Page 62 of Mayhem
“Just for the next few minutes.”
“Good, then I’m not disturbing you,” his mother stated. “I wanted to know when you and Paetyn were going to bring your girlfriend over to meet Ancel and me.”
Cruz was not surprised that was what she was calling him for. They’d both given their parents the courtesy of knowing they were dating. Not that his mother hadn’t already known they had their eye on Erin since she’d talked to him about it at the wedding.
“Mama, we aren’t at the meet the parents’ stage of our relationship yet. Besides, you’ve already met Erin.”
His mother sighed. “Yes, I have, but as Alijah and Chayse’s friend. Not as your and Paetyn’s girlfriend. There is a distinct difference between the two.” She paused momentarily. “And since I’ve met her once, your dating timeframe is inconsequential.”
She had a point, but Cruz wouldn’t tell her that. Erin also wouldn’t just be meeting his mother but Paetyn’s dad, whom she hadn’t met before. He didn’t think his mother had thought about that fact.
“Give us more time, Mama. We’ll bring her when she’s ready.”
“I’m holding you to that. I won’t keep you any longer and let you finish up for the day. Kocham cie.”
“I love you too, Mama,” Cruz responded before they hung up.
He finished the last email and ensured everything was locked up before grabbing his things and leaving his office.His assistant was packing her belongings, and Cruz nodded his goodbye as he stepped on the elevator.
Once in his car, Cruz made the thirty-minute drive home. He vaguely thought about stopping off and grabbing something for dinner but decided to cook instead since he’d put some chicken breast in the refrigerator the day before to unthaw. That is, if Paetyn hadn’t beaten him to cooking.
Erin looked down at the logo she’d sketched and couldn’t help but smile. She’d lost count of how many she’d started and ended up scrapping halfway through because they hadn’t encompassed the vision she was looking for. She knew that to others, any of the other pictures she’d sketched would have gotten her point across. However, she was her own worst critic, and those hadn’t spoken to her. Not the way the one she’d just finished did. Now, she needed to clean it up and choose a company to employ to make it.
She’d researched several companies that offered sign services and narrowed it down to two. She liked the style in which they made their signs, and they all had outstanding reviews. Erin would call tomorrow to see when she could go in and talk to someone, show them her design, and get a quote.
She took a break from the logo and stretched as she looked around her shop. She’d chosen to work there for the day to get used to the space.
When she arrived, she took several pictures of the space with the blinds open. Though, she would ask Chayse to take some for her as well. She was going to start an Instagram page for her business and wanted photos of the space. She planned on renting booth space to at least two other artists and wanted them to be able to see it before they inquired. She firmly believed thata place’s energy and aesthetic drew people in, but the talent kept them returning.
She’d chosen to close the blinds as she worked on her logo so she wouldn’t be distracted by the people passing by. Erin now needed to determine what she planned on charging in booth rent. When she’d worked in Florida, her final split was seventy-thirty in her favor for booked clients and fifty-fifty for walk-ins. However, it took her almost four years to get the seventy-thirty split.
Erin decided to split the rent with the artist she hired at sixty-forty if they rented five days a week and have the same split for walk-ins. She would split it at fifty-fifty if they only wanted to rent the chair part-time.
While she didn’t have to pay rent on the building, she still wanted to be able to save if something needed fixing and to be sure the utilities were covered. Erin also planned on supplying the transfers, gloves, and skin cleaners since those things had been provided for her. She would also keep the snack bar stocked for staff and customers.
She’d already registered her name and filled out all the paperwork she needed online, and she expected them in the mail in the next couple of days. She needed to get a contract together for the artists she hired. She still had a copy of hers and knew she could use it for reference.
Getting up from where she sat, Erin went to the middle station. She knew the drawers for each station were filled with ink. However, she planned on removing the ink from two of them. Erin would not be supplying ink because it meant her having to keep up with how much each person used, and it was a bigger headache than it was worth. She would allow them to purchase ink from her if they ran out and planned on putting the ones in those two stations in reserve.
She would keep them in a box for now, but she made a mental note to get something else to keep them in. She would ask Paetyn where the drawers were from and order something similar to keep with the feel of the shop.
Her phone rang, and she paused to retrieve it from the desk. It was the same number as before, and she debated answering it but decided that if no one said anything this time, she would block it.
“Hello?” It was silent for a second, and she was about to hang up when someone spoke.
“I...see...avail...in...”
Erin furrowed her brow, only able to make out a few words. Their service was terrible wherever they were, but she thought she heard the word available and figured they might have been calling for a tattoo.
“I’m sorry. I can’t make out what you’re saying. If you’re calling about an appointment, can you call back or text me?”
She hung up and waited a few seconds. When she didn’t receive a call, she assumed they would text her and returned to removing the ink from the stations. She’d check her phone when she finished.
Once she had all the ink cleared from the two stations, she didn’t have room in the box to remove the ink from the two private rooms, but she put it on her mental to-do list.
Knowing that she would be adding several more things to her to-do list, Erin decided to sit down and list everything so she wouldn’t forget anything. She knew it would be a lot of work when she decided to take the leap of faith and relocate and start her own business. However, she was grateful to Paetyn and Cruz because they’d done two more challenging parts for her.
She still had so much to do and an opening day to choose. Erin also wanted to throw an opening event. So, she would need to get that planned out. First, she needed to rent out the twobooths. As well as finalize her business hours and start some marketing. The next couple of months would be nonstop for her, but she was excited. Being her own boss would make it worth it, and she strove to be a better one to others than the two she had.
