“And if you were willing to give me a few more free haircuts in the future, I think we could call it even.”
“Even?!”
“Yeah.”
“No one has ever done anything like this for me.”
“I’m so glad,” I said. “It wouldn’t be nearly as much fun if people did stuff like this for you all the time.”
She tucked her hair behind her ear. “Are you sure about this?”
“I’ve never been more sure about anything in my life.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. As soon as Nick suggested I rent this space out to another business, I realized it would be perfect for you.”
“So I would be paying you rent?”
“No,” I said. “I don’t want your money.”
“What do you want?”
“I want you to be happy, Lucy. Isn’t that obvious?”
“Are you sure you don’t just feel guilty that I can’t open my own place?”
“Absolutely not.” I grabbed her hands. “Look, I know you’d be able to open your own place eventually without my help.”
She looked in my eyes.
“I have no doubt about that.”
“Thanks.”
“I mean it,” I said. “But you deserve a break, and I feel incredibly fortunate that I’m in a position to help you out.”
“I don’t want to take advantage of you.”
“You’re not,” I said. “This whole thing was my idea.”
She nodded.
“Plus, it’s as much for me as it is for you.”
“How’s that?”
“Cause we’ll be able to learn from each other. After all, neither of us has ever done anything like this before: opening our own businesses, hiring staff, figuring out how to advertise and grow.”
“Uh-huh.”
“Plus, I think it’ll be a lot more fun this way.”
“You do?”
“Of course. And I guess between how things are going between us and me finally opening my own business, it just feels like all my dreams are coming true.”
She smiled.