Page 28 of Always Be Mine

“No.” He shook his head, aware that he was acting like a child. “It’s not. She hasn’t answered my last text message.”

Chase didn’t even try to hide his laughter. “How long has it been?”

Craig swallowed hard and looked away.

“And how many texts have you sent her so far?”

A low growl rumbled from deep in his chest, but Chase only laughed harder.

“Give her a break, man. You can’t go total papa bear on her on the first day.”

He hated to admit it, but his brother had a point. Craig flipped his phone facedown. Hereallyhated to admit it.

“I know this is strange for you, Craig. But?—”

“You really have no idea.”

Chase shrugged one shoulder. “Fair. I’ve never been in your situation. But you have to trust that it will work out. Besides, isn’t she just home alone right now? Meri’s at school, isn’t she?”

Craig could see his brother once more trying not to chuckle. Craig glared at him, and Chase wisely chose to swallow his laughter.

“Should we refocus?”

The only thing Craig wanted to do even less than he wanted to sit around and wait for Lucy to respond to his most recent text was to continue going over the details of his business with Chase. But it would take his mind off what may or may not be going on in his house, and it was a necessary evil.

Before Chase had moved to Trickle Creek, he’d been a top-notch business consultant in the city. He generally worked with bigger companies than the Sugar Shack, but when he’d offered to take a look at things for Craig and see where they might be able to make improvements, Craig was smart enough to recognize the opportunity.

“What I’ve seen so far isn’t bad at all.” Chase opened the folder Craig had shoved in his direction. “Your numbers look pretty healthy, all things considered.”

“All things considered?” He tipped his head at the choice of his brother’s words. “What does that mean?”

Chase looked up and leaned back in his chair. They’d chosen to use the dining room table at the big house for their meeting since there was more room to spread out and, because the ice cream shop was closed on Mondays anyway, he didn’t need to worry about being at the store.

“What it means is that you’re running a seasonal business in a year-round town.”

“I know that.” He shook his head. “But I’m open year round.”

“Sorry.” Chase flashed a bright smile. “I’m not being clear. You are open year round, but you’re offering ice cream in the middle of winter.”

Craig bristled. He was proud of his shop and the growth he’d had over the last few years. Maybe taking Chase up on his offer to help was a bad idea after all.

“I offer fancy hot chocolates and some coffees in the winter, too.”

Chase tapped on the folder. “They make up a very small percentage of sales.Verysmall. In fact, I’m willing to bet that once I dig into the numbers a bit further, you might even be experiencing a loss on these drinks.”

“A loss?”

Chase nodded. “Remember, you’re only a few doors away from the Bean Bag. If people want coffee, they’re going to the coffee shop, not the ice cream shop.”

He had a point. Again.

Craig sighed, growing weary of the conversation. “And what do you suggest then?”

“I thought you’d never ask.”

Craig watched while his big brother pushed his chair back and walked to the other end of the room, where he pulled a folder out of his leather case.

“What’s that?”

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