Page 95 of The Grump

“If you’re busy, I can look around by myself.”

“Nah, you’re going to understand this place better if I walk you through it. Let’s start with the kitchen.”

He followed me inside, looking around at everything. “Oh, you’re listening to Christmas music! How fitting.”

“Yeah. Let me just turn down the volume.” Grabbing my phone, I minimized the sound. “Now, about the kitchen. The ovens were all replaced a few years ago, and they’re in perfect condition.”

“They look good. I’ve loved these pralines since I was a kid. I was so surprised when word got out that the LeBlancs are looking to sell it.”

I just smiled at him. What could I do?

“Are you in the same industry?” I asked.

“We do sweets.”

“More than just pralines?”

“I mean, we do pralines, too, but they don’t taste nearly as good as yours. Did you develop the recipes?”

“We took some over, but my sister and I keep coming up with new ones.”

“I snapped up some pralines at the light festival. They were amazing as usual.”

“Thank you.” I pointed to the door closest to us. “So, that’s the supply room. The boxes are delivered to us, as well as the individual plastic wraps.”

He frowned. “So, who puts them together?”

“We do.”

“How many employees are there?”

“There are four of us. Only my sister and I bake, but we’re also jacks-of-all-trades, doing deliveries, packaging, and everything else.”

He frowned slightly. “It’s not how I would do things, but if it’s working for you, that’s good. Can you show me the rest of the building? I just want to see all the assets and think about what they’d be worth. I still haven’t had an asking price from Xander, and I want to know what to expect.”

Assets.That sounded so cold and soulless, but he was right. That’s what this was.

“There’s not much more to see, just another storage room.” I opened the door. There was no window in here.

He poked his head inside. “I could add another wing, more ovens.”

“So, you expect to expand the operation, then?” I swallowed hard.

“Yes. I’d love to bring my own team, of course. I did tell Xander that I would very much like to convince you to hand over your recipes.”

Another shock went through me.Hand over?I didn’t have a stack of recipes. They were all in my mind.

“What’s your feeling about that?”

“I’ll have to think about it,” I said noncommittally.

“Yes, of course. But, I mean, they’re not your intellectual property. The recipes belong to the Orleans Conglomerate.”

I hated business talk. I really did. “I know that. But all of this requires a lot of consideration.”

He nodded once. “True.”

“Could I ask when you would plan to go through with this?”

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