“It is pricey, but it’ll last for generations.” Excitement buzzed through her as an idea for a retail venue fomented. “Come to the showroom in Perfect. We sell the prototypes at a nice discount, and I’ll personally see to it that you get a good deal.”
“Thanks. We’ll do that. I’ll bring a portfolio along, and we can talk business while we’re there.”
“Great. Here’s their number.” Paige turned over another of his business cards and fished for a pen in her purse. “Call before you come, and I’ll make sure Ted and Noah are available to talk to you.” She wrote L&L’s number on the blank side, along with her name, and handed it to him.
Surveying the varied arts and crafts represented at the fair, she settled on the booth where Lucinda and Toby played with sock puppets. Those would do well with the cribs, cradles, and children’s furniture. After she left the glassblower’s booth, she began gathering information from other artists whose products stood out. Noah and Ted should consider opening a retail store similar to Pottery Barn and West Elm, only better. They could start with Evansville, see how it went, and branch out from there. Offering handcrafted furniture and home decor products made entirely in the United States would appeal to today’s consumers and fill a niche market. In fact, the more she thought about it, the more excited she became.
She hurried to catch up with Ceejay, and a pang of regret almost brought her to a halt. Someone else would have to help L&L branch out, because once she planted the seed, it would be time to go home.
CHAPTER SEVEN
SUNDAY MORNING, RYAN GRABBED HIS sketchbook and headed out the door, eager to find Noah. Rounding the corner of the veranda, he heard voices. He recognized Noah’s, but not the other man’s. “Good morning.” He nodded to the stranger sitting at the table across from Noah.
“Come on up, Ryan.” Noah pushed out a chair with his prosthetic. “This is our neighbor, Denny. You want a glass of sweet tea?”
“Sure.” Ryan set the sketchbook on the table and took a seat. “Thanks.”
Noah stood up and headed for the door. “I’ll be right back.”
An awkward silence fell between Ryan and Denny, a man about his age, late twenties or maybe early thirties. He wore a baseball cap over short-cropped brown hair, and his T-shirt read OFFERMEYER’S MEATS across the front. He regarded Ryan with frank curiosity, which had him shifting in his chair and casting around for something to say.
Denny held out his hand. “I’m Denny Offermeyer. My wife and I own the hobby farm a couple of miles down the road.”
He shook his hand. “Ryan Malloy.”
“Noah mentioned you. He said you grew up on a ranch.”
“That’s right.”
“My wife’s mare had twins a couple of years back—a filly and a colt.”
“Hmmm.” Ryan nodded noncommittally. He didn’t care if he never saw another horse for the rest of his life. Theresa’s accident had seen to that. Noah reappeared and set a glass of tea in front of him.
“I was just telling Ryan here about our horses.” Denny leaned back with a smile. “One of them will belong to Lucinda when she turns ten. It’s a toss-up whether she’ll choose the filly or the colt.”
“She seems to like the colt best.” Noah took a swallow of his tea.
Denny nodded. “She and Celeste—that’s my daughter—change their minds every week. My wife used to train horses, but with two kids and another on the way, she doesn’t have the time to work with them much anymore.”
“I see.” Talking about horses brought the horror of that awful day with Theresa rushing back. Ryan’s heart started to pound, and his palms started to sweat. Desperate to redirect the conversation, he reached for his sketches. “I brought something to show you, Noah. As I’ve mentioned before, I think we need to expand our product line beyond baby furniture. Here are some ideas I’ve been working on.” He flipped open the book and handed it over.
Noah took it, and his eyes widened. “Wow.”
Denny leaned in to have a look. “Those are really something. I think we have a quilt that looks just like that one.” He pointed to the Log Cabin pattern.
“That’s where I got the idea. Paige and I were at a quilt store yesterday, and—”
Noah’s head came up. “You and Paige?”
Shit. He should’ve kept that part to himself. “Um, yep. She helped me buy a phone.”
Noah’s jaw tightened, and he nodded slowly. “These are great. Are you going to build the prototypes?”
