She drew back in her chair. “Because it’s a good idea. I worked hard on this. If you don’t want to consider it, that’s fine, but there’s no reason to tell me my idea is garbage.”

“No,” he said, leaning toward her. “Reggie, that isn’t what I meant. I was asking why you would still want to help me?”

“Oh. Because we’re friends.”

His gaze locked with hers. She had the sense that he was looking for something, but she had no idea what it was. Finally he smiled at her and waved the holder.

“This is great. Let’s go try it with a few pies.”

“You want to?”

“Yes. Very much.”

“It’s simple yet strong. I like that in a design.”

He stood. “It’s amazing, and I’m embarrassed I didn’t think of it myself.”

“You’re not a design kind of person. It’s okay. We all have flaws.”

He surprised her by laughing. The happy sound made her concerns fade. Even if she and Toby never found their way to being a couple again, she was glad they could get back to being friends.

“There were customers in the store,” she said. “We could ask them what they think. Oh, and Harrison. He eats the pies all the time. He would be a great tester. If a kid can keep from spilling, then we know it’s going to work.”

“I already know it’s going to work, but we’re going to try it out anyway.”

“Sound good. I’m in the mood for pie.”

He motioned for her to precede him down the stairs. “Me, too.”

Two hours later, Toby knew he was going to be making a change in all the stores. Reggie’s holders had worked perfectly. They’d taken a dozen pies to the back and had cracked some, eaten some from the middle to the ends and had cut some in two before putting them in the holders. The folded paper had kept in the filling and had withstood the pressure of dripping sauce. The design was simple and intuitive.

“Did you bring a contract?” he asked when she’d declared she was too full to eat another pie.

“What are you talking about?”

“I want to buy your design.”

She rolled her eyes. “There’s no buy. I did it because I wanted to. It’s yours. Enjoy.”

“Reggie, this is going to change the industry. You need to get it patented and license it to me. You should be paid for this.”

She smiled. “Change the industry? We’re talking about the hand pie world?”

“It’s bigger than you think, and the holder will have other applications. This is good work, and it’s what you do. I assume you have a patent attorney.”

“Yes, and let me tell you, he’s not as funny as you’d think.”

“You’re not taking me seriously.”