by Aurora Rey
Because Amanda had a clear picture in her mind of what she wanted for her bakery. Because Quinn had given her every indication it would be a simple and straightforward job. Oh, the hubris.
But it was more, if she was being honest. She was already more invested in Amanda than she would normally be in a client. Not the kind of professional investment that came with big, influential clients, either. No, her interest in Amanda was personal. She wanted Amanda to be pleased with her.
Quinn sighed. She wanted Amanda to like her.
How was it possible for her to go on date after date and feel pretty much nothing—nothing good at least—and then find herself all stirred up by a client? Because she’d lost her mind, apparently. Or the universe had singled her out for bad luck. Maybe both.
She shook her head again. She needed to deliver bad news and a list of options and here she was lamenting finding Amanda attractive. Maybe she was bringing the bad luck on herself.
Enough. She grabbed a pencil and sketch pad and got to work. Once she had a rough idea drawn out, she opened Revit and started a more detailed rendering. She had no idea if Amanda would go for something so far from what she initially wanted, but it made her feel better to have multiple options to present. Especially since this one wouldn’t blow the budget they’d initially discussed out of the water.
“I didn’t even realize you were here.”
“Gah.” The sound escaped and her body reflexively jerked.
“Sorry. Didn’t mean to startle you.” Arti smirked from the doorway, looking not at all sorry.
Quinn rolled her shoulders. Her muscles protested the movement. How long had she been hunched over her computer? “I was caught up in something.”
“I’ll say. It’s two o’clock and you didn’t even come out for lunch. That’s why I figured you weren’t here.”
“It’s two?” It wasn’t unusual for her to get lost in a project, but not four hours kind of lost.
Arti nodded. “What’s got you in genius-at-work mode?”
“Um.” Her stomach rumbled. Now that her concentration was broken, her body was all about missing lunch. She stood and stretched, working out some of the kinks that had settled. “The bakery. All the roofing joists are being supported by the center wall.”
“Oh.” Arti let the word drag out, understanding clear.
“The building is old, but not that old. Maybe I should have expected it, but I didn’t.”
“You never know what passed muster back in the day, especially in tiny towns where the guy approving the build could have been the cousin of the guy doing the build.”
“Yeah.”
Arti came the rest of the way into the office, plopped in the chair across from Quinn, and folded her arms. “So, what are you going to do?”
“I’m going to present three options.”
She grinned. “Of course you are.”
Quinn shrugged. Not every job required that, but when the initial concept went sideways, she’d learned it was always better to present three options instead of two. Especially if the two were what the client wanted, but at an exorbitant cost, and something within budget, but clearly not what they’d envisioned.
“I assume it’s number three that’s got you all amped up.”
She chuckled at the description. “I wouldn’t go that far.”
Even in the most generous of terms, amped up rarely, if ever, fit the bill. Generally, she was okay with her calm and steady demeanor. But she couldn’t help but wonder what kind of energy Amanda might be drawn to. Ridiculous.
“Okay, okay.” Arti lifted both hands in concession. “Focused, then. I take it the mystical third option is what inspired your laser focus.”
Quinn nodded, both at the new description and Arti’s read of the situation. “She might hate it.”
“You always say that.”
“Yeah, but she had pretty specific ideas and this is completely different, both visually and in terms of flow.”
Arti clicked her tongue a couple of times, then let the silence sit for a moment. Eventually, she asked, “But is it better?”
“Eh?” She wasn’t overly modest when it came to her professional skill. The reality was that better was relative. People instinctively liked something or they didn’t. It was impossible to predict. She didn’t say any of that, but Arti drummed her fingers on the table like she knew. Quinn let out a sigh. “Yes. It’s better.”
“Was that so hard?”
“I want her to be happy and I’m worried she isn’t going to be.”
“Are you worried she won’t like the design or won’t like you?”
Quinn propped her elbows on the desk and pressed her thumbs to her temples. “Yes.”
“Well, there’s your problem. It doesn’t matter if she likes you or, really, even which design she picks. As long as she’s happy with the final design.”
She knew this. She wasn’t an idiot. She also knew having any kind of personal investment in Amanda, romantic or otherwise, would be a bad idea. But knowing something and making it so weren’t the same thing. “You’re right.”
Arti frowned. “You don’t have to look so glum about it.”
“I’m not glum.” Maybe a little. But it had less to do with Arti being right than realizing she’d just upped the ante of her relationship woes. Not only did she have to keep going out with women she didn’t click with, she had an inkling she might very well click with one who was off limits. What was wrong with her?
“Come on. Talk to me.”
No way was she turning her office into a therapy session. Even if she and Arti were as much friends as business partners. She had a real therapist for a reason. Okay, lots of reasons. “The snag was unexpected. It threw me is all. It’ll all be fine.” Arti didn’t look convinced, so she scrambled for more. “Oh, and I’m sure my blood sugar is low. I’m starving.”
Whether Arti decided to let her off the hook or her hangry argument proved convincing, she couldn’t say. But Arti seemed to relent. “I’m ordering Ethiopian. You want in?”
