I’m sick to my stomach with nerves. I’ve anxiously reapplied lip gloss so many times that my lips practically stick together from the number of coats I’ve put on them.
“Breathe,” Mare tells me, reaching over to grab my hand. She gives it a big squeeze, keeping it firm in her grasp. “This is going to work,” she reaffirms, looking at my brother.
Cade nods. “We won’t let you down, Pip. We’re going to figure this out today. Just take a deep breath.”
I close my eyes, wanting to find something to wipe my lips off with. We’re sitting in a row of fold-up chairs, waiting for the auction to start. My senior prom and sixteenth birthday party both took place in this rec room. Never did I imagine I’d also be fighting for the chance to keep my business here, too.
“What if we didn’t raise enough?” I whisper, my stomach feeling heavy with nerves. I truly haven’t slept the past few days. Between preparing for the fundraiser and preparing for today, there was no way I could sleep peacefully. At least that’s what I keep telling myself instead of admitting my bed felt far too empty without Camden’s warm body next to mine.
“Open your eyes,” my dad instructs from my side. I don’t listen, afraid that if I open my eyes, I might cry from worry. I’ve tried keeping a brave face since the moment I returned to Sutten, but I’m nearing the end of my rope. I won’t be able to handle it if I lose Wake and Bake today. Because losing to Jason will be that—he’s said it himself. There’s no way I can pay the rent he expects. He’ll force me out, and the dream I’ve worked on for years will go up in smoke.
“Pippa Linda Jennings,” my father all but growls. “Open your eyes.”
I’m a grown adult, but my eyes have never popped open so fast. His booming voice scared me as a child, even though he never raised it to Cade and me. Right now isn’t any different.
“This is going to work out,” he assures me, his voice confident. He reaches out and smooths my hair.
“You don’t know that, Dad.” My voice trembles, the tears pooling in my eyelids threatening to spill over.
“I do. I can feel it.”
I let out a sad laugh, rolling my eyes. “You can’t feel this sort of thing.”
He scowls at me. “Don’t tell me what I feel, darling. Your momma is here with us. She won’t let you lose the shop. I can assure you of that.”
At the mention of Mom, I can’t fight the tears another second. They freely run down my cheeks, ruining the little bit of makeup I managed to put on this morning.
“She’d be so disappointed if I lost Wake and Bake,” I croak.
“She could never be disappointed in you,” he answers, his voice full of conviction.
Mare squeezes my hand, reminding me that she never let go. I don’t look at her, but knowing she’s right there next to me is enough to have me taking a deep breath in an attempt to settle my nerves.
“She was so proud of me when I got the place. And now I might lose it.”
People start to fill in next to us, taking me by surprise. I see so many familiar faces, the people of Sutten showing up to support us. Tears spill all over again, my stomach turning in knots.
Now, I could disappoint all of them if we aren’t able to bid the highest number for the block.
I look away from Rosemary, carrying her grandson in the terrible sweater she knitted, and look back to my dad. Everything is foggy through the tears in my eyes, but even through the tears, I can see his features soften. He pulls me into him.
“Your momma was proud of anything you did, Pippa. You could do no wrong in her eyes. I can feel her with me right now—with us—and I know with everything that I am that she’s incredibly proud of you. You hear me?”
I nod against his chest, taking in a shaky breath.
“Then you also know that if she were here right now, she’d tell you to take a deep breath and compose yourself. Believe in yourself, Pippa. Because if you believe in yourself only half the amount she believed in you, I know that this will all work out, and the cafe will remain yours.”
A hand covers Mare’s and my intertwined fingers. When I pull away, I find Cade’s overlapping ours.
“That Jack guy should be fucking terrified of you, Pip,” Cade says, trying to lighten the mood.
It works—I let out a laugh, wiping underneath my eyes. “It’s Jason, and if he should be scared of anyone, it’s Rosemary back there. She’s a loose cannon.”
All of us laugh, and it does something to my soul. It soothes it. And as I let my eyes drift shut, for a moment, I feel my mom. I feel her calming presence. It gives me the confidence to straighten my spine and grab my auction paddle from the ground. I grip it tightly, waiting for everyone to show up so this can get started.
