Page 16 of The Funnel to You

“No, I’m good. I really want to see what this will turn into. And I’m taking care of myself. I’m protecting my weekends and will be able to rest after work tomorrow. And Carter and Kylie bring home dinner tomorrow too so I won’t have to cook or anything. Maybe you can come join us sometime.” I say and then stop. Did I just invite him over for dinner? Where did that come from?

He smirks a bit, “thank you for the invite. Maybe we can set something up in a few weeks. I would like for us to get through the end of the month and have a solid plan for July before I take a breath on this. You have your next meeting with Ashley on Friday, right?” I nod.

“Okay, good. Let me know if you hear from the brand or the market before then so that way I can give her some things for you for that meeting.”

“Thanks, Matt. I am planning to get a tablecloth and folding table tomorrow. Even if I don’t end up doing the event this week, there are other opportunities for this, and there is an office store close to work I think. I’ll have to double check. I’ll see you next Tuesday.” I smile and then head out to my car.

At home that night, I fall asleep quickly after double checking my email. The brand proposal and the notice from the farmers market came in within the last half hour and I am still trying to wrap my head around today. Each day I get closer to my dream of doing makeup full time. And I cannot wait. Even if it makes as me nervous as standing in a room with two hundred other people all wanting to talk to me.

Wednesday morning starts stupid early and I am not happy about it. I am not a morning person. And it’s still dark outside. Gross. At least it isn’t cold outside. I am even happier when Ryan gets to the store with my iced latte. I seriously love this man.

“Your wife knows I love you, right?” I ask him as I take the latte and pull out my notebook for his company.

He laughs at me. “Yes, she knows. She loves you too. You save me money so I can spend more on her.”

“Good. Just making sure. Before we dive into this I have to tell you what happened last night. I have my first brand deal signed and sent in and I’ll be at the Windsor farmers Market this Saturday. This week has been incredible so far!”

“That’s awesome. How long until I have to find someone else in this store that can help me out?”

“Well, no one is going to be able to handle your contracts like I can.” I say with a bit of a snark to my voice. It’s early and we have been working together forever. “But I’m shooting for the end of the year, but we will see. Hoping I can switch to part time by then and then fully be done by the middle of next year. It depends on a lot of things though. This is just step one. And no matter when that timeline happens, I will make sure to pass along your information to someone who I can trust to take care of your projects.” I’m not sure if I can stay past the end of this year fully anymore. I am not loving it as much as I used to. And my heart is now set on pursuing makeup.

We work together for about an hour and then he heads out. I immerse myself into my work until I notice that it’s lunch time. I only take a half hour lunch most days, so I head across the street to grab something at the grocery store. Keeping it simple today and just going to the deli for a salad or something. At checkout, I look up and see Matt across the way also checking out. I’m at self-checkout and he’s at a register with a full load it looks like. I don’t want to be weird about it, so when he doesn’t notice me, I grab my things and head back to work. I didn’t think he lived close to here…I thought he was in Windsor like me, and this is Fort Collins. The store is 20 minutes from our coffee shop. Maybe he was over here running other errands…

I get back to work and finish up my tasks for the day then drive over to Target to get what I need for this weekend. I was going to do the office store, but decided I should probably get a few other things for my table that won’t be there. Thirty minutes, one latte, and way too many knick-knacks later, I am done and ready to head home. As I sit in my car, I get a coupon notification from my coffee shop for tomorrow. #winning!! I’ll have time to swing in before my shift to grab a drink and breakfast.

The apartment is quiet when I arrive home, so I set up at the table to send in the files to be printed for Saturday. Once those are all done, I pull out my new notebook to piece together what I want for the market on Saturday. I like having a new notebook for each area that I am working on. And the new one that Matt got me with the art print from the local artist is perfect for the farmers market things.

I texted Ashley earlier since she tends to go to the market frequently with her parents to see what other vendors may be in attendance. I want to do a little research on who we may be in contact with.

Matt: I was able to get a map of where all the vendors will be this Saturday at the market. Wanted to send it to you as soon as I got it so you can see who will be next to you and which vendors you would like to chat with. Let me know how I can help.

Me: This is perfect! Thank you so much. I thought this wasn’t going to be sent out until Friday though…

Ashley: Have you met my brother yet?

Me: LOL. Just curious.

Matt: I was able to get an early copy. Have fun at dinner tonight and don’t forget to unplug for a bit. I know you had an early morning today.

Me: Will do. Thank you.

I take a look through the attachment that Matt sent over. It seems like we have a really good spot between a spa and a bookstore. And there is someone who makes skincare products and a honeybee product vendor across from us too! I could not ask for a better spot.

I’m just finishing up a new page in my notebook about which vendors I want to check into further when Kylie and Carter get home. Dinner is pretty standard and I appreciate the time to connect with my roommates again. Wednesday nights are our time to breathe and catch up. I hear all about the drama at the restaurant and Kylie and Carter help me go over my stuff for Saturday. Kylie will also be home Friday morning so we are going to see about including her in some content if we have time. This week just got busier, but we have a plan to make it all happen.

Thursday morning starts bright and early, thankfully later than yesterday, with me at the coffee shop at 8:30. I don’t have work until nine so I have just enough time to grab my coffee and something to eat before I head out. I order a honey latte and a breakfast sandwich and then grab a cookie for later. The chocolate chip just looks so good right now. The barista takes down my name and then lets me know that my order has already been paid for. Huh, that’s nice. I give her my card anyway to pay for the person behind me in case this is a “pay it forward” situation. As I wait for my latte, I see Matt and Ashley working at a table nearby so I go over to say hello.

“Hey guys. You are out early today.” I say specifically to Ashley. She is like me, not wanting to be up and about before we actually need to be.

She smiles up at me. “Yeah, this dude over here decided we needed to get stuff done early today so we could head up to Horsetooth and go hiking a bit. Are you heading to work?”

“Yeah. I am. Hiking sounds amazing though! I haven’t been to Horsetooth in forever. Have a good time and send me more pictures!” I give another quick smile to her and Matt and then grab my things and go. I wish I had more time to hang out or even stay here and work with them. I have enjoyed getting to work with Ashley, but I have enjoyed getting to know Matt. And between our meeting Tuesday, the store yesterday, and now here…him showing up where I am is causing him to be in my mind more than I was expecting. Is this coincidence or is this turning into a bit of attraction? No, I know this is attraction. The right question is, is this coincidence or fate?

Chapter Nine and a Half

Ashley

Iced Americano with Vanilla

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