Page 51 of The Fiancé Hoax
“I know. I’m going to adjust the prices on everything tomorrow.” I swallowed.
I shut my machine off and crossed the space toward him while he took everything in. He still hadn’t looked at me, though.
“What are you doing here, Dad?”
“Just thought I’d see what kind of place you have.”
I shook my head, amazed. “You’ve never set foot in the store before.”
He shrugged. “First time for everything.”
He swept his gaze over the walls and ceilings, and looked at a couple more racks. Then he headed toward the back.
“Here, let me show you my workspace. I cut all the fabric here.” I gestured to the bolts of material and the large table I used to cut pieces. He nodded, then glanced at my small collection of sewing machines and sergers. “And I make all the clothes here.” I held up the wide-leg pants I’d just finished. “Hot off the press.”
Dad frowned. “Why are you doing that today? I thought you’d be working on managing the business, not making more clothes.”
“I wanted to finish the garments I was working on before…” I shifted my weight. “Before Cooper gave me his recommendations. I can’t stand leaving a project unfinished.”
Dad grunted noncommittally.
I clipped the pants on a wooden hanger and hung it on the rack in my workspace. “Actually, that was the last item for my new summer line. Now I’m free to focus on the prices and marketing.”
He came to a stop in front of my oldest machine, a vintage Singer. Slowly, he reached out and ran a finger over the top of the machine. “This was your mother’s, wasn’t it?”
I nodded. “Yeah. Good memory.”
After a pause, he walked toward the large window in the back of the store. “Lots of windows in here.”
“Yes, that was what convinced me to rent this space. I need natural light to work.”
With a nod, he turned and walked a few steps toward the middle of the store. He went to the sales counter where I had the cash register and some small items for sale.
He pointed at a small bowl full of pearly white stones. “Are those moonstones?”
“Yes.” I smiled. “Mom’s favorite.”
A slight smile pulled at his lips as he picked up one of the stones. “That’s right.” He got a faraway look for a moment, then replaced the stone in the bowl with a sigh.
Finally, he turned to face me.
Here it comes.
I clenched my teeth and braced myself for his criticism of the boutique. Or maybe he’d scold me for mooching off Cooper.
Instead, he gave me the surprise of the century.
“You’ve got a good setup.”
I beamed. A weight lifted from my shoulders. “Thanks, Dad. I’ve worked really hard on this place. And the clothes, of course.”
“It shows.”
He held the sleeve of a flowy dress on a display rack, inspecting the design.
“There’s still so much to do,” I said. “There’s so much I wasn’t aware of when it comes to running a business. Cooper’s been helping with that.” I fidgeted. “Hopefully, it will be a thriving store soon.”
He looked at me. “You could have done that yourself, Felicity.”