Page 39 of Scoop Me Up
“Well, you’re into him, right?”
“Yeah, but—”
Cooper held up a hand to stop me. “Clearly he’s into you, too.”
“Clearly nothing. He’d had too much to drink. That’s all it was.”
“Is that what he said?”
I looked at my untouched pie. “We didn’t discuss it. I sort of… went straight to bed after, and then left before he woke up.”
“Sam!” He slapped his palm on the table, drawing looks from the few people around us.
“I know,” I said, my tone sheepish. “I know. But I panicked. I didn’t know what else to do.”
Cooper sighed. “Fine.” He took another bite of his pie, looking thoughtful as he chewed. I waited, but he didn’t say anything else.
“What am I supposed to do?” I asked eventually.
“Talk to him. Isn't that what you tell your students? Use your words.”
I pressed my fingertips to the space between my eyebrows, feeling a headache creeping in on me. “Do I have to?”
Cooper finished his pie. Once he was done eating, he nodded. “You do. Or you can let him stay at your house for the rest of the summer and avoid him that whole time. Your call.”
I closed my eyes briefly. Both choices sounded terrible. Before I could continue the conversation with Cooper, though, myphone buzzed in my pocket. I fished it out and glanced at the display.Miles Rogers.
I swiped to answer. “Hey, Miles.”
“Great news, Sam.” He never wasted time when he had something he needed to say. “Do you have a few minutes?”
I glanced at Cooper. “It’s Miles,” I murmured.
He nodded and gestured to the phone. “Talk to him. It’s probably news about the shop.”
I turned my attention back to the phone. “Sure, what’s going on?”
“I spoke to the owner of the building. Not only did he say he’s more than happy to rent it to you, he’d been planning a renovation anyway, so he’s willing to renovate to suit your needs. You’ll need to meet with him this week so he can get things started.”
I was stunned. I’d known the building would require a lot of work. I never imagined that the owner would be willing to renovate itforme. “That’s… amazing. What do I need to do next?”
“Come by my place tomorrow after school. We’ll get the lease signed and squared away. You’ll need to meet with the project foreman to get things started and then it’s just a matter of sourcing your ingredients and making your ice cream.”
Words escaped me. It was really happening. I could hardly believe it.
“What do you say?” Miles prompted after I was silent for a moment.
“Yeah. I mean, yes, I’d love that. I’ll come by tomorrow after school.”
“Perfect.”
We said our goodbyes and I hung up the phone, setting it down on the table next to my pie.
“Well?” Cooper prompted.
“The owner wants to renovate it to suit my needs,” I said quietly.
Cooper raised his eyebrows. “What does that mean? Like, paint and floors? Equipment? Furniture?”
