Page 12 of Archer
“Are you serious right now?” Ben demanded.
Damn. I knew he’d be pissed. Jumping up, I began pacing the living room. “What else can I do? Even without hiring someone else, I’m only making enough to pay the bills on the studio.”
“Then how was Aziza taking a salary, plus paying you? And weren’t there three instructors when you started?” he asked, leaning forward and bracing his elbows on his knees.
“Well, yeah. I mean, the studio makes enough money for all of that, but Aziza isn’t going to wait forever for me to buy her brand. She’s going to need money to relocate and stuff.”
Ben’s nose scrunched like he smelled something rotten. “I don’t know about that. She went to Florida for a ten-day vacation, then decided not to come back. I’m assuming she still has her expenses here, plus she’s paying for wherever she’s staying there.”
“An Airbnb on the beach,” I interjected.
He threw his arms up in the air in frustration. “See. I think you’re putting too much pressure on yourself.”
I shook my head frantically. “No, you don’t understand. A lot of yoga instructors have jobs, and they lead classes at studios astheir side hustle. Getting to take over for Aziza and focus on the studio is my dream. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and I don’t want to blow it. You must understand that. I won’t be delivering food forever.”
“Come on, Crispin. I don’t agree with most of what Dad’s been saying, but you have to see that you’re taking this a little far. I was worried before, but at least I thought you were spending time with your friends after you left the studio, not working more.”
Trying not to sound as sulky as I felt, I fell back down onto the couch. “I thought you believed in me.”
All the anger drained from his face. “I do. Don’t mistake my concern for your health and well-being with me thinking you should go back to doing something you hate. However, I do want you to take care of yourself.”
“So you’ll let me keep staying here?”
Ben scowled. “It’s not like I was going to kick you out. I love having you here. But—”
Sensing the lecture coming on, I held up one hand and cut him off. “Ben, please don’t. All I want to do tonight is lay on the couch and watch TV with my big brother. If I wanted a dissertation on how to live my life, I’d have gone to our parents’ house.” I pushed my lower lip out for good measure.
“Ugh. Don’t pout. You’re still such a brat.” He tossed the remote to me. “Pick something, and I’ll go make us a snack.” He got up and strode out of the room. I really did have the best brother ever.
Chapter 6
Archer
I had photos from three different shoots to edit today. None of my clients were expecting them right away, but the plan had been to get them done early so I could take a few days for a short road trip looking for some interesting things to photograph. And yet here I sat, going through the photos I took of Crispin instead.
He was beautiful, but more than that, he was ethereal. I’d enjoyed listening to his singing bowls, but mostly, I enjoyed watching him play. His whole demeanor shifted as he played. In the beginning, he seemed a little nervous, but eventually, as time went on, he lost himself in the sounds. So much so that I was able to take some candid shots, and he wasn’t even aware I was doing it.
I clicked on my favorite picture. It didn’t need any editing, and that wasn’t due to my skill as a photographer. It was totally the subject. I knew he said word of mouth was the best advertising for his business, but I had a hard time believing that anyone who was searching for a yoga studio wouldn’t choose Harmony and Joy if they saw this photo.
He said he was buying the business, which was great for him, but he needed to make it his own. Out of curiosity, I googled the studio, and the only write-up I found was on the Windsor Hotel website that listed all the businesses that were in the building. It said that Harmoney and Joy had been in business for over twenty years, so Aziza obviously had a strong clientele, but Crispin didn’t. He couldn’t make this business his own based on her reputation.
I had no right to get involved or to tell him what to do, but I’d built my business from scratch. I knew a little about what it took to be successful, and that was what I wanted for him. To be able to grow his business and thrive without killing himself working multiple jobs.
There were so many things he could do. Wellness fairs or yoga in the park for example, things that would get his business in front of a whole new group of people. But the simplest of those would be to have a website because he wouldn’t have to do a thing. I could do that for him.
I checked to make sure Harmoney and Joy was available as a domain name. It wasn’t, but Harmony and Joy Yoga was, so I purchased it. I could always transfer the domain name to him if he bought into the idea. I wasn’t going to spend a fortune onhosting and themes and what-not until I sold him on the studio having a page. I’d create a nice, simple, free one just so he could see what was possible.
Of course, nice and simple got complicated pretty quickly because that was the way it went when you were creating a webpage. Before I knew it, I’d worked right through lunch. My stomach grumbled, alerting me to that fact, and I checked the time. Wow, it was almost two o’clock. No wonder I was hungry. All I’d eaten all day was a muffin.
I snatched up my laptop. I wanted to show Crispin what I’d done, and if he wasn’t in a class, maybe I could talk him into grabbing something to eat with me while we looked. I cut across the lobby to the side where his studio was located, but all the blinds were closed, which either meant he was in a class, or he was gone for the day. I reached for the door and pulled on the handle, being careful to be quiet so I wouldn’t interrupt them if they were meditating or something.
The lights in the room were dimmed, and the relaxing sound of flute music was playing while five women were lying on the floor completely still. Their arms rested limply beside them, and their eyes were closed. It looked like they were all napping. Crispin was sitting cross-legged on the floor in almost the same spot he’d been when he played his bowls for me. He glanced up when I opened the door and brought his finger to his lips, letting me know he needed me to stay quiet.
“Now, take a deeper, longer breath,” he said in a monotone, almost hypnotic voice. “Very good, now invite a little energyback into your body, slowly, wiggling your fingers and your toes.”
I stood there mesmerized as I listened to him. “Slowly open your eyes and take another deep breath, this time lifting your arms up slowly over your head with the breath, stretching your whole body. Now lift your legs and roll slowly to your side. Good. Pause there and take another deep breath before pressing into your palms and coming back up to the sitting position.”
He slowly stood up from his mat, walked soundlessly over to the light switch, and brightened the lights a tiny bit. Just enough so everyone could tell the session was over.