Page 19 of Knot Your Sunshine (Snugverse Romcom #2)

Chapter eighteen

Mia

"Good morning, Mia." Noa's fingers brush my elbow as he passes, guiding me to my chair. The touch burns through my silk blouse, and I have to focus on not leaning into it.

Keanu drops into the seat on my right. "How are you doing, beautiful ?" he murmurs in a low voice, then winks.

My stomach does a little flip, heat pooling low in my belly. God, that wink should be illegal.

"Hi, Mia. Did you sleep well?" Josh asks on my left, his beautiful eyes crinkling at the corners. I get lost in them and unconsciously bite my lip instead of replying, which makes him glance away shyly, his fingers drumming nervously against his laptop keyboard.

Hmm, I wonder what else he could do with these fingers…

The door opens, interrupting my increasingly horny omega. A stern beta enters wearing a gray suit and tie, and a nameplate that reads CHADWICK SUTTON.

"Ms. Everly." His handshake is firm but brief. He turns to the alphas. "Gentlemen. Thank you for bringing me in on this project."

Chadwick doesn't sit. Instead, he moves to the wall and pushes a small button. A screen descends from the ceiling with a soft whir as he plugs his laptop into the connection.

"Gentlemen, Ms. Everly, I'll be direct." He clicks his laser pointer and a slide appears. "I've reviewed the franchise pitch deck you sent this morning, Ms. Everly. And while the community-centered approach has… charm, I'm concerned it lacks the scalability essential for franchise viability."

My spine straightens. Did he just call my project… charming?

Slide after slide flashes by, profit optimization graphs, revenue maximization models, premium service tiers. My hands clench under the table.

"Your target demographic," he continues, laser pointer circling a graph, "underperforms in key spending metrics. By shifting focus to high-income brackets and implementing membership models, we can achieve 300% revenue growth within eighteen months."

"That's not—" I start.

"Furthermore," he doesn't even glance my way, "your current operational framework lacks structure. Franchisees need concrete systems and measurable protocols, not abstract philosophies about community connection."

The laser pointer clicks off, and the room falls silent except for the soft hum of the air conditioning.

I stand, the chair scraping against marble.

"Mr. Sutton." My voice comes out steadier than I feel. "Have you ever had someone remember your haircut without asking?"

He blinks. "I don't see how that's—"

"It's everything." I pull out a folder. "The Hendersons, retired teachers from Ohio. Other salons never remembered that Mrs. Henderson is allergic to certain dyes. I keep detailed notes. Three years later, they've brought in twenty six other couples from their retirement community."

Chadwick's expression doesn't change. "Anecdotal evidence doesn't—"

"Tina. Single mom, two jobs." I slide her photo across the table.

"She could only come after seven PM. I noticed her daughter always did homework in the waiting area, so I set up a study corner with good lighting.

Six years later, they both come monthly for matching styles.

$30 trims became $160 in regular appointments, plus referrals from every working mom she knows. "

"Customer accommodation is standard—"

"This is profit." I pull out my spreadsheet. "Forty percent higher retention than industry average. Sixty percent higher annual spending per customer."

Chadwick sighs. "Ms. Everly, I understand your approach is... unconventional."

"But it works," I cut in.

"For one location. Scaled across hundreds? Doubtful. Franchising requires replicable systems, and you can't replicate personal relationships."

"Maybe you can't." I cross my arms and meet his gaze head-on.

The challenge hangs between us. I catch Keanu's approving grin in my peripheral vision, Josh's wide-eyed admiration, Noa leaning forward, clearly enjoying this.

"Okay, I'll bite." Chadwick straightens his tie. "How do you ensure consistency without standardized procedures? When your entire model relies on intangible relationship-building?"

"By selecting franchisees who understand that connection drives profit, not the other way around." I step forward, matching his intensity.

"And how do you identify these people?"

"Through targeted recruitment. Isn't that part of why you're here? To help find the right franchisees?"

His laugh is sharp. "There are no proven methodologies for identifying candidates based on emotional intelligence. I deal in returns through established processes, not social experiments."

"Or maybe you're just afraid to try something new."

Chadwick stays silent for a few seconds, and you could hear a pin drop in the room.

"Very well," he finally says, calculation in his eyes. "I propose a test."

My pulse quickens with interest.

"Twenty locations. Ten using your model, ten using mine. Three-month trial."

"One week," I counter, spine straight, matching his height in my heels. "I'm not wasting months proving what I already know works."

He laughs again. "A week? You can't measure success in days."

"You can when one approach is clearly superior." I step closer, chin raised. "Unless you're not confident in your 'systems'?"

"Fine. One week." He leans forward, amusement dancing in his eyes. "Care to make it interesting?"

"Let's hear it."

"If your approach wins, we implement it across all locations." He straightens. "But if mine proves superior, you follow my model. No arguments. No community focus. You run this like a real business."

I feel the alphas shift behind me, tension rippling through the room.

"Deal." We shake hands, his grip trying to establish dominance. I squeeze back just as hard.

"My team will handle logistics, daily test results tracking, everything," he says, gathering his materials. "We'll just need your franchisee prospects by tomorrow to include them in the testing framework."

"You'll have them tonight."