Normally, she found it vexing that Arti didn’t want lunch until mid-afternoon. Today, she was grateful. “Oh, yeah.”
“Fantastic. I’ll go order and then you can show me what you’ve come up with.”
Without waiting for a reply, Arti vanished in the direction of her office. Quinn stared at what she had so far. Since there was a decent chance Amanda might dismiss it out of hand, she didn’t want to take it much further. Even without all the details, the concept came through. It made the whole space feel more intentional. It also created a more structured flow for customers to peruse their options, order, and pay. From a design standpoint, it really was better.
She hoped Amanda saw it that way and chose it. Because it was a sound business decision. Obviously. Personal anything had nothing to do with it. Nothing at all.
* * *
Quinn pulled out a chair and sat. She felt guilty that Amanda had a latte and a cupcake waiting for her. Not guilty enough to refuse it, but guilty. God, she hated this part of her job. “I’m afraid I have some bad news.”
“Why do I get the feeling having your architect say that is second only to having it come from your doctor?”
“Or your mechanic?” Quinn offered a sheepish smile and tried not to think about the fact that her news might cost Amanda more than a new car. A cheap new car, but still.
“Well, don’t hold me in suspense.”
She took a deep breath. “Although you don’t have much of an attic, the entire load of it is supported by the center wall. It appears it never occurred to the original builder that someone might want to combine the spaces.”
To her credit, Amanda didn’t swear or even scowl, really. The only tell of her displeasure was a thin line between her eyebrows. “Does it mean my design is impossible or just a hell of a lot more expensive?”
Quinn couldn’t help but chuckle at the question. “You seem to understand how this works. I thought you said it was your f
irst reno.”
Amanda raised one brow, erasing the line altogether. “First one here. And I’ve watched my share of HGTV. Tell me how bad it is. Don’t sugarcoat.”
“Okay. Nothing is off the table design-wise. Cost, as you guessed, is another matter. I’ve worked up some options.”
She hadn’t gotten the sense Amanda would be impossible to work with, but the small smile made Quinn more optimistic than when she’d arrived. “Let’s see them.”
She pulled the rubber band from the roll and laid out the blueprints. “The first is your original design. It would require a steel I-beam and new support beams at either end of the building. Given the size and span, along with new roof joists, you’re looking at about twenty grand more than the original budget.”
Amanda regarded the plan and nodded slowly. It was impossible to tell if she was considering it or bidding farewell to the vision she’d had for who knew how long. “And the second?”
Quinn rearranged the pieces of paper. “The second creates one opening in the kitchen, essentially giving you a separate room for decorating and storage.”
“And the front?”
“A slightly larger opening. A double doorway, if you will.”
“I see.” There was definitely a scowl now.
“The upside of this is it would actually bring the work under budget.”
Amanda sat back in her chair, folded her arms, and sighed. “I know that’s supposed to make me happy, but it doesn’t.”
She’d been afraid of that. “Which is why I took the liberty of creating a third option.”
“A third?”
It was so unlike what they’d initially discussed, Quinn debated even showing it to her. But she’d already put in the work on her own time, so it wasn’t like she had anything to lose. And as she’d told Arti, objectively, it was the best of the three. “It’s a very different concept.”
She brought the final plan to the top of the stack. Amanda angled her head one way, then the other. She narrowed her eyes and did it again. Eventually, she tapped the page. “You moved the counter.”
“I did.”
“And added a bar.”
“That, too.”
“It’s like a completely different space.”
“It is.” For some people, that would make it all the more appealing. For others, it was a dealbreaker. She didn’t know Amanda well enough to have a sense of which camp she fell in.
“It’s…” She trailed off this time, not giving Quinn much in the way of clues.
“It’s completely okay if you don’t like it. It’s not at all what you asked for when we sat down together.”
“But…”
“It might feel like not your bakery anymore. You were looking to expand, not reinvent.”
Amanda sighed. She looked up from the plans and into Quinn’s eyes. Quinn seemed worried, like maybe she regretted showing this version. Not like she’d been looking to strike a nerve, or a chord, or whatever it was she’d just struck. “Maybe a reinvention is exactly what I need.”
Quinn’s eyes went from worried to alarmed. “I hope I didn’t give that impression. It certainly wasn’t my intention.”
Amanda smiled. “I’m not saying it’s a bad thing.”
“But, still. Perhaps I overstepped. I—”
“You’re a genius is what you are.”
The statement seemed to confuse, rather than reassure. “That’s definitely an overstatement.”
Amanda studied the plans again. Instead of working against the center wall, the design worked with it. The opening between the spaces, the same double-door width, now looked intentional. Even better, the shift created a flow for customers to place orders and pick them up. If business grew half as much as she hoped it did, that would make a huge difference. “No, I think it’s completely true in this case.”
Quinn’s face finally softened. “I’m glad you like it.”
“Wait. Did you think of this the first time we met?”
She lifted a shoulder. “Not concretely.”
Amanda shook her head. “If we hadn’t run into a snag, you never would have mentioned it.”
“You were very clear on what you wanted. It wasn’t my place to change your mind.”
