Page 36 of Flights and Sights
Paxton: Good morning.
He replied almost instantly, bringing a smile to my face. I wondered if he’d been thinking about me, too.
Callum: Good morning yourself. How’s business?
Paxton: You have no idea. This weekend was… a lot.
Callum: In a good way, I hope.
Paxton: A little of both, I think. Do you have time today?
Callum: For you? Of course.
The response sent warmth rushing through me. We made a quick plan to meet and I wasted no time in getting myself up and ready for the day. Around an hour later, a knock at my front door summoned me. Callum. My heart fluttered as I went to answer the door.
“Hey,” I murmured as I pulled it open to see him standing there, a bright smile on his face.
“Hey,” he echoed shyly.
“Come on in.” I stepped aside to let him enter. Just as I did, my phone chimed with an incoming message. I glanced at it and shook my head. “You’ll never believe all the emails I’ve gotten.”
“Really? About the taproom?”
I nodded. “Lots of questions from tourists reaching out from the contact page. Some were people looking to book the space for events or have us come to their event and serve, a few were writers looking to do a piece, a couple were news outlets. But… sit down, I want to show you this one.” When he sat, I passed him my phone, the screen pulled up to display the email from Ms. Holloman from the day before. I watched anxiously as his gaze darted back and forth over the screen as he read, sitting next to him on the couch. When he passed my phone back, my stomach fluttered. “Well?”
He was grinning. “That’s incredible. What do you know about The Carson Group?”
I shook my head. “Not much. I started doing a little research, but I don’t even know where to look. I feel like I should be asking a lot of questions or getting an attorney or something.”
“You probably should.”
“I don’t know what I should be looking for in an attorney though, or what I should ask them.”
“Maybe start with finding out more about the exact arrangement they’re proposing. Do they want to just give you money, or are they looking for something where they have decision-making power? And how do you feel about those choices? Can they bring anything to the table besides cash? Maybe they own other property or have ins with suppliers or a builder.” He shook his head and let out a slow breath. “Whew.”
“Yeah.” I chuckled softly. “I feel a little…”
“Overwhelmed?”
I nodded. “Overwhelmed. I keep thinking of all the things I’m going to need if I do expand. If I score grant money, I mean. It would involve coordinating the whole construction project to expand the building and parking lot, finding new honey suppliers, hiring more staff… It feels like a lot.”
He put a hand on my forearm. “That’s okay. You knew it wasn’t going to be easy. It is a lot but you can do it. It’ll be worth it, right? This is your dream.”
“If I get any grant money. But if I don’t… maybe working with an investor is the way to go. You know?”
“I’m sure you’ll do what’s best for Celestial Cask, no matter what you decide.”
I put my hand on his and squeezed. “Thank you.” A moment passed. “What would you like to do with our time today? Tommy and Matty agreed to open, so I have a while before I have to go in.”
Callum grinned at me mischievously. “I’m sure we can think of some kind of trouble to get into.”
I couldn’t help but laugh, even though the overwhelm had started to creep in. “Oh?”
He nodded. “I have an idea. I read about this place in an article about things to do in Foggy Basin. Have you ever been to Lover’s Butte?”
Chapter 18 - Callum
As it turned out, even though he’d lived in Foggy Basin almost his entire life, Paxton hadn’t been to Lover’s Butte, not even during the day, when it was supposedly more of a picnic spot than a place to park and make out. We swung by the farmer’s market and picked a ton of fresh fruit, bread, and cheese to take up there, along with a bottle of a sweet, summery white wine and some picnic supplies, and took his pickup truck to the overlook.
