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She smiled. “Can’t really blame me,” she said, taking a deep breath. “I’ve never gone into one of these things with any kind of hope, and I don’t know what to expect.

I checked the time on my watch and got to my feet. “It’ll be great,” I assured her, my own nerves quieting when Frankie’s knee bounced anxiously. “Let’s get going?”

She hopped to her feet, smoothing out her shirt.

“You look perfect.” I chuckled, grabbing her hand in mine and dragging her along.

Now that Frankie had arrived, my excitement brimmed over and I couldn’t wait for this brand new chapter to begin.

“We’ll begin with a state franchise,” Jonathan said, flipping through his own presentation. “Just one store in major cities so we can measure our sales and demand.”

“What would the roll out phase look like?” I asked. “Would you open these flagship stores simultaneously?”

“That would depend on the results of the testing phase,” he answered. “We could potentially test one or two flagships in major cities and use a structured test and measure to determine how, when, and where we launch the next stores.”

I nodded.

“Frankie, what are your thoughts?”

Frankie dragged in a long breath, her notepad almost black with the notes she’d been taking.

“What would the stores look like in terms of offering?” she asked. “There are many areas that would need to cater more to a certain demographic because of the population density. Plus, there would be the point of suppliers to get in fresh produce in cities that are too far from farms. What would the contingency be?”

My chest swelled with pride and I leaned back in my seat, resisting the urge to smirk at Jonathan. It’s not that I wanted to poke holes in his presentation, but I wanted to make sure everything was watertight. If it meant letting Frankie tear his presentation to shreds, so be it.

Jonathan cleared his throat. “That would factor into our test and measure phase,” he explained. “We want to collect enough data from each of our potential locations to determine whether or not the store would be a feasible route there.”

“What do you propose for the staff that would be hired?” I added. “The true gem of Ivey’s is the aspect it was founded upon, the sense of family and community. This is non-negotiable. We need our staff members to be cared for as well as hold the same dedication as the current staff at Ivey’s.”

I could feel Frankie’s gaze on the side of my face but I kept my eyes forward, swallowing as blood rushed to my cheeks.

“Of course,” Jonathan said, nodding at his assistant who quickly jotted it down. “We’ll take these notes into consideration and reconvene at a time most convenient for you and Ms. Ivey.”

I nodded and they filed out, leaving Frankie and me alone in the icy conference room.

“Well?” I asked, and Frankie blew out a breath.

“It’s a lot,” she admitted, looking a little sheepish. “I would prefer to talk things over with everyone else at Ivey’s before we move on this. But…”

“But?” I asked, hopeful.

“I’m excited to do this.” She smiled.

“Yeah?”

“It’s scary and might totally blow up in our faces, but,” she giggled, “it’s like a brand new adventure.”

A surge of emotion rose inside me, threatening to burst, and I squeezed her hand to keep myself from kissing her senseless.

“I amsohappy to hear that,” I said breathlessly. “And you’re right; it might fail and end up being a waste of time, but you took a chance, and I don’t think that’s ever a waste.”

She smiled at me, her eyes almost disappearing. “Should we go and tell everyone else?” she asked, hopping to her feet. I followed.

“After you, love.”

“I hear that you actually managed to get Frankie to sit through an entire meeting without her setting something on fire.”

I was beginning to learn that Vanessa could always be counted on to alleviate the tensest situations. Or inject a bit of humor wherever she felt was necessary.