Ginny Gold - Early Bird Café 03 - Dead and Berried by Ginny Gold

he’d gone out of his way to help her get better deals and go through his market. She couldn’t blame him for trying but she was happy with her current setup. Thinking about the meeting now jolted her wide awake and she rushed through her morning routine—teeth brushing, face washing, throwing on jeans and a t-shirt and walking Ibis.
    Teddi was waiting outside The Early Bird Café by the time she and Ibis returned.
    “Morning Kori,” he said, a smile on his face and not a hint of annoyance in his voice at having had to wait.
    “Hi Teddi. Sorry to keep you waiting.” Kori unlocked the door and led the way back to the kitchen. She didn’t have today’s menu planned but she’d figure that out. There were always smoothies, pancakes, granola and omelets if the meeting ran later than she expected.
    “I wasn’t waiting. I’d just gotten there when I saw you coming down the sidewalk.”
    Kori wasn’t sure if he was just saying that to make her feel better but she accepted it anyway. She turned the coffee on as she passed by and grabbed two mugs that they’d be able to fill up in a few minutes. She placed them on a table near the window and Teddi sat at one side of the booth. Kori slid in across from him.
    “I’m going to get straight to the point because I know you’re even busier than I am,” Teddi started and Kori was thankful. “I’ve crunched some numbers, and given the quantities you buy, I’m hoping that I’ll be able to offer you a discount. Buying together will increase the size of our orders so we’ll get a bigger bulk discount. And we’ll be able to split the cost of shipping. I’ve looked over your vendor list and I’m familiar with most of them.” Teddi placed several sheets of paper on the table between them and Kori spun them around to look more closely.
    “Wow. You’ll be saving me over a thousand dollars a month.” Kori was surprised and ecstatic. She really only bought spices, flours, and other baking goods that couldn’t be made locally at her two favorite farms from vendors outside Hermit Cove. So she was even more surprised that even with so few goods she could save that much money.
    “I thought you might like those numbers.” Teddi was beaming.
    They spent the next twenty minutes going through the first two pages of numbers and vendors with a fine toothed comb. They compared the few suppliers they used that were different and came up with workable solutions, sometimes using Kori’s choice and sometimes going with Teddi’s. Kori was pleased with the outcome and excited to sit down with him again in a few days to work out the details.
    Thoughts were running through her mind about where that extra revenue could go. She knew that she had to finally invest in branded uniforms. Even if it was just t-shirts with a logo, or just a few aprons, it would help create brand loyalty. And she also wanted to expand—if possible eventually—and hire an employee. She’d been toying with the idea of extending her hours an hour or two into the afternoon, and having an employee would make that easier.
    By five fifteen Kori had to get to work. “Thanks so much for coming by, but I’m going to have to cut this meeting short. I’ve gotta get the menus up on the walls. Can we finish this tomorrow or Thursday afternoon?”
    “Of course!” Teddi’s smile had n’t shrunk at all throughout their conversation and it was clear he was thrilled to be partnering not only with Kori but with The Early Bird Café. Both the market and the café were landmarks in the area and teaming up would only help both of them.
    As soon as Teddi was gone and Ibis was curled up on her dog bed in the office, Kori got to work on the menus. Green smoothies were a must, followed quickly by granola and yogurt, plain or banana pancakes, strawberry rhubarb muffin s—some leftovers from yesterday at a discount and fresh ones that she’d have to make throughout the morning—and choice of eggs and hash browns. Simple yet