Page 121 of The Billionaire's Wake-up-call Girl

I perk up. “What?” I really need something to distract me.

The light turns, and we’re walking. “Stupid work stuff. ” She shoves her phone into her pocket and narrows her eyes at something across the street. “Oooh.” She grabs my arm.

“What?”

She points. “For your dream board.”

That’s when I see it. A tiny corner place for rent. “Oh, no!” I say. “I love this block. This is the perfect block!”

“Let’s go look!”

“I don’t know if I can bear it.”

“You need it for your dream board. You have to.”

I let her drag me across to the tree-shaded side of the street, up past a sushi place and a jeweler. We look in the window together. Tiny counter. Huge windows. Tile floor and walls.

She gasps. “The ceiling.”

I look up. Pressed tin. My heart sinks. “It’s so…”

“Amazing,” she says.

“Perfect,” I add. “If only it was eighteen months from now.”

“Why not call and find out the rent?”

“It has to be so much money.”

“For comparative purposes.” She moves around to look in the other side. “Oh, Lizzie!”

I go over to join her. It’s even better from the side. It’s just the size for baking stuff and a counter. It’s got fans. “Kill me now.” I take out my phone and get a few shots.

She takes my phone and makes me stand by the door. She gets a few shots of me, then one of us together.

An older woman comes up the street with a bag from the hardware store. She smiles. “Can I help you?”

“Sorry, are you…is this your place? Are you the one leasing it out?” Mia asks.

“Yeah. We just put up the sign.”

Mia kicks me.

“Just out of curiosity, what’s the rent?” I ask.

She names a reasonable price for the neighborhood. A lot, in other words. “Want to see it?” She’s unlocking the door.

“I’m more interested in it on an aspirational basis,” I say, at exactly the same time as Mia says, “We’d love to!” She grabs my arm, whispering, “Vision board!”

We go in. It’s more perfect on the inside. The kitchen is better than my old one.

“What sort of operation are you thinking about?” the woman asks. “I’d say this space is ideal for retail or small food prep and carry-out.”

“She’s looking for a Cookie Madness space,” Mia says to the woman.

The woman’s gaze swivels to my face. “Cookie Madness? With the fun frosted cookies?”

I smile wanly. “Yeah.”

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