“If you give me the go-ahead.” Ryan fought the urge to tell Noah to mind his own business when it came to him and Paige. Didn’t he realize his sister was all grown up? “I have no idea how to do inlay. I was hoping you might help, or at least point me in the right direction on where to look for information.”
“Most inlay today is done with a laser cutter.” Noah went back to studying the designs, turning to the next page. “Which we don’t have.”
“Any idea how much a laser cutter might cost?”
Noah chuffed out a laugh and handed him back the sketchbook. “Around ten grand for a good one. We could do the same with a router and jigsaw, though. Probably even better. This is more along the lines of parquet or marquetry than inlay.”
“Can you teach me?” He didn’t mind the idea of doing it by hand. That would fit in with L&L’s commitment to handcrafting each piece.
“Tell you what,” Noah said. “Paige suggested we have a staff meeting first thing tomorrow morning. We can talk about it then. I’m not against expanding our product line.” He ran his hand over the stubble on his chin. “But a change like this affects all aspects of the business, and I want to run it by Ted first.”
Sucktacular. Ryan’s gut soured. Ted held more than one grudge against him already. The kid could bring his project to a complete halt. “If Ted says no, how would you feel about letting me do this in the shop on my own time? Or maybe I could use the bay of the carriage house, like you did when you first started out.”
Noah’s attention sharpened. “It means that much to you?”
“It does.” He closed the notebook and stood up to leave. The whole business of needing anyone’s approval to create the pieces he’d designed set his teeth on edge. If he had to, he’d find a way to do it on his own. Once he had something to show for his efforts, he’d approach Noah again.
“Stay, Ryan. No need to rush off. You haven’t even touched your tea.” Noah leaned back in his chair to peer up at him. “The weather is fine, and it’s a rare thing when I get to relax with the whole place to myself.”
“Where is everybody?” Ryan frowned as he sat back down, noticing the quiet for the first time. “Where’s Sweet Pea?”
“Ceejay and Paige took the kids to the craft fair in New Harmony. Sweet Pea is around here somewhere. Probably giving the squirrels and rabbits hell.” As if on cue, the dog barked from the direction of the walnut trees in back.
“I’ve got to be heading out.” Denny scooted his chair back and rose from his place. “Gail sent me into town for milk and diapers an hour ago. Steam will start coming out of her ears if I don’t get a move on.”
“Thanks for stopping by, Denny. Poker night is at your house this month, right?”
“That’s right.” Denny turned to Ryan. “You want in? We get together once a month.”
“Uh…”
“Next time Noah brings Lucinda by, come with him. You can take a look at our horses.”
“Sure. I’ll do that.” Ryan nodded, knowing full well he had no intention of getting anywhere close to the Offermeyers’ horses. Taking Paige to the rodeo would be difficult enough. Denny left the porch and climbed into his truck, lifting his hand in a brief wave before turning down the driveway.
“He’s Perfect’s butcher.” Noah took a deep breath and let it out in a loud sigh. “Take a breath of that sweet country air. Man, I love it here.” He turned his chair slightly and stretched out his leg and prosthetic. “Have you given any thought to what we talked about
the other day?”
Even though Noah stared out over the orchard, Ryan sensed his hypervigilance. “I made an appointment with an army shrink at Marion, and no more drinking, like you said.” His throat tightened. “I’ve made my decision. I want to get better. I want to keep working at Langford & Lovejoy.”
“I’m glad.” Noah closed his eyes. “And relieved, bro. You had me worried there.”
Ryan swallowed. “Yeah, me too.”
“You’re coming with me to meet the group on Tuesday?”
“That too.” Lord, he wasn’t looking forward to that part of their deal. He’d been keeping to himself for so long, isolating, fronting, drinking—other veterans would see through all his bullshit. He’d be exposed, and that scared him to death.
“We’ve all been there, Ryan. There’s not a single thing you’ve done or felt that someone else in the group won’t understand and relate to.”
“That’s what I’m afraid of,” Ryan muttered.
Noah shot him a look of amusement. “I’ll be there.”
