CHAPTER 33: ANONYMOUS INVESTOR OFFER

There’s a loud pop and then hot steam flows from a silver valve. "Damn it!" Ethan yanks his hand back before it can get burned and clenches his jaw in frustration as more steam continues to pour out. "It finally gave out." He slaps the side of the espresso machine and then turns it off. The cloud of vapor slows down before stopping completely.

"I’m surprised it lasted this long," Leo mutters as he eyes the silver contraption. He leans against the front counter with a wet towel in his hand. "We’re totally screwed though. We can’t make good coffee, now."

Ethan wipes down the condensation that built around the spout and dries his hand. The money he was saving up for the pheromone vents to go in the bathroom will have to wait a little bit longer. He’ll have to buy a new espresso maker first, not when a good percentage of their customers order coffee.

"I’ll go tell mom-" Ethan sighs, but Leo shakes his head and points at a table near the front counter. Ethan turns around to look in that direction and raises an eyebrow when Roxanne sits across from a woman in a blue office dress, a folder and a stack of papers between them. "Who’s that?" He doesn’t recognize her, not as a customer or as a friend of his mom’s.

"I dont know." Leo shrugs. He smooths his blonde hair down and eyes the two ladies. "She came in a few minutes ago and asked for the owner."

Ethan pales and his eyes widen, "You don’t think we’re getting shut down right?" What if the samples were bad and someone got sick? He presses his thumb to his lip and bites at the nail. Or maybe they weren’t allowed to give away samples unless they had a permit? Does someone even need a permit for that? He should have done more research.

"Hey, relax." Leo chuckles. He pulls Ethan’s hand down and pats the back of it. "Does she look stressed out to you?" He nods back in his mother’s direction.

Ethan scans her expression and his eyebrows furrow, "No. She looks excited." She’s scanning the papers in front of her with eager eyes, the lady in blue speaking at the same time. What could have her so happy? The lady in blue stands up, tucking her skirt beneath her, and adjusting the collar of her dress. She cleans up the table by putting the papers away in her leather briefcase and pulling it over her shoulder. She reaches out a hand that Roxanne shakes, her smaller frame standing up and moving awkwardly. The door chimes as she leaves.

"What happened?" Ethan asks when his mom is close enough. Her smile is bright, her eyes shimmering. She clutches the stapled papers to her chest like it’s her lifeline.

"Leo," Her voice is light and airy as she addresses the omega, "handle the front counter please. I need to talk to Ethan."

Leo raises pale eyebrows but nods his head, "Sure."

Roxanne grabs her son by the arm and leads him to the office. When they’re inside she closes the door. She sits at the desk, the leather chair creaking at her weight, and she hands the packet to him.

Ethan’s eyebrows raise as he scans the first page. "An investment agreement?" His heart skips a beat. She came to offer a proposal?

"The samples worked a miracle!" She exclaims, reaching out to grab his free hand. Her eyes water and she quickly blinks the tears away. Her fingers shake as she pulls her hand back, and she fiddles with the mouse of the computer, bringing the screen to life.

"Who wants to invest?" Ethan asks as he flips through the pages. The further he reads, the more surprised he looks. Is this real?

His mother shrugs and clears her throat. "I don’t know." She ends on a laugh. "Susan, that’s her name, the woman I was speaking with, said they would like to remain anonymous."

Anonymous? He knows it’s common for donations to be like that, but business investments? Shouldn’t they make themselves known so they can work with the people they’re investing in?

Ethan chuckles, "This-"

"I know." She cuts him off. Ethan bites his lip and stares down at the amount offered to them. "It’s more in our favor." She stares at the papers in his hands and takes a deep breath. "She walked me through it. There’s little risk involved on our end." Ethan raises an eyebrow at her and she smiles. "I haven’t signed it yet. I told her I wanted to discuss it with you first."

Ethan rubs the back of his neck and leans back against the wall. "I’ll have to go through it more thoroughly." As soon as he finishes speaking, Roxanne stands and gestures for him to sit in the chair.

"Stay and read it." She shuffles to the door and turns the handle. "We’re not so busy that you’re needed out there. Then we can discuss tonight. After you’ve weighed the pros and cons."

There aren’t a lot of cons, though. He thinks as he sits down. He sets the packet on the desk and taps his finger against the surface of the table.

Roxanne shuts the door when she leaves. Ethan goes through the agreement page by page, taking note that the investor doesn’t plan on making a profit equal to what he’s giving. That part makes him uneasy. The amount of money they’re offering is enough to not only hire more staff members, but upgrade their equipment, and even remodel the building if they wanted too. Isn’t it too much? Ethan would be able to buy not only a new espresso machine, but also the pheromone vents he wanted for the bathroom.

Why would some random business person want to invest in some low town restaurant? Why would they want to remain anonymous? He purses his lips, it’s all suspicious, but the risks are low.