The Secrets of Ice Cream Success Read Online Free PDF Page B

Makes sense.’
Newton said.
    ‘ No it
doesn’t.’ Norton interjected. ‘It makes no sense at all. He’s spent
the last year telling us he doesn’t want it and now it finally gets
to the point when he gets his wish, he changes his
mind.’
    ‘ It’s not that
simple.’ Abi defended.
    ‘ Anyway, he’s
allowed to change his mind, isn’t he?’ Ben added, standing up.
‘Right, I’m hungry.’
    ‘ You’re always
hungry.’ Abi said with a smile. ‘But I reckon Mam’ll have some
pizzas downstairs. Carlo?
    ‘ No thanks. I
better get back and see Uncle Randy. I bet he’s dead angry.’ Carlo
sighed before walking out of the door.
    ‘ He’s not your
Uncle!’ Norton shouted after him.
     
     
     
    ‘ You OK?’
Randy asked passing Carlo a cup of coffee.
    Carlo took a sip to put off
saying anything. He didn’t even like coffee that much, a sin
according to Newton who seemed to know more about Italian culture
than he did, but right now he’d happily drink five cups rather than
look up at Randy and have to try and explain his actions. Randy,
though, didn’t look that angry. In fact he looked rather
concerned.
    ‘ I’m not going
to shout, it’s alright. We can get the papers printed up again and
we just sign them another day.’
    ‘ Oh…’ Carlo
grunted, feeling awkward. ‘I’m not sure I want to
anymore.’
    ‘ Really?’
Randy asked looking just as taken back as he did in the office when
Haverton Hill had walked in. ‘We’ve discussed this for quite a
while now, Carlo. Changing our minds is not something we should
rush in to.’
    Carlo grimaced at the continued
use of “we” but said nothing. He was very aware that this was his
decision but that it also affected a great many other people. After
a while he stopped pretending to drink the coffee and put it down.
‘That man…’ he said quietly. ‘Did he know Dad?’
    ‘ Well, yes.
Quite well in fact. Haverton and your father were the two biggest
producers of Ice Cream in this part of the country. And as
competitors they made it their business to get to know each
other.’
    ‘ Did they like
each other?’
    ‘ Err… no, not
really.’ Randy answered. Correctly guessing what was on Carlo’s
mind, Randy moved to sit next to the young boy on the sofa. ‘Look,
Carlo. You can’t take what Haverton said about your dad to heart.
He was just annoyed because he had expected to be able to waltz in
and buy the company and you stopped him.’
    ‘ I don’t like
him!’ Carlo said earnestly.
    ‘ That’s
allowed.’
    ‘… and I don’t
want him to get hold of Leodoni’s.’
    ‘ Well that
might be more difficult…’
    ‘ I’m not
joking, Uncle Randy. He’s never getting it. And if that means I
have to be in charge for the rest of my life, just like Dad, then
that’s what’ll happen!’
    Randy leant back in the sofa
and ran his fingers through his greying hair. ‘Well,’ he sighed,
‘The Company is yours, but I am not going to deny that it will mean
a lot of very hard work if you want to start it up and run
everything and it may not even be possible. If this is the course
you want, I will support you, but it won’t be easy.’ Randy stared
up at the ceiling and sighed again. ‘This won’t be easy at
all.’
    ‘ Thanks.’
Carlo said, quietly.
    Randy looked down at his young
charge. ‘It’s OK. It’ll work out. Right, we have some work ahead of
us then. We need to get everything ready in the next six weeks
before you go back to school.’ Carlo nodded. ‘And we need to review
the staff portfolio and see how many of the old guard are able to
return. It will be difficult. People moved on after the factory
closed; they started new lives.’
    ‘ But if they
left because Dad died, why would they come back?’
    ‘ They didn’t
leave because Luigi passed away, Carlo.’ Randy chuckled. ‘Your
father was well loved, but on whole a company survives the death of
the owner.’
    ‘ Why did they
leave then?’
    ‘ Hmm… I
presumed you knew