I do, I’ll be happy for the help.”

  “Okay then.” Justin put his arm around her shoulder, and they went back out into the front room. “You start putting together a list of all the things you think you’re going to need. Blake can check everything out here, figure out what we need to do to fix up the space, check out the appliances, all that. I’ll take care of getting the rest of the utilities turned back on and look into all the legal matters we’ll need to deal with. I’ll talk to the seller and see—”

  “Whoa, Jus, slow down.” Charlie tucked a long curl behind her ear. “That’s plenty to start. And I don’t want to move too far down this path until I know if I’m going to be able to manage it. Give me a few days to do a little research and think things through. If it seems feasible, we can talk about what happens next. If it doesn’t, I
won’t have to feel bad that everyone wasted too much time on a dream.”

  The Cup Cake Factory, Take the Cake, Cake in a Cup, Cupcakes by Charlie, Cuppa Cake. Charlie played with names, groaning at some, crossing some off as soon as she wrote them down, and marking those she thought were possibilities with a yellow highlighter.

  She was going to open a cupcake shop. She still couldn’t believe she was actually going to do it, that the numbers had worked out and she could afford to move ahead. None of it would be possible if it weren’t for her cousins, but she intended to make sure they held to their end of the bargain.

  It had been over a week since she’d met them to look at the building. She’d be going over later that morning to start priming walls. Blake had already torn out everything in the front room that needed to go and put up new drywall. He’d told her the existing hardwood floors were in pretty good shape, just needed to be patched in some spots where he’d removed the old deli cases and counters, and then refinished.

  Closing her notebook, she put it aside and cleaned up her breakfast dishes. After that, she went into the bedroom and searched for something old to wear that she wouldn’t have to worry about if she ended up priming herself along with the walls. She’d done some painting in the past; she wasn’t neat.

  About forty minutes later she went up to the Inn to get Mary’s car keys. She’d left the Mercedes Phillip bought for her in a parking lot in New Jersey, so she was without a car of her own. She was sure it had been found and was back with Phillip by now. She pushed the thought away; she didn’t want to think of it or him. They were in the past, a past she wanted to forget had ever happened.

  She would have to use some of her savings to buy a cheap but dependable vehicle to get around. Mary had offered the use of her car whenever Charlie needed it, but she couldn’t keep relying on the woman’s kindness.

  Charlie drove into town a short while later and found a parking spot just a few doors down from her building. Her building. It still felt surreal.

  She got out of the car and started down the sidewalk, excitement bubbling in her stomach, and realized she was smiling. She couldn’t help it. She actually felt happy, and hopeful, and she hadn’t felt either in a long time.

  “Hey, kid!”

  Spinning around, she saw Justin leaning out of the doorway of his office building. “What, you just walk by and don’t even pop in to say hello.”

  “Hey, Jus. In my own world here. Sorry.” She walked back and gave him a kiss on the cheek. “I’ve got priming duty today. I’m anxious to see what it looks like now that Blake got the new drywall up. He said it’s pretty much a blank canvas at this point.”

  “It is. I went down to see how things were coming along yesterday afternoon. It looks a lot bigger with all the old booths and deli cases out of there. I think you’ll be pleased.”

  He held up a finger. “Hold on a sec.” He went back inside and reemerged a minute later. “I’ve got a little time before my next appointment so I’ll walk down with you.”

  She looped her arm through his as they walked the remaining distance to her front door.

  “Wow, what a difference.” Charlie turned slowly after they’d entered the building, doing a circle in the middle of the front room and taking it all in. Everything looked so fresh and clean with the new drywall up. Empty now of all Smithy’s deli relics, it seemed twice as big as she remembered. It was still small, but plenty big for what she had in mind, and there wouldn’t be any problem fitting in the café tables she wanted so customers could sit in the store to enjoy a cupcake and coffee.

  Justin took her back to the kitchen where another transformation had taken place. The stainless steel appliances gleamed, looking almost new. Where the island had been, Blake had built a new one that was twice as long, and he’d put in a poured concrete sideboard. The other counters hadn’t been changed out, but that was something she could do later, when she could better afford to.

  “Blake said he talked to one of his contacts, and they’ve got some marble remnants that could work for the other countertops. He wanted to check with you first to see if that’s what you wanted.”

  “Oh my God, marble would be perfect, but how much do they want for them?”

  “The guy owes Blake a favor. He’ll be able to get what we’d need for about three hundred. The remnants are from larger slabs and are odd sizes, but Blake could piece them together, and the seams would be almost invisible.”

  “Yes, yes, I’d love to put marble in. And I don’t really care if they’re pieces that have to be joined together. It’s going to be a work kitchen, not something for show.”

