Page 93 of The Clause in Christmas
“What do you say, Cass?” Eliza asked. “Do you want to be business partners?”
“I—” Cassie grasped for the right words, but her brain wouldn’t cooperate. “I… don’t know what to say.”
“Then say yes,” Maggie supplied. “Of course, Luke will help us make it official. And if it makes you more comfortable, we can work out a small price constructed as a payment plan from the profits.”
Cassie thought of the money sitting in her bank account. Assuming Eliza had a little saved, they could make a fair down payment to Maggie and still have money to remodel. She drew in a shaky breath. This couldn’t be happening...
“Well, Cass?” Eliza leaned forward eagerly.
Clutching the key, Cassie’s eyes sparkled with a wellspring of emotion. “Yes! I’d love to be business partners.”
“Yay!” Eliza bounced on the arm of the sofa, nearly toppling off in her enthusiasm.
“Thank you,” Cassie whispered, reaching across Ben to embrace Maggie.
Ben giggled, and squirming out from under them, escaped to join Luke on the loveseat.
Eliza took his place, completing the group hug. “I’m so glad you said yes! And Mags, you’ll still be around all the time, right?”
“Of course, I will. I suspect you’ll have to come up with a new name, though.” Maggie wiped a happy tear from the corner of her eye.
“That’s true! Any ideas, Cass?”
“The Calendar Cafe,” Cassie blurted without thinking. Her hand flew to her mouth, heat spreading across her cheeks. Where had that come from?
Eliza clapped her approval. “It’s perfect! Three hundred and sixty-five days of deliciousness.”
Cassie laughed. “And without the Christmas Calendar, none of this would be possible.”
Her eyes glistening, Maggie squeezed her hand. “I can’t think of a more perfect name.”
The three women huddled together, celebrating their new venture.
Frank cleared his throat. “I believe that brings us to my gift.” Slowly rising from the armchair, Frank shuffled toward Cassie, unceremoniously plopping a simple craft bag in her hands.
The enticing aroma of freshly roasted coffee rose from the loose seal, but it wasn’t the contents of the bag that caught Cassie’s attention.
Cassie’s Blend was printed neatly across the front of the bag in large, bold letters. Grazing her fingertip over them, Cassie met Frank’s gaze. “Thank you.”
“I figure you’ll go through several pounds a week. We can develop a few different blends if you want. And something special for the espresso, of course.”
As the implication of his words settled, Cassie’s eyes widened. “You mean…”
Digging his fists into the pockets of the pajama bottoms, Frank shrugged. “If you want to serve some other brand of coffee at your cafe—”
Leaping from the couch, Cassie flung her arms around Frank and pressed a kiss to his scruffy cheek. “Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!”
Cassie expected Frank to pull away, embarrassed by her outburst, but his shoulders relaxed and he leaned into the embrace. “That clause of Edie’s,” he whispered in her ear. “It changed my life, too. And somehow, I think she knew it would.”
A sob nearly escaped Cassie’s lips as she buried her face in Frank’s neck, inhaling the faint aroma of coffee that seemed to permeate his entire being. “I think you’re right,” she whispered back.
Pulling apart, they each wiped stray tears with the edges of their matching pajama sleeves.
“You have one more gift.” Frank nodded in Luke’s direction.
As Cassie turned, she noticed Ben had vacated the spot beside Luke.
With a tender smile, Luke patted the cushion next to him.