I don’t have to wait long. Only a few more anxious coats of lip gloss later, a representative from the realty group is standing at the podium, covering how the process will work.
I risk a glance over at Jason. He’s got two men sitting in the row with him, but other than that, everyone else in the room are all Sutten locals. It’s all of the people who have worked tirelessly with me the last few days to even give me the chance to fight for my business.
“Good morning,” the man comments, clearing his throat. His eyes anxiously roam over all of us seated in the crowd. He doesn’t hold eye contact for long before he looks down at the piece of paper in front of him.
“Today, we’re here to auction off the five properties along the block of Main and Birch. Each business is about a thousand square feet. We’ve opted to sell the properties together instead of individually. All properties have tenants who pay rent. It’s the entire block except for one building.”
My mind goes to Camden. The one person who owns his space. The one person not being threatened by Jason and his terrible plan to force locals out.
“The starting bid will be at one million.”
Dean had prepared me for where it’d likely start out, but it still makes my stomach turn. That number is already so much of what we raised from the fundraiser. We had numerous donors who donated large sums of money, but I’m still scared it won’t be enough. Even with the check my dad cut me this morning—money I knew he should use for the ranch—the creeping feeling of nothing being enough to compete with Jason creeps over me.
The man takes a step away from the podium, and Clyde takes his place. I’ve seen Clyde stand at this podium on multiple occasions. I was constantly coming to auctions with my dad as a kid. We’d buy horses, hay, feed, so many things from the man standing in front of me. Never did I think he’d be auctioning off what I’ve worked hardest for in life.
“I’m going to get right to it,” Clyde announces, running a hand over his mouth. He looks incredibly uncomfortable up there, and by the hug he gave me at the fundraiser yesterday, I know this is the last thing he wants to be doing right now.
“Do I have one million and one?” Jason and I both raise our paddles.
“One million and three?”
My paddle stays in the air, no matter the dread coursing through my veins. We’re getting dangerously close to the point we’ll have nothing left.
“Two million,” Jason calls out, even though it wasn’t time for that amount yet.
I swallow, risking a glance at my dad. He watches me, wrinkles creasing his entire forehead. His eyes look sad, and I hate the disappointment that’s written all over his features.
“I can’t,” I mutter to my dad. “We don’t have it.”
My eyes sting with unshed tears. I hate this. I hate the feeling of knowing I tried everything I could do to not only keep Wake and Bake but the businesses next door, and it still wasn’t enough.
“Two million,” a voice calls from behind me. I look three rows back to where Dean Livingston sits with a raised paddle. His dad sits on the other side of him, looking at his son with wide eyes.
“Two million and one,” Jason counters, angrily looking back at Dean.
“Two million and two,” Dean continues, glaring daggers at Jason.
Rosemary grabs my shoulder, leaning forward in her chair. “Do we have anything else?”
I shake my head. “I can’t compete with that,” I answer sadly. “It’s in Dean’s hands now.”
“Two and a half.” Jason seethes.
“Three,” Dean immediately counters.
I watch Dean hopefully, my heart thumping in my chest. It isn’t up to me anymore; it’s up to Dean. And I’m petrified even Dean will have a number he won’t go to for five simple properties that shouldn’t cost this much.
Dean and Jason go back and forth a few times, and the numbers are so high it makes me want to throw up. The world around me starts to get fuzzy and black at the catastrophic realization our plan is falling through. Everything I’ve worked for is slipping through my fingers, and there’s nothing I can do.
I look at the row behind me, where Ms. Lori sits with her husband. They’d put in all of their savings to try and buy back her flower shop, and it still wasn’t enough. Or Ty who owns BlueBird Bookstore, who sits on her other side and volunteered his retirement money to help us have funds to try today. Everyone on the block has offered up everything they have. And even those who have nothing to gain and don’t own businesses gave more than we could’ve ever expected.
And it’s all going up in flames right now. Everything we’ve worked for is disappearing in a cloud of smoke.
“Ten million,” a voice thunders from the very back of the room.
My entire body breaks out in shivers. I’d know the voice anywhere. At any place, in any crowd, I’d recognize it.
