Page 54 of Falling for the Bad Boy
I took a seat on the couch. “I can’t imagine it’s going to be worse than…” I’d almost said something about having to stay up all night during lambing season.
“Worse than what?” Macy tilted her head.
Think, dammit, think. “I was going to say it can’t be worse than listening to my professor drone on about growth hacking in an e-commerce market.”
Trinity sat down next to me, her thigh pressing against mine, driving any thoughts of sheep and classes out of my head. “You might change your mind after you hear her going at it for the next several hours.”
“If you focus, we might finish early, and then we’ll all have a chance to go at it later.” Macy set her wine down on a side table and uncapped a marker.
Trinity shifted next to me. I glanced over at her, noticing her cheeks heating to a particularly attractive shade of red. I wouldn’t have minded doing just that—getting the planning out of the way so we might have a chance at some alone time before I had to head into work at Tapped.
Mitch brought in a new bottle of wine and sat in the chair next to us.
When she was sure she had everyone’s attention, Macy cleared her throat. “So here’s what we have so far for the grand opening.” The marker squeaked as she moved it across the board. “We’ve got the television spot. I was thinking we could have you go into the studio the day before and do a quick interview to talk about your opening the next day. Then my friend can come down and do a live segment the next day. Sound good?”
“You’re in charge.” Trinity shrugged. “I’ve given up control to you and your magical marketing skills.”
Macy smiled. “Smart girl. We’ll arrange for a ribbon cutting ceremony with the chamber of commerce, and I’ve got a contact at that new dessert bar that just opened downtown. I’ll see if she wants to provide some individual cheesecakes or tarts or something in exchange for a little free publicity.”
I leaned against the couch cushion and stretched my arm across the back, resting it on top of Trinity’s shoulders. She was tense, apparently uncomfortable with the business side of the business.
“That sounds great, really.” Trinity leaned forward to take another sip of wine.
“But…” Macy said.
“But what?”
Cocking her hip, Macy put the cap back on the marker. “I can tell you’ve got a but in there. What’s wrong?”
Trinity leaned back, nestling under my arm. “What do we do to get the yarn community on board?”
“What do you mean?” Macy asked. “Have you tried the cheesecake at that new place? It’s to die for.”
I wanted to help. My gut rolled and rumbled as I ran through some ideas my mom had proposed to the local fiber shops when they were trying to increase their sales. Before I could stop myself, I pulled my arm from around Trinity’s shoulders and leaned forward, resting my forearms on my thighs. “What if you did some sort of challenge to get people talking about your store on social media before it opens?”
“Yes.” Trinity set her glass down. “That’s exactly what I need. Something that will build excitement before we even open the doors.”
“What do you have in mind?” Macy tapped her toe on the plush carpet.
“Like a knit-along or something. Trinity”—I turned to face her—“you come up with a pattern that you can distribute via your website or social media accounts. Then you challenge people to finish it before your grand opening. Anyone who comes in wearing it will get an entry into a big giveaway.”
Macy narrowed her eyes. “So you get the publicity of people posting their work in progress and then you also fill the store on opening day.”
“Exactly.” I gauged Trinity’s reaction.
She bit her bottom lip, her brow furrowed. “I like it. The pattern would have to be something simple?—”
“Yeah, a seed stitch scarf or cowl would work.” I immediately wished I hadn’t spoken.
Both women studied me.
“How do you know so much about knitting?” Macy asked. “He’s talking about knitting, Trin, isn’t he?”
“Yeah.” Trinity rested her palm on my thigh. “You do seem to know a lot about knitting.”
“Hey”—I tried to laugh off their intense curiosity—“I live in New Zealand. All the women in my family have been knitting since they could walk.” I didn’t volunteer that I’d been roped into learning the fiber arts as well.
“What else do you know about that you haven’t told me yet?” Trinity asked.