“Is that supposed to make me feel better?” Ryan’s brow shot up. “Because it doesn’t.”
“At ease, soldier.” Noah’s mouth twitched. “You’ll live through it.”
“If you say so.”
“Drink your tea and unbunch those shoulders.” Noah laughed. “Don’t you love the smell of spring in southern Indiana?”
Just then a breeze kicked up, bringing with it the distinctive stench of the hog farms to the west. “Yep. You just might be more messed up than I am, Noah.”
Ryan’s sketches lay open on the table. Ted, Paige, and Noah bent their heads over them. Ryan’s heart jumped into his throat, and he had to run his palms over his jeans a couple of times to hide the telltale moisture. “What do you think?”
“They’re great.” Ted turned the page back to the first sketches. “Which of these do you plan to start with?”
Surprise sent a shock wave through him. “You like them?”
“Of course I do.” Ted’s scowl said, I don’t need to like you to like your work. “We need to build our product line. I’ve never disagreed with that. My concern is manpower, materials, and costs.”
Ryan glanced at Paige. She looked ready to burst. “What are you thinking, Paige?”
“Your timing is perfect, and these designs are amazing.” She practically buzzed with excitement. “I went to the craft fair in New Harmony yesterday and gathered a bunch of information from a number of artists. I think L&L is on the verge of something really great with this new product line. Now might be the time to expand your retail venue as well. Start with the showroom right here in Perfect.”
She looked at each of them in turn, her expression so animated and lit up Ryan wanted to leap over the table and taste that buzz with a kiss.
“Offer home decor along with your furniture, like Crate & Barrel or Pottery Barn. Bring your customers to you. Make this site their destination. Advertise and market your products as all American made.” She flipped Ryan’s sketchbook to the dining room table with the starburst in the center. “In fact, brand this new line Americana, or something similar. Then, once you’ve built some capital here, open your second retail site in Evansville, and—”
“All great ideas, but who is going to do all of that?” Ted cut in. “Ryan? We all know he’s chock full of charisma.” He shook his head. “There are only three of us.” He glanced at Paige, his mouth a straight line. “You’re leaving.”
Paige deflated like a bicycle tire, and Ryan’s jaw clenched. He’d promised her he’d make more of an effort to get along with the kid, and he would. Even if keeping his mouth shut right now gave him an ulcer.
“What’s eating you, Ted?” Noah asked in his even-toned commander voice.
“Nothing’s eating me.” Ted pushed back his chair and stood up. “We have orders we need to crate up by this afternoon. Let’s get to work.”
“He’s upset because—”
“Paige!” Ted’s brow rose.
She kept her gaze on Noah. “When Ryan came on board, you didn’t involve Ted in the hiring process, even though he’s the business end of your partnership. There are some hard feelings being misdirected Ryan’s way for something he had no control over.”
“Is that true?” Noah shot Ted a look of surprise.
“Partially.” Ted’s expression filled with bitterness.
“Why didn’t you say something?”
“When? By the time I heard about it, he’d already signed on the dotted line and moved into the carriage house.”
“That’s not all,” Paige added.
Ted’s face turned red. “Later. I’m going to get to work.”
“Not now,” Noah said. “Come back and sit down.”
Instead of sitting, Ted leaned against the wall and crossed his arms in front of him.
“Ryan is under a lot of stress as it is.” Paige never took her eyes from Noah. “Ted’s animosity toward him makes everything ten times worse. Ryan reacts the only way he can by baiting and pushing Ted’s buttons.”
Ryan’s mouth quirked up. He should have been pissed. But he wasn’t. None of this was her business, but she had his back, and that stirred something inside him that hadn’t been stirred for a long time. “I thought your degree was in business. Shoot. I should cancel my appointment at the VA center and hire you to be my shrink.”
She rewarded his comment with one of her specialty You’re an idiot expressions, and he fought the urge to laugh. Lord, she did things to him, made him feel things, like…happiness?
