Total pages in book: 90
Estimated words: 82747 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 414(@200wpm)___ 331(@250wpm)___ 276(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 82747 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 414(@200wpm)___ 331(@250wpm)___ 276(@300wpm)
"You’re already rejecting the idea," Sage mutters, disappointment lacing her tone.
"You're forgetting that one, I can't sell food out of my kitchen. The state cottage laws don't allow for that, and two—"
"You could talk to Madison. I bet she'd trade. A meal for use of her kitchen. Her kitchen has been rated commercial because of the house and its use with events."
I pause, my heart starting to race. "And she'd let me use it in exchange for what? Just dinner?"
"So the woman doesn't have to cook," Sage says quickly, and I can tell she noticed the excitement in my tone and is feeding off of it. "The woman is about to have a baby, and she's already got the twins. You making dinner would be a godsend. Honestly, I think she'd let you without dinner if you just asked. She's a really nice lady."
"I know she is, but you're forgetting about the town clause. Selling to-go, home-cooked meals are in direct violation of the town clause. Ruth would fight it, especially if she's going to lose business because of it."
She frowns when I do, and just like that, both of our bubbles are popped.
It wouldn't be my plan to make Ruth go out of business. I'm not egotistical enough to think I could. Going to the diner in town is just as much about socializing and gossiping as it is about eating, and I don't see that changing any time soon, despite what I may have to offer.
"Well, maybe go ask her. I don't think it would hurt, and if she surprises us and agrees, and you're not comfortable asking such a big favor from Madison, any of the church kitchens in town are also rated commercials, so you have options." She stands from the table, giving my shoulder a reassuring squeeze before going to the sink. "I'm going to get ready for work, but please just give it some thought. Let them tell you no instead of just making assumptions about what you think they will say to you."
When she walks away, I get the very distinct feeling that she's talking about every situation in my life, not just the issue with Ruth and the no-compete clause that the town has.
Chapter 34
Mac
Maybe I'm not as good at reading between the lines as I thought I was because I sat in my truck down the road from Riley's house for hours, and she never showed up. I don't think Sage would lie to me. Despite her declaration that she was on Riley's side, I still felt like part of her is hoping that her friend and I end up together.
At least the woman didn't call me names, tell me to kick bricks, and hang up on me. It means that maybe I still have some skin in the game where Riley is concerned.
Sitting outside of her house is driving me nuts, so I head back across town, driving past Sage's house and not seeing Riley's car before running to check in with the twins at a project across town. I still don't know what happened between them and the Drocer daughter, but there's always work to be done, and the Tate men aren't ones to turn down a day's work when they have the chance. They know as well as I do that there are days during this time of year when there may be no work to be had, and they need to take the hours on the clock when they're available.
I've been lucky in keeping at least enough small jobs going on through the low months that I haven't had to lay anyone off, although there's always a chance that could flip. I have jobs through the middle of February and really need to put some effort into hustling to get some lined up between then and spring break. That's when all the jobs start rolling in—when people are ready to make some spring changes to their properties and gardens.
The small porch my company has been hired to complete on the back of the house not far from where I live is coming along nicely, I notice as I make my way around the Grangers’ house. It's going to look fantastic once it's stained and all the cleanup is done.
"Any issues?" I ask Donnie as I approach and he's the first one I see.
"Nothing to complain about," the man says as he stands and begins to gather up a long extension cord.
"Nothing?" I clarify because the man isn't the type to keep a grouch to himself.
"The wood we got on this last delivery could've been better. We had several sticks that were warped beyond what we can use them for here. Some had more knots in them than I'd like, but we were able to supplement with some we had at the shop and the bad stuff can be cut down to use with other projects. It was close. If we had two more warped pieces, we wouldn't have been able to finish without switching to something other than the maple they requested."