Sam looked surprised. “I’m giving her advice. I thought that’s why we were here.”

“There’s a difference between advice and torture.” Patience patted his arm. “You’re such a guy. Luckily, Shelby and I happen to like that in a person.” Patience turned to her. “Shelby, are you doing okay?”

Shelby nodded, mostly because it was too hard to speak. Her throat was tight and her eyes were burning. Now if she gave in to the tears, the symptoms would go away. But then she would embarrass the very nice people who had come to help her. And that help, that very unexpected help, was the reason for the tears.

Apparently she wasn’t the only one Amber had told about selling the bakery. Word had spread everywhere. In the past couple of days Shelby had received lots of unsolicited advice on what to do. The consensus was very clear. Everyone wanted her to buy Ambrosia Bakery.

When Patience had called to ask her to stop by, Shelby hadn’t known what to expect. The fact that Sam Ridge was also at the meeting had surprised her. Then Patience had poured her a cup of coffee and Sam had started talking. Unlike the other people who had come by the bakery to offer their opinions, Sam and Patience had actual, practical advice. Twenty minutes into his explanation on business valuation, her head was spinning but she was also feeling more confident. At least now she knew what to ask.

“Amber will be really fair,” Patience said. “I’ve known her my whole life. She’s very sweet.”

“This is business.” Sam sounded firm. “You don’t mess around with business. Get everything in writing. Do you have an attorney?”

“I need a lawyer?” Shelby hadn’t thought of that. There were a lot of things she hadn’t thought of. Doubts crept in, but she pushed them away. Aidan was right. This was her chance to follow her dream. “I guess I’m going to need an accountant, too.”

“I can recommend both,” Sam told her. “You’re going to need a loan to buy the business. There are several ways to structure that. The loan officer can go over those terms with you, but I can give you a basic rundown now.”

He spent five minutes going over amortization and balloon payments. Shelby’s head started to hurt. She was good at designing cookies and coming up with new brownie recipes. Not talking about finance. How much was the bakery going to cost? She had a small savings account, but she was beginning to see it wasn’t even going to be close to enough.

Patience reached across the table and put her hands on top of Shelby’s. “Don’t freak out,” she instructed. “I know this is overwhelming.” She smiled at Sam. “No offense, but you’re way too thorough.”

“I’m just trying to help.”

“You are,” Shelby assured him. “I really appreciate this. You’ve given me so much to think about.”

Patience’s expression was sympathetic. “But?”

Shelby drew in a breath. “It’s a lot,” she admitted.

Patience drew back her hands and smiled. “Here’s what I can tell you. I had dreamed about opening my own business for a long time. But there was no way it was ever going to happen. I didn’t have the money or the experience. When I got the chance, I was so excited. And I was scared. It was a risk. I knew that. I could have just put my inheritance in the bank and gone on with my life. But I knew I would regret that always. I had to choose between playing it safe and following my dream. Now, a couple of years later, I’m so grateful for the decision I made. Only you know what’s right for you, Shelby. I’m just reminding you that the chance to follow your dream doesn’t happen very often.”