“Would you mind giving us some privacy, Paige?” Noah closed the sketchbook, his mouth forming a straight line. “I think the three of us have a few things to work out.”
“Good idea.” She rose. “I need to go check my e-mail anyway.”
Ryan wanted to go with her. She needed to know he thought her ideas for L&L were spot-on. Maybe he’d suggest she stay and be the one to bring those ideas to fruition. The sound of Noah clearing his throat brought him back to the present.
“Sit down, kid.” Ryan gestured to a chair. “For the sake of getting along, I’m willing to play by a few rules if you are.”
The kid pushed off the wall and stiff-legged himself back to the table, his expression closed.
“I apologize for making you feel that you weren’t a part of the decision-making process,” Noah began. “We talked about hiring more help, and you agreed to it. I didn’t realize…I’ve never owned a business before. How the hell would I know how these things are done?”
“You could’ve asked.” Ted still leaned away from the table with his arms crossed in front of him. “We should’ve placed an ad, taken applications, gone through them, and decided together who to interview and hire.”
Noah grunted. “In the future, I’ll try to go along with that process, but you know how I feel about hiring veterans. There are going to be times when—”
“So we put something in the ad stating veterans preferred. I’m fine with that. I just don’t want to be…” Ted averted his gaze, and his jaw muscle twitched.
“The token business partner?” Ryan raised an eyebrow. “I get that. Noah told me L&L was all your idea, and I respect that.”
“Exactly.” Ted shot a skeptical look his way before turning to Noah. “I didn’t get involved only to be a silent partner who keeps the books and signs the checks. I have ideas, and I’m busting my ass to get my business degree. The least you could do is involve me in the decision-making process.”
“Done,” Noah said. “What are we going to do about the tension between the two of you?”
Time to man up. “If you agree to rein in your hostility, I’ll agree to stop pushing your buttons.”
“Right,” Ted huffed. “We can give that a try.”
“Listen, Ted. You have no idea what it means to me to be here.” Ryan’s jaw tightened. “I have a lot of respect for you.”
“Sure you do.”
“You do great work. I don’
t know how you manage school while putting in as many hours here as you do. I mean it when I say you have my respect.” Ryan fixed him with a hard look. “You gotta admit, though, you haven’t exactly been all warm and welcoming. I had nothing to do with Noah’s oversight, but you’ve been taking it out on me all the same. I’m just the hired hand. It’s easier to blame me than to take it up with Noah. Isn’t that so?”
The kid’s face turned red again, and his mouth turned down. Silence filled the office for several tense seconds until he spit out a response. “It is.”
“We don’t have to like each other to work well together,” Ryan said. “I’ll treat you with respect if you agree to do the same.”
“Agreed,” Ted gave him a curt nod.
“Someday maybe we’ll get to the liking part.” Ryan shrugged. “You never know. For now, I’m good.”
“Great. I’m glad that’s settled.” Noah stood up. “Are we in agreement on expanding our product line?”
Ryan held his breath.
“I think it’s about time.” Ted pushed back his chair. “Go for it, Ryan.”
Ryan’s breath came out on a wave of relief, followed by excitement. “I’m going to need help with the prototypes. My woodworking skills aren’t on par with yours and Noah’s.”
“I’ll help. So will Noah.” Ted started for the door. “Right now, we have to focus on getting our finished pieces ready to go. The trucking company is going to be here at three this afternoon.”
“Ted, before we leave, do you want to talk about Paige?”
Ted glared at him. “I thought you said you weren’t going to push my buttons.”
“I’m not trying to push any buttons.” Ryan picked up his sketchbook and started to follow. “I’m trying to clear the air. The truth is, we’re both in for the same thin edge of the wedge here. She’s—”
“Hell no. I’m not going to talk to you about Paige.”
Ted stomped off, leaving Ryan with the full weight of Noah’s scrutiny. “Oh, what? Like you didn’t know?”
“Explain.” Noah handed him the C-stare with a side of scowl.
“I hate when you do that, bro.”
The Difference a Day Makes (Perfect, Indiana: Book Two) Page 12