He slowly stood and entered.
The first thing he noticed was the enormous family photograph hanging on the wall.
Fourteen grown and nearly grown children surrounded me.
Behind us stood the first bakery.
Under the photograph were smaller framed pictures showing each stage of the business.
Our first handwritten menu.
Our first storefront.
Our first newspaper feature.
Our first expansion.
Then Daniel saw the large framed logo on the opposite wall.
FOURTEEN HEARTS KITCHEN
He stared at it.
“What is this?”
I folded my arms.
“This is how I raised our children after you left.”
He looked at me, confused.
So I told him everything.
About Grace’s six banana breads.
About Michael delivering them door to door.
About the children folding boxes around the kitchen table.
About the café order.
The bakery.
The second location.
The third.
As I spoke, his face slowly changed.
“You built all this?”
“We built it.”
