Page 17 of Wishes on Wildflowers
He put on his professional smile and shifted his umbrella to his left hand, which also carried his briefcase. “Hi, Jasmine. Hi, Kass.”
Kass turned back to Jasmine. “Hailey and I are hiring Nathan to get some business-boosting ideas.” She smiled at him, her brown eyes warm. “Grab a seat wherever you like. I’ll lock up behind Jasmine and call Hailey from the back.”
“I’ll catch you tomorrow.” Jasmine gave her friend apointed look and skirted Nathan as though afraid to catch the plague. She crossed the tile floor and pulled the hood of her raincoat up as she exited.
Nathan tried to pull his gaze into the building rather than watch her through the windows as she rounded the corner. She hunched against the blowing rain and marched up the side street as though on a mission. No doubt she’d be drenched before she got home — wherever that was — but no one could convince her of anything against her will. Like driving instead of walking when conditions were this blustery.
He sucked in a deep breath, blinked hard, and turned to the gorgeous redhead who’d greeted him upon arrival. Now she stood watching him, eyebrows raised and a small smile in place as Hailey bustled into view, touching her short blond hair as she rounded the counter.
“Nathan!” Hailey billowed in for a hug.
He shifted slightly to keep his briefcase between them and patted her on the back. “Hi, Hailey. I think I’d have recognized you anywhere. Been a long time, though.”
“It sure has.” She beamed at him, her blue eyes gleaming. “Welcome back to Spokane. I was thrilled when Basil mentioned you were returning with extensive experience in marketing. Kass and I — you’ve met my cousin, Kass, right? — need a little help kicking our business to the next level.”
“Thanks. Yes, I’ve had some success. I appreciate you inviting me here to toss around ideas.”
“I’ll pour us each a coffee, and we can get started. Just grab a seat anywhere.”
So far, so good. Nathan set his briefcase on a turquoise chair, draped his coat over the back of it, and sat in the one next to it while Kass flipped the sign toclosedand locked thedoor before setting down a plate and taking the seat across from him.
What had Kass seen between him and Jasmine the other day? Or had Jasmine dumped all his failures on her friend’s lap? Maybe this pair of cousins wouldn’t hire him, after all. Maybe that would be a good thing, the way Hailey brushed against him as she set his coffee down. “Cream or sugar?” she said in a low voice.
Nathan shifted away. “Black is good, thanks.”
“Please have a cookie.” Kass nudged the plate closer. “Chewy peppermint chocolate. They’re one of our most popular.”
“Thanks. Don’t mind if I do. Why don’t you tell me how you’ve been advertising the business thus far? Is most of your clientele from Bridgeview, or are you getting traffic from downtown as well?” He pulled a steno pad and pen from his briefcase then helped himself to a cookie.
Hailey leaned across the table, her eyes intent on his. “We’ll be celebrating our third business birthday in August, and we’d like to do it up right with a party. So many businesses go under that we want to celebrate the milestone.”
Had she even heard his questions? He nodded, swallowing the morsel that practically melted in his mouth. Man, he was right to come if this treat was indicative of the food they served. “This is a good time to start planning that sort of event. That’s only a few months away.”
“We have a Facebook page,” offered Kass. “We advertise our specials there and try to interact with our customers. Same with Instagram. We have a lot of followers there as well.”
At least they weren’t allergic to having an internet presence. Good start. “What about broad media, like theSpokesman-Review?”
Kass grimaced. “We’ve tried some newspaper ads, but they’re expensive and not well-targeted. We’re not open evenings, so there’s little reason for folks from Southgate or Rockwood or North Hill to come down this way.”
She had a point. Nathan tapped his pen against his notebook. “What’s your unique angle?” He looked around the interior with its whitewashed plank walls, wooden tables, and cheery yellow, white, and turquoise chairs. The display cases carried splashes of the yellow and turquoise. Just enough, it seemed, to be clean, bright, and welcoming.
The cousins looked at each other. “I don’t know that we’re all that different from half a dozen other bakeries,” Kass started.
Hailey elbowed her. “Except our food is better.”
Kass giggled. “Well, yes, of course.”
If that cookie was any indication, Nathan believed them. “So you’re open Tuesday through Saturday, from seven to five? Long day.”
“It is long,” Kass agreed. “We catch the early crowd who wants coffee on their way to work, and maybe a cinnamon roll, muffin, or croissant with it. Or they might grab a sandwich to take to the office for lunch. We’re a bit far from the downtown core for folks to walk in, though we do get some. And then we’re generally busy again in the late afternoon as people pick up baked goods to take home. In between, it’s generally steady enough with friends and colleagues meeting for coffee.”
“And the old-timers sit here for two hours every morning talking about the good old days.” Hailey grimaced. “They go through a lot of coffee.”
“And cinnamon rolls.”
His mouth watered as he remembered the ones Jasmine had brought to their work day. “Are those one of your specialties?”
Hailey nodded. “Definitely.”
