Love And Coffee: A Cup Of Grace Romance Series Book 1 by Katy Halliday

call it something like, Cup of Grace.”
                  They all looked at me without saying a word for a minute.  I could feel my face turn pink.  I had missed it.  Was it that dumb of an idea?
                  “That’s an awesome idea,” Matt finally said.
                  Kathryn nodded her head.
                  “I love it,” Jillian said, clapping her hands.
                  I let out my breath.  “I think I really like it, too.”
                  And that’s how Cup of Grace was born.
     

 
     
     
     
    CHAPTER EIGHT
     
     
                 
                  A week later, we were standing in the middle of an empty store.  It was cute as could be on the outside.  The windows had wooden gingerbread trim and it was situated in an older upscale neighborhood.  We thought that it would bring lots of foot traffic due to so many other shops nearby.  It was adorable when viewed from a car driving by.  Who could resist stopping in for a latte?
                  But on the inside?  It smelled.  Bad.  And it was dirty.  Really dirty.  There had been a pizza restaurant there previously so the stove was still there, thankfully. Jillian would need one and that was one less expense we had to pay for.  But it had been empty for over a year and it showed it.  The previous owners must have left in a hurry because it looked like they hadn’t stopped to clean the place up.
                  “Well, what do you think?” Al, our Real Estate agent asked.  “It’s a great location, and you know you need that for a coffee shop.”
                  “That’s true,” I said, looking around at the damage.  We would have to paint everything.  I hadn’t really anticipated that the entire place would need it.  And the ceiling had some chunks of plaster missing.  We would have to fix that.  But it could be adorable, I thought.  We could pull in some tables and chairs and maybe even a sofa just like on Friend’s.
                  “I know what you’re thinking,” Jillian said.
                  “What?” I asked, turning to her. 
    “You’re thinking about all the work.  That’s okay, we have Matt.  He said he would help us.”
                  “Yes, but we have to pay him for the work.  We can’t expect him to do all this out of the goodness of his heart.  The man has rent to pay.  And we have a budget.”
                  Kathryn put her arm around my shoulder.  “I think this is the place.  We’ve been to six other places and none of them felt right.”
                  I sighed.  “You’re right.  This is the place.”  We would all just have to put forth a whole lot of elbow grease.  I looked at Al and said, “We’ll take it.”
                  Al smiled real big and whipped out a contract for us to sign.  I let Kathryn handle the details on the contract.  She was better about that sort of thing than I was.  Or at least I hoped she was.  I wandered back into the kitchen.  I could smell baking berry scones and pumpkin bread beneath the stink of the shop.  I smiled, and it was for real this time.
     
    ***
     
    “Okay, here goes nothing,” I said and opened the oven door.  The light from the room made a few roaches scatter.  “Oh wow.”  I said and slammed the door.
    “What?”  Jillian called from the front of the shop.
    “Oh it’s nothing.  This place has been empty for a while and I guess a few critters have taken up residence.” I shuddered.
    I picked up the bucket we had brought along, put it under the sink faucet, and began filling it with water.  I added some vinegar and dish soap, determined to make the counter tops shine.
    “Hello?”  I heard a voice say.
    “Hey Matt!”  Kathryn said.
    I went to the kitchen door.  “Matt!”  I called and put on my best