without fear of contradiction. Ruby makes . . . one of the best pies in Harper’s Landing.” I’d almost said the best, but I’d caught it just in time. My mother is prouder of her baked goods than she is of me on most days, and I would have paid dearly for the comment.
Jim whistled, then said, “Nice save, Bro.”
He was the only one who’d dared to talk, and one withering glare from our mother was enough to silence him.
“Did you manage to come to any other conclusions while you were gone?” she asked.
“Listen, what’s going on? Did I miss a memo or something? I didn’t know we were having a family meeting. What’s on the agenda?”
I’d been joking, but Kate said, “If you ever read your e-mail, you’d know.”
“Hey, I just figured out how to turn my computer on yesterday. Do you honestly expect me to get on the Internet? Besides, I’m always here. Why didn’t you just say something to me earlier?”
Kate flushed. “Because I just asked for this meeting. It’s the perfect time for us to add to our offerings, and I want to make my pitch to everyone at one time.”
We had a rule in our family. Though normally it was run as a benevolent tyranny by our mother, Mom did allow us to pitch the entire family on new ideas for our business. It was an inquisition most of us wouldn’t go through willingly, but when one of the kids had a new idea, it got a fair trial from the rest of us.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to interfere with your presentation.” I took a seat next to Cindy, who whispered, “You’re late.”
I smiled. “It’s a real tragedy, isn’t it?”
She tweaked my arm. “Ben, don’t you take anything seriously?”
“I try not to. It adds too many worry lines, and my face has enough as it is without any outside help.”
Kate coughed once, and I shut my mouth. It was hard enough to make a presentation without whispering going on in the crowd, and my family was murder about karma. The next time I pitched something, Kate would bring in a marching band if I made too much noise for her taste in this presentation.
I tried to look encouraging and attentive as I gave her my full consideration. It was the least she deserved.
Glancing at a stack of note cards, Kate nodded to herself, then made eye contact with each of us as she spoke. “I feel it’s time we expand our basic line from just the soaps we carry now to a wide range of beauty and stress-relieving products.”
There were a few murmurs among my brothers and sisters. The Perkins clan had been in the soap business, and just the soap business, for generations. It was a dramatic proposal indeed.
Kate went on, speaking over the doubters. “We need to drag ourselves into the twenty-first century. There are so many complementary products we should be carrying that fit perfectly with our carefully and lovingly handcrafted soap.”
I raised a hand, an acceptable form of questioning. Kate looked reluctant to call on me, but I didn’t back down, and she finally acknowledged me. No doubt she was expecting a blast, since I was known as one of the more traditional members of our family. I was a man of limited interests, devoting my life to the craft of soapmaking, and I could see how she might think I’d believe it heresy to branch out.
“What products did you have in mind, and are they things we can make here ourselves?”
She, along with the rest of my family, appeared to be shocked to hear an intelligent question coming from me.
“I’m glad you asked, Ben. I believe we should start small, with just a few products that we can easily fabricate ourselves. In addition, there are kits available from some of our suppliers.”
“That’s all well and good, but what exactly are you talking about?”
I’d forgotten to raise my hand, but nobody commented on it. Kate held up a display that she’d obviously spent a great deal of time on.
“In the beginning, I think we should add lip balms and hand lotions, but at a later date, I’d
Jim whistled, then said, “Nice save, Bro.”
He was the only one who’d dared to talk, and one withering glare from our mother was enough to silence him.
“Did you manage to come to any other conclusions while you were gone?” she asked.
“Listen, what’s going on? Did I miss a memo or something? I didn’t know we were having a family meeting. What’s on the agenda?”
I’d been joking, but Kate said, “If you ever read your e-mail, you’d know.”
“Hey, I just figured out how to turn my computer on yesterday. Do you honestly expect me to get on the Internet? Besides, I’m always here. Why didn’t you just say something to me earlier?”
Kate flushed. “Because I just asked for this meeting. It’s the perfect time for us to add to our offerings, and I want to make my pitch to everyone at one time.”
We had a rule in our family. Though normally it was run as a benevolent tyranny by our mother, Mom did allow us to pitch the entire family on new ideas for our business. It was an inquisition most of us wouldn’t go through willingly, but when one of the kids had a new idea, it got a fair trial from the rest of us.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to interfere with your presentation.” I took a seat next to Cindy, who whispered, “You’re late.”
I smiled. “It’s a real tragedy, isn’t it?”
She tweaked my arm. “Ben, don’t you take anything seriously?”
“I try not to. It adds too many worry lines, and my face has enough as it is without any outside help.”
Kate coughed once, and I shut my mouth. It was hard enough to make a presentation without whispering going on in the crowd, and my family was murder about karma. The next time I pitched something, Kate would bring in a marching band if I made too much noise for her taste in this presentation.
I tried to look encouraging and attentive as I gave her my full consideration. It was the least she deserved.
Glancing at a stack of note cards, Kate nodded to herself, then made eye contact with each of us as she spoke. “I feel it’s time we expand our basic line from just the soaps we carry now to a wide range of beauty and stress-relieving products.”
There were a few murmurs among my brothers and sisters. The Perkins clan had been in the soap business, and just the soap business, for generations. It was a dramatic proposal indeed.
Kate went on, speaking over the doubters. “We need to drag ourselves into the twenty-first century. There are so many complementary products we should be carrying that fit perfectly with our carefully and lovingly handcrafted soap.”
I raised a hand, an acceptable form of questioning. Kate looked reluctant to call on me, but I didn’t back down, and she finally acknowledged me. No doubt she was expecting a blast, since I was known as one of the more traditional members of our family. I was a man of limited interests, devoting my life to the craft of soapmaking, and I could see how she might think I’d believe it heresy to branch out.
“What products did you have in mind, and are they things we can make here ourselves?”
She, along with the rest of my family, appeared to be shocked to hear an intelligent question coming from me.
“I’m glad you asked, Ben. I believe we should start small, with just a few products that we can easily fabricate ourselves. In addition, there are kits available from some of our suppliers.”
“That’s all well and good, but what exactly are you talking about?”
I’d forgotten to raise my hand, but nobody commented on it. Kate held up a display that she’d obviously spent a great deal of time on.
“In the beginning, I think we should add lip balms and hand lotions, but at a later date, I’d
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