“Nice place,” the woman comments. “Pity it’s so far away from where we live.”
“It was nice of you to come by. Can I tempt you with another coffee on the house?”
They smile. “Won’t say no to free coffee.”
Once I’ve set them up with steamy cups, I retreat in the corner between the Lifestyle and Healthy Living sections, surveying the room. If at least ten percent become paying customers... I start to mentally crunch numbers and am so absorbed in it, I startle when Daniel walks up to me.
“Everything okay?” he asks.
“I hope the cafe addition will work out,” I confide. I feel like I’m going to implode if I don’t voice my concerns soon, and Daniel has a sharp business acumen. “We already lost out on the back-to-school sales because we weren’t open. I hope we’ll make some decent sales centered around Halloween items.”
“You’ll do great. Just make sure you have a system in place so people can’t stay in the coffee shop for hours just paying for one drink.”
“What do you mean?” I ask in alarm. “I don’t want to be one of those places hazing customers to order something every half hour.”
Daniel strokes his chin, seeming to carefully weigh his words. “It’s not hazing—it’s not letting people take advantage of you.”
Protest rises in my throat. “But this is a place for people to come and relax.”
“Yeah, but relaxation shouldn’t come for free. You have twenty seats here. If you get ten people who come in regularly to buy two drinks and spend six hours, half of your shop is gone. No way can you turn a profit.”
My protest turns to panic. “But won’t people hate the nagging?”
“Those worth your time won’t, trust me. The customers who value what you have to offer won’t mind paying for it. You don’t need the rest.”
“That’s something Mom would say,” I admit.
“Your mother was a great businesswoman.”
I slash the air with my finger. “I know what you mean... how Dad and I are lousy at business.”
“You’re not lousy, but you’re not exactly profit-oriented either. You care about people’s experience, which is great. That’s how it should be, customer first and everything. But you still need to fend off the moochers. Don’t be afraid to demand what you’re worth.”
I nod. In theory, he makes sense, but I’m not sure how this translates into practice.
“Can I run a few ideas by you?” I ask.
“Sure. You can run anything you want by me.”
I laugh, warmth spreading through me. “There are plenty other Bennetts I can ask for advice.”
“Yet you chose me. I have plenty of evidence that I’m your favorite Bennett.”
“Like what?” I challenge. God, it’s so easy to get caught in his banter, his playfulness.
He trails his fingers up and down my spine as if it’s only natural for him to touch me. I’m playing right into his illusion, though, by not moving away.
“One word: marina.”
“I was on Benadryl,” I counter, but the argument is weak. Daniel wastes no time pointing it out.
“Not when we made love.”
No, no, no! He can’t go there again. He won’t. This shameless, merciless man. I had a few hours of weakness, and he’s using them against me like a weapon.
“Daniel... can we just forget about that?”
He pushes a strand of hair behind my ear, tilting his head to one side. “I don’t want to. And you don’t either. You were kissing me like you never wanted me to stop.”