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“No one forced me into anything,” Carly said, holding up a hand. “Beth was right. If you have an idea that helps the business, I need to hear it. We need better promotion. What I do not understand is how you can help with that.”
“Okay.” Lauren drew a breath. “Well, I checked, and this place has sixty-two Instagram followers. I think we could change that. If we run a series of short videos—Reels, TikToks—we build visibility. Nothing gimmicky. Just real content. Warm-ups, injury prevention, proper form.”
Carly tilted her head. “And who films these?”
“That’s the thing.” Lauren managed eye contact for half a second. “I thought we could. Together.”
The word hovered in the damp between them.
“Together,” Carly repeated.
“Yeah.” Lauren cleared her throat. “It’ll have more impact if the owner appears. And I’m a qualified therapist, so we both know our stuff. If we show up together, it looks legit. You know?”
Carly leaned back.
She hated being set up by Beth. She hated that Lauren was sitting in front of her looking nervous and hopeful, as if history could be put aside with a social media plan and a decent lighting angle.
Most annoyingly, she liked the idea.
This location didn’t have the die-hard membership her dad had built up elsewhere, so a solid social media presence could help. Hiring a content creator wasn’t in the budget, and Beth’s social media knowledge began and ended with Facebook stalking.
“What do you get out of it?” Carly asked.
“The same thing you do, I hope. More clients.”
“But we’d be posting on our socials. Not yours.”
“I figured you’d tag me. Feature my services. I want us to help each other.” Lauren offered a hopeful smile, then seemed to think better of it and looked down at her hands.
Carly weighed it up. The idea was solid. The partner was the problem. But she wouldn’t let personal history dictate business strategy.
“Put it in an email,” she said. “I’ll read it when I have time.”
Lauren nodded, stood, and fled through the door.
Beth practically fell through the frame, catching herself on the doorjamb.
“Did she propose or just beg for forgiveness?” she asked once Lauren was out of earshot.
“You tell me. You were the one eavesdropping.”
“Outrageous suggestion. I was heading to the toilet.”
“Of course.” Carly kept her voice flat. “And I expect you want me to believe you didn’t know Lauren was the tenant.”
“What does it matter? After all, she doesn’t bother you.”
Carly willed her jaw to relax. “No. She doesn’t. That’s why I told her to send the proposal. It wouldn’t look good to turn her down after telling the staff we were open to suggestions.”
“No,” Beth said, her usual self-satisfied smirk firmly in place. “It would look like you were punishing her because of a grudge. And we both know you don’t hold those.”
7
Lauren
Lauren shut the treatment room door, put her back against it, and slid down until she was sitting on the floor.
All she could picture was Carly’s face. The look that told her she was the last person on Earth Carly would ever take seriously. The look that had just torpedoed Lauren’s business plans, sunk her chances of paying rent, and killed all her hopes and dreams.
