Page 92 of The Holiday Hate-Off
He leans in and kisses me on the cheek before finding his coat, which Giovanni ditched on the floor. He pulls it on and walks out into the cold.
The moment the door closes behind him, it feels like the magic that’s been building in the shop shatters like old glass.
What on earth just happened?
CHAPTER 19
ENZO
TEXT CONVERSATION WITH GIOVANNI
Get over here. My place. We’ve got some planning to do. Bring Nico.
He’s back behind the sandwich counter, man.
Then you come.
Giovanni?
Giovanni? Hello?
Fucking Wi-Fi.
Lucy is a beautiful genius.
This is what we’ve been missing.
This is the idea that’s tried to bob into my head for days—finally brought to the surface in The Sweetest Thing. It wasn’t just the comment Lucy had made; it was the whole atmosphere. The songs, the dancing, the sweetness.
It made me think differently about togetherness.
We need to work with the other businessesaround us, the way the Sip works with Making Whoopie. If we can develop specialty items with other shops specific to our brand, it’ll help everyone. I’m thinking cannoli whoopie pies, limoncello candy canes, and chest hair taffy (okay, the name needs workshopping). Hell, we can even ask Chowder House Rules to make a special minestrone for us. Working together. Making the tourism seasons stronger for everyone. This is it..
This. Is. It.
I’m scribbling in my notebook, brainstorming, when a knock lands on my door.
I answer it, and Giovanni gives me a long look. “Did you even take a shower? You still smell like a can of air freshener.”
No, my mind has been whirring too fast.
If other stores want to get in on the action, we could hand out bucket lists or scavenger hunts:Try all the whoopie pies in Hideaway Harbor!Or,Find every place that carries The Sweetest Thing’s candies!
What could we stock at other shops?
“I think we need to get other shops to carry our mini panettones,” I say, excitedly.
“Then you can be the one who tells Nico,” he huffs. “And you’ll have to help him.”
He steps in, pushing an envelope at my chest.
I look down at it, frowning, as I close the door behind him.
“What’s this?”
“It’s from the cabbage lady down the hall. I saw it outside her apartment.”
“Right, yeah, thanks,” I mumble, sticking the card in my pocket for later. I can’t lose focus now. “I’ve got it, Giovanni. I’ve got a way to fix all of this for us.”