“I can’t decide if I should commend you or smack the back of your head.”
“How about neither?” Quinn looked honestly horrified.
Amanda laughed. “You don’t have kids, do you?”
“I don’t.” Quinn frowned.
“I was having a mom moment. I promise I would never actually smack the back of your head. Or my kids, for that matter. Although I have been tempted a time or two.”
“Oh.” Quinn mimed the gesture of a head slap, then laughed. “I get it.”
“Maybe you should consider being pushy more often.”
Quinn leaned back in her chair and put her hands on either side of her waist. “Have you been talking to my therapist?”
Amanda laughed. “No, but I think our therapists might be kindred spirits.”
Quinn shrugged. “Or maybe we are.”
She said it lightly, with a hint of a smile playing at the edges of her mouth. Still, Amanda couldn’t help but take it to heart. A novel concept, especially given her recent run-ins with Mel.
“I’m sorry if that was too forward,” Quinn added before she could respond.
She felt herself smirk. “Apologizing isn’t helping your pushy quotient.”
“Oh, God. You’re so right.” Quinn shook her head and laughed. “It’s a good thing you aren’t talking to my therapist or I’d never hear the end of it.”
Amanda tried not to notice the way laughing brought out the lines at the corners of Quinn’s green eyes, or how the self-deprecating humor stirred something inside her. “Your secret is safe with me.”
“Phew.” Quinn wiped her eyes and seemed to remember the reason they were meeting in the first place. “So, this one. You’d seriously consider it?”
She was well beyond considering it, but she didn’t want to overplay her hand. “Talk to me about cost.” She took a deep breath. “And time line.”
“I thought you’d never ask.”
By the time they wrapped up the meeting an hour later, Amanda’s head was spinning. In a good way. She had a remarkably detailed understanding of how the project would unfold, including approximately when and for how long she’d need to close.
She’d only have to take the kitchen offline for about five weeks, which she could do with her current wedding cake schedule. She’d just have to commit to the time frame and turn down any requests that came in. Difficult, but doable.
“Tell me about the contractors you work with.” She’d done some research ahead of time, but it seemed like Quinn’s firm worked with a number of companies.
“For this project, my first choice would be Bauer and Sons. They’re based in Ithaca. I’ll need to see if we can get on their calendar. I penciled us in after our first meeting, so it shouldn’t be a problem.”
Amanda frowned.
“Is something wrong? I can’t imagine you’ve heard something bad about them.”
“No. I trust your judgment.”
“But?”
She sighed. “I had this fantasy of hiring a woman-owned business.”
Quinn grinned. “This is close.”
“Really?” She imagined this swarthy older woman with a brood of strapping young men doing her bidding.
“Joss Bauer is one of the ‘and sons,’ even though she’s technically a daughter. Or maybe it’s granddaughter. It might be third generation by now. Anyway, she’s the one I work closest with. She’s great and has a ton of experience rehabbing older buildings.”
The description made her smile. “I can’t wait to meet her.”
“I’ll set something up before work gets started for sure.”
“Perfect.” She considered leaving it at that but thought better of it. “I really can’t thank you enough for putting in the time on an
idea you weren’t sure would fly. It’s so much better than what I could have imagined.”
“I’m glad I took a chance, and I’m even more glad you like it.”
Again, Quinn’s words struck a chord. She wasn’t one for good omens, but this certainly felt like one. “I’m glad you took a chance, too.”
“Now that I know we’re on the same page, I’ll do full renderings. I’d like to run them by you again before taking them to the zoning and code officers. Especially the kitchen layout.”
“Makes sense.”
Quinn pulled out her phone and poked at the screen. “How’s Friday?”
“It’s good. I can come to you if that’s easier. I feel bad you always drive out my way.”
Quinn grinned. “But you have cupcakes.”
She did. And it really was easier to meet at the bakery. It meant she only had to step away from her work for as long as the meeting took. “Well, if you don’t mind, I’ll happily provide you with all the cupcakes you can eat.”
“Both a delightful and a dangerous proposition.” Quinn stuck out her hand. “Deal.”
The handshake was a friendly gesture, practically a joke. It shouldn’t have sent a spark buzzing through her. But that’s exactly what happened. Amanda cleared her throat and stood. “I’ll look forward to seeing you soon.”
Quinn didn’t seem to pick up on the abruptness of the move. “Me, too. And not just because of the cupcakes.”
Quinn left and Amanda returned to the kitchen. She’d no sooner finished the first batch of cake batter when her phone buzzed in her pocket. Mel. She’d ignored the last couple of texts. Still. There was always the chance something was wrong. “Hello?”
Chapter Seven
Amanda lay sprawled in her bed, completely naked in broad daylight. She covered her eyes with her hands. Why did it feel like she was doing that a lot lately? Oh, because she was. “We have to stop doing this.”
Mel rolled onto her side. “Does your brain kick back on literally the second after you orgasm?”
“One of us needs to be thinking rationally.” And when it came to Mel, the task fell to her. Always.
“You’re giving thinking too much credit.” Mel trailed a finger down her arm. “I think there’s something to be said for letting go.”