Page 84 of Scoop Me Up
With a frown, their brow furrowed and they squinted. “You met the owner?”
I reached into my pocket and pulled out a key on a small, silver keychain that was shaped like an ice cream cone, handing it to Sam. “Not exactly. Iamthe owner.”
They pulled back, looking at me intensely. “You what?”
Panic gripped me. What if Sam didn’t like the idea of me owning the building? What if something went wrong? “I know I should’ve told you sooner. Remember how Miles promised to help me find an investment opportunity? Well, ultimately that opportunity was to buy and renovate this building. I spoke to the previous owner, who inherited the building from his dad. He didn’t want it anymore, considering it needed a lot of updating and renovation. I bought it for a steal. Including your two-year lease.”
“So you’re my new landlord?”
I shrugged. “Something like that. But I want you to take whatever money you’d planned to spend on rent and invest it in the shop. I know you’ve had to tighten your finances and cut corners wherever possible. I still want us to live together. Upstairs. In the shop we own. Together.”
They cleared their throat. “Why didn’t you say something sooner?”
I reached for Sam’s hand and took it in both of mine. “I didn’t want to risk messing anything up if it fell through. I got the final closing paperwork today. It’s official. This place is mine.Ours.”
Sam’s Adam’s apple bobbed as they swallowed. “Ours,” they repeated in a dreamlike tone.
I nodded. “Ours.”
A moment passed before Sam stepped closer and pulled me in for a tight hug, the keychain jingling as they did. “Thank you.”
I closed my eyes and kissed their cheek. “I’m just glad you’re not mad.”
“How could I be mad? The man I’m in love with just gave me the opportunity to make all my dreams come true.”
Epilogue - One Year Later
Sam
The August day was warm, the sun bright as I moved around the shop, prepping for the busy day ahead. Despite the fact that there were no festivals scheduled for the end of August, it was a busy time of year, and today would be no different—we’d scheduled a Summer Sundae Social for early afternoon, inviting the whole town out to celebrate our one-year anniversary as a shop. In the quiet, I spent time wiping down tables and making sure everything was sparkling clean, filled the cases with tubs of ice cream, and carefully chalked the menu to display the day’s flavors.
Just as I was hauling out the waffle iron to make our homemade waffle cones, the front door burst open and Ellie ran in. “Sam! Good morning again!”
“Good morning again,” I said. “How was breakfast?”
“Yummy. I got pancakes. I get to be your helper today, right?”
I chuckled. “That’s right. I’m going to teach you how to make waffle cones, if you hurry and go wash your hands.”
“Okay,” she said, darting into the back of the store.
A moment later, the door opened again. This time it was Gabe, still looking sleepy, even though he’d left an hour ago with Ellie, who’d spent the night at our apartment, to have breakfast and pick up coffee. He crossed the floor and stopped at the counter to hand me a cup and give me a quick kiss.
“Morning,” I murmured.
“Guess who I saw at Special Blend.” He didn’t give me a chance to say anything before he barreled on. “Jennifer.”
“How was she?”
Gabe smirked and chuckled softly. “She had an overnight guest last night, apparently.”
“Oh?” My eyebrows shot up. “Did you get his name?”
Gabe’s smirk widened. “Hername. Rosa.”
Thatwas certainly an interesting development, but one we could discuss another time, because Ellie hurried in again, holding her hands up like a surgeon would, waiting for gloves.
“Ready,” she announced.
