Page 122 of Can't Get Over You
“Well, I’m going to leave you my card anyway, so please know you’re very welcome. We’ve got a lot of people coming, and you’ll fit right in. Anyway…” She lifted the heavy tote. “I have something I think will be a good fit for your store.” In addition to food, they sold high-end kitchen and bath products. “You’re my first pitch, so if I’m doing it all wrong, please forgive me.”
Harley broke into a warm smile. “You’re fine. Show me what you’ve got.” She came around her desk, and they both dropped into comfortable chairs.
Okay, girl. This is it.
Finlay loved teaching, and she was good at it. The hard part was that, while the children changed each year, the job didn’t. There were only so many ways to make ornaments or to switchup the curriculum. Only so many age-appropriate songs to sing with her class.
And she really loved tinkering with essential oils and molding soap into fun shapes. But did she have something special, or was she just another person hawking a homemade product?
Only one way to find out…
Finlay pulled out her prettily wrapped boxes. Since it would be months before anyone stocked her items, she’d chosen a spring design with flowers and raffia ribbon. The perfumed scent swirled around them. Pride filled her. It was all just so lovely.Wait till she sees the shapes. “Now, I know you’ve got tons of fancy soaps on your shelves, but mine are different.”
Harley closed her eyes and breathed in. “Smells divine.”
“Right? So first, I use mango butter and avocado oil to make it luxuriously moisturizing, but then…”This is the good part. “I create my own scents.”
“What do you mean?”
“I use what I learned in a perfume-making class to design soaps scented with essential oils.” She handed over one with dinosaur-wrapping. “This is for kids, obviously. It’s my newest line.”Thank you, Cody. “There’s a little plastic dinosaur embedded in it.” She pulled out another one. “And this one…”
“Let me guess.” Harley reached for the package wrapped in colorful blocks. “Legos.”
“You got it.”
“Very cute.” The owner sniffed it. “It smells like cherry candy.”
“Yep. And inside, there’s a Lego person. And for adults, I have these.” She handed over a floral package. “There’s nothing inside, but it’s flower-shaped and smells like gardenia and tuberose. There’s no end to the unique scents I can make.”
Harley closed her eyes and sniffed the package. “Delicious. I could bathe in this. I want it in my sheets and my towels.” When she opened her eyes, she grinned. “I love this idea.”
“Can I leave some samples for you to try? I want you to see how moisturizing they are.”
“You sure can. I probably won’t get back to you until January.”
“Oh, of course. Believe me, I know I shouldn’t be hawking my soap two days before Christmas. I just wanted to start with Lu.”
“Don’t worry about it. I’ll drop some at her house and let her know you stopped by. But honestly, I can tell you right now, we’d be happy to stock it and see what our customers think.”
Finlay got up. “Thank you so much for taking the time to talk to me. Have a great holiday.”Don’t invite her. Keep it about business.But when she got to the door, she turned around. “If you can’t come for Christmas, maybe you’d like to join me and my friends for a girls’ night out the first Friday in January?”
“That’s really nice of you to include me.”
See? She’s totally noncommittal. She doesn’t even know you. “My contact info is on the card attached to the bag. I hope you’ll join us.” She headed out the door. “Happy holidays!”
By the time she’d crossed the street and entered the park, she’d swapped embarrassment with pride.I did it. I made my first pitch.She couldn’t wait to tell Jude.
The competition ended today, so while the judges made their rounds, the teams packed up their tools and loaded their trucks. As she headed to the McKennas’ section, she marveled at the sculptures. How did they come up with these ideas?
She loved the bear with a fish in its claws. Another good one was the mermaid wearing a beanie and scarf around her neck and eating what looked to be a take-out box of french fries.
But when she got to Jude’s entry, she knew without a doubt they’d win. Their attention to detail was exceptional. Thegingerbread-style house had shutters, a bag of toys in the sleigh on the roof, and Santa’s booted feet sticking out of the chimney. She couldn’t believe the artistry. Since the guys were nowhere to be found, she slipped inside.
In it, they had a fireplace with stockings hanging off the mantel and a dining room table with three mugs and a plate of cookies. Voices approached—probably the judges—so she turned to leave when something caught her eye.
Under the table rested a pair of moose slippers. She recognized the antlers of the ones she’d owned when she was eighteen.
Just like Jude’s tattoo.