  “That’s what we thought. So if you’re good with that, I’ll tell him to go ahead and have his contact tag them for him.”

  “Ciao, hello.” Someone called out from the other room.

  Justin went to the kitchen doorway and looked out. “Hey, Cooper, what’s up?”

  Charlie walked up behind Justin and poked her head around him. Cooper? Was this the same guy who’d come to Mary’s with his aunt a couple of weeks ago?

  It was, and he was walking through her building, which made her frown because she’d closed the front door and wouldn’t have expected anyone to just walk into an empty building without being invited. Maybe she needed to start locking the door when she was here working to keep people from coming in off the street before she was opened for business.

  “I was on my way back from Speckles and saw you going into the building, so thought I’d stop in to see how things were coming along.”

  Charlie wiggled her way out and around Justin to stand in front of him. Cooper looked down at her.

  “Hi, I’m Cooper Barone.” He stuck out his hand.

  She’d put on a cap to try to keep paint out of her hair, and she was wearing a pair of blue bib overalls over a white tee. She figured from his height, the cap probably obscured most of her face. She angled her head back and frowned up at him. As soon as she did, she saw recognition dawn.

  “Charlie?”

  Justin looked at Barone and then at her. “You two know each other?” He wrinkled his brow. “Oh wait, that’s right, Mary invited you and your aunt to the Inn a couple of weeks ago for dinner.” He grinned down at Charlie. “Were we right about why she was so interested in filling his belly with a hearty meal?”

  “Yeah, but no need to worry, he’s no more interested in me than I am in him. I’m not his type.” She leaned against the doorframe and smirked up at the newcomer. “Isn’t that right, Barone?”

  He shot her a glance through narrowed eyes that were the color of rich, dark root beer, and frowned. Even sporting a scowl, Cooper Barone had the chiseled good looks that would make most women turn for a second or third look—or just keep staring. With his piercing eyes and straight black hair falling recklessly across his forehead, he looked a lot like a smoldering Johnny Depp when he wasn’t sporting a goatee, only taller.

  She hated to admit it, but if she hadn’t sworn off men, he’d be just the sort she’d be attracted to—but she had, and even if she hadn’t, she wasn’t his type. He’d made that blatantly clear the night he came to the Inn for dinner. It still grated her pride that he’d blurted it out, as if he’d thought she might have been amenable, or perhaps even a part of, his aunt and Mary’s matchmaking attempt. Yeah, he’d tried to smooth things over, but it didn’t change the fact he was no more attracted to her than he was to Justin.

  Cooper left her question hanging in the air, unanswered, and she wished she hadn’t asked it. She didn’t want him thinking he’d offended her when he’d said she wasn’t his type, that she cared one way or the other. She didn’t.

  He looked back at Justin, and she felt as if she’d just been dismissed. “So how are things coming along?” he asked her cousin.

  Justin shot her a curious glance, no doubt wondering what he’d missed, and she gave the slightest shake of her head. Don’t ask.

  “Good,” Justin said, still half-focused on her a moment before
giving his full attention to Cooper. “Blake brought in one of his crews, and they were able to knock things out pretty fast. The way things are going Charlie should be able to open shop in about three weeks.”

  She read the surprise on Cooper’s face as it swung her way. “You’re the cousin Justin and Blake said was going to open a bakery here?”

  “Not a bakery,” she corrected him, “a cupcake shop.”

  “Bakery, cupcakes, whatever…that’s you!”

  She wasn’t sure why he looked so upset. If he didn’t like cupcakes, he wouldn’t have to come in and buy any. She’d probably prefer it if he didn’t. He had an annoying way of making her feel like he thought she was lacking. Not that she cared what he thought, but first he’d told her she wasn’t his type, now he was acting like she didn’t have what it took to open her own shop.

  Charlie squared her shoulders. “Yes, it’s me. Do you have some kind of problem with that?”

  “Why would I?” he asked, but looked at her as if she’d just told him she’d come there to give him an enema. “I was just surprised you’re related. Your last name didn’t come up at Mary’s. Blake and Justin told me they wanted to buy the place in the hopes their cousin would open a bakery in the space, but they never mentioned your name. It never occurred to me you might be the cousin they were referring to.”

  She frowned at him. “A cupcake shop, and not that I understand what difference it makes to you, but why were you even discussing it with my cousins in the first place?”

  Justin shifted beside her. “Coop’s the owner. We’re buying the building from him.”

  Charlie reached up and rubbed the back of her neck. It just figured. The guy already found her lacking; now he was going to think she couldn’t make it on her own, and that she was probably taking advantage of her cousins’ generosity by letting them buy a storefront for her to open her shop in.