Total pages in book: 137
Estimated words: 131486 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 657(@200wpm)___ 526(@250wpm)___ 438(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 131486 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 657(@200wpm)___ 526(@250wpm)___ 438(@300wpm)
The idea of expanding still excites me, but considering how removed I am from the day-to-day operations, I won’t push.
“Grits is just as much yours as it is mine, Yas,” Josiah says, angling his head to catch my eyes.
“Thank you for saying that, but we all know that I was—”
“You were taking care of the two things that meant the most to me. My children.” His eyes, lit with sincerity, lock with mine. “And yourself. With all you went through, that was all I had the right to expect. If you hadn’t taken care of Day and Seem, I wouldn’t have been able to hold it down here.”
He laughs, and it’s hollow, self-deprecating. “Though I didn’t do that great of a job here if—”
“Stop,” I cut him off. “It’s a miracle that you kept us afloat. I’m sorry if I didn’t fully appreciate it at the time. If I ever made it harder for you.”
We stare at each other in the seconds elongating between us. After the tension that clotted the room before Harvey came, our words supporting each other feel foreign, but welcome.
“So what are you thinking, Harvey?” I ask, hoping to get back on more even ground. “I mean, things are going incredibly well, but we are just getting back on our feet. What makes you think we should expand now?”
“Opportunity.” His mouth stretches into what I like to call his money-eating grin. “There’s a restaurant closing in NoDa, North Davidson—one of the most popular areas of Charlotte. We’re talking prime real estate.”
“If it’s so prime,” Josiah says, “why they bouncing?”
“Time to retire.” Harvey shrugs, turning his lips down at the corners. “They’re an older couple who’ve decided to sell the business and move to Florida.”
“Are we in a position to do this if everything checks out?” I ask.
“We are,” Harvey says. “The last few quarters, with Vashti’s leadership in the kitchen, adding Anthony to management, and you guys making shrewd, strategic decisions, have been very good. The best Grits has ever had.”
“True.” Josiah cants his head, the look on his face alert and curious. “The space is leased?”
“It’s a house they renovated, similar to what you did here for Grits,” Harvey replies. “You’d take over the note, but believe me, this place is so hot, you’d have no trouble covering it. Charlotte is like the next Atlanta.”
“There is no next Atlanta,” Josiah says, smug as the only person in the room who grew up here.
“Charlotte’s on the list of best cities to live in, though,” Harvey counters. “Banking is big, and folks are prospering. And this part of Charlotte is booming. Lots of artists and great restaurants. They were wondering if you could come check it out after Thanksgiving, before Christmas for a couple of days.”
“A couple of days?” I slide a glance from Harvey’s eager expression to Josiah’s suddenly shuttered one.
“Yeah, I’d want you both to see it, of course,” Harvey says. “And they’d like you to hang for a day or so to discuss things, see the neighborhood. And so they could get to know you a little. They don’t want to pass it on to just anybody. A quick overnight trip.”
Overnight? My brain screeches, setting warning bells off between my ears.
Together?
“Can Yas and I discuss this a little more?” Josiah asks, his gaze fixed on Harvey.
“Of course.” Harvey leans forward to grasp a few of the pages on the coffee table, passing some to me and some to Josiah. “In the meantime, here’s some promo material of the restaurant and the neighborhood.”
I leaf through the photos and find myself smiling, my heart pounding. NoDa is eclectic and charming and a lot like Skyland. The restaurant is a house, smaller than the one we renovated for Grits, but no less quaint. The photos were taken during the summer since everyone’s wearing tank tops, flip-flops, shorts. There’s a front lawn, and tables are set up on the grass. People of every shade mill about, smiling and eating.
Something about this place tugs at me. Josiah has always been the numbers guy. Show him the data, the facts, and he’ll decide. My calculus is…softer. Located farther south, not in my head, but splitting the difference between my heart and my gut. Considering the enmity that has crept up between us, it’s easy to forget we made great partners. Between his head and my instincts, we built something pretty fantastic here in Atlanta.
Could we do it again?
“I’ll leave this with you,” Harvey says, nodding toward the file lying open and spilling glossy color photos onto the coffee table. “I’ll email you some figures and specs that may help you decide. My two cents, you’d be crazy if you don’t at least go see this place. If they put it on the market, with this location, it’ll get snatched, and they won’t wait long.”