Page 40 of The Dating Prohibition
Kendra smiled softly. Auntie Mack lived in a big house not far from Charleston’s city center. Her property was expansive andquiet, with live oak trees and Spanish moss hanging from them that swayed in the breeze drifting in off the water. It wasone of the most peaceful places that Kendra remembered visiting as a child. She would spend summers at Auntie Mack’s so thatshe and Lani could hang out together.
The massive pool house had been their playroom and library where they would keep themselves occupied for hours.
“You know I’ve redone your guest room.”
“Oh really?”
“Mmm-hmm. I figured it needed to look like something other than a playroom,” her aunt laughed.
“Well, I’ll have to come see that sometime.”
“Yeah, I think you’re due for a visit. You know, if you find some time to maybe take a break, come on down. You’re alwayswelcome and you have a key. It doesn’t matter if I’m here or not.”
Mack had a group of friends who were all empty nesters––all of their kids were grown and had moved out––and they would traveltogether all over the world. When she left town on one of her longer trips, Lani would head down to South Carolina to house-sitfor her mom. Most recently, Mack and her crew had gone to Morocco, and she came back with spices and beautiful tapestriesthat she loved to use as decor in her guest rooms. She really was the quintessential rich auntie that Kendra strove to beonce Logan and Shonda decided to have their own children.
“I’ll keep that in mind, Auntie. I will let you know when I can squirrel away sometime or when I just need to get away from all of this. And I’ll make the drive down.”
“Alright, my sweetie. Make sure you give me a call and keep me updated.”
“I sure will. Thanks for checking on me.”
“That’s my job. I love you, my love. You take care of yourself, and you keep your head up.”
“Yes, ma’am. I will. I love you too.”
“Alright. Talk soon. Bye-bye.”
“Bye.” Kendra sighed into her coffee cup, sipping on the dark roast, feeling the caffeine enter her bloodstream. “So muchto do.”
Later that day, Kendra sat at the bar of a local cigar shop with her laptop, scrolling through the listings of more short-saleproperties that Logan had shared with her. Her eye had been on one in particular that was already a functioning bar with aprivate room––the one that she had mentioned to Auntie Mack—but that property sold as quickly as it was listed. As Kendrascanned the properties that were still available, she landed on one that was a little smaller than what she had intended originally,but she was trying to keep an open mind.
From the pictures, she could see that the building needed some updates. However, it had a certain charm to it that felt likeit fit the vibe of her business. Vintage, like a piece of history that just needed some polish to give it a modern appeal.Beautiful built-ins and dark wood floors were a major draw for Kendra.
Located in the heart of Northeast DC, the property was a part of some old row houses that had been updated and rezoned for commercial use. The lower levels were restaurants and specialty stores while the upper levels housed offices andsalons. The buildings were historic, having been built near the end of the eighteenth century. Some of the businesses housed there had been operating for over one hundred years.
On the first floor of one of the row houses up for sale was an old pub that would work perfectly for Kendra’s bar with a roomin the back that could serve as the private dining room for her speakeasy supper club. There were dark wooden fixtures andfloors. The bar itself was worn and the counter needed to be replaced. But there was character all around.
Kendra imagined renovating to have unisex bathrooms. She envisioned putting a few booths against the long brick wall withpub tables and seating, and stools along the bar. There was plenty of shelving that still looked sturdy and the private roomwas bare and could be set up the way that she always imagined.
The kitchen itself was small, but she imagined herself utilizing the space much in the same way she would when she cookedholiday dinners for her parents. Before the family renovated their kitchen, the space was tight, so they knocked down somewalls to create a more open floor plan, allowing for greater space to move around. But even with their five-burner cooktopand double oven, she would be able to adequately feed no more than fifteen people without any of the food coming out cold.Unless it was meant to be served that way.
In a lined notebook, she scribbled, “Max seating for twelve, two unisex bathrooms, bar counter, stools, new booths, resurfaceand polish the floors. Two windows need replacing.”
She listed out every possible expense that she might have at this particular location to do the math and figure out what she might need in addition to her savings to cover the property. As she unlocked her phone to access her calculator, she added up her cost estimates for each of the line items along with whatshe thought to be a reasonable bid for the short sale and blew out a breath. “There goes all my money,” she muttered. Her mind raced through revisions to her loan application and she scribbled down some notes for what additional research she might need to do.
“You good over here, Keke?” Dawit, the owner of the cigar bar, was rarely behind the bar in the evenings when the establishmentwas packed, but his team wasn’t due to start for another hour. He always opened the shop to check inventory and restock thehumidor before things got hectic.
“One more gin and tonic, please.” She grinned with a nod. Kendra and Logan had been visiting this bar for years, seeing itthrough one relocation and several upgrades. A family business, they were acquainted with Dawit’s parents and siblings, whotraveled frequently between DC and Addis Ababa. They’d known Dawit almost as long as BJ, so Kendra’s nickname was cementedinto the fabric of their relationship.
“You’re hard at work over here.” He rested his palms against the counter and leaned forward intently.
“Yeah, just trying to figure out if I can get my business off the ground.”
“This isn’t for the faint of heart, Keke,” he cautioned.
“I know it, but I want to do it. It’s not worth it if you don’t want to put effort into it.”
“Well, as long as I’ve known you, you’ve achieved everything that you set your mind to. So I know you can do it.”
