Page 111 of Holiday Hire

"Yep. Do you know what color you want?" I question.

"Hmm, maybe red."

"I'm going to do green," Ace proclaims.

I ask, "Light green or dark green?"

"I don't know. Maybe in the middle."

I smile at him through the rearview mirror. "Green's a good color. So is red. What about you, Wilder? Dark or light?"

"I don't know. I'll let you know when I see it," he says.

I smile. "Fair enough."

By the time I get to town, my insides have calmed. I push the issues between Alexander and me out of the way and focus on the kids. We go into a hardware store and find the paint samples.

"Have at it," I tell them, then pull several colors out to see how they coordinate next to each other.

Wilder asks, "What color will you do your room, Phoebe?"

"I don't know yet. It'll depend on what we do for the rest of the house."

Ace asks, "You're going to do the same color?"

"No," I say, as if it's a sin.

"Good. That would be boring," he declares.

I laugh and then pick up several bright colors and a few muted ones.

Ace picks out an apple green, and Wilder selects a cherry red. We go up to the man behind the paint counter, and I put all the swatches down, telling him which colors we want and how much of each.

He points to a chart. "Do you want flat, eggshell, or one of our other finishes?"

I study the sheens and decide, "Let's go with eggshell. Can you do it in the one that claims it doesn't scuff up?"

He nods. "Sure. It will take me about twenty minutes to mix all this."

"That's okay," I reply.

The boys and I stroll down different aisles, picking out a couple of new light fixtures.

We return to the counter and load the paint cans into the cart. Then we head to the checkout, and I pay with my racetrack winnings.

We leave, and the boys load all the paint into the back of the SUV. I chirp, "Ready to go find some more stuff?"

"Yeah, this is fun," Ace says.

"Dad's going to be so surprised," Wilder adds.

Alexander's face appears in my mind, and my heart aches. I push it out again, saying, "Okay, let's go."

We get back in the car and drive down the street. I pull into a lot for a home decor store. The boys and I pick out posters and art for their walls. I grab a handful of blank canvases so we can each create something for our rooms.

Then, we find some window treatments, sheets, and quilts for all the beds, and some throw blankets for the main room. By the time we're done, I've spent everything except $820.

"I don't think we can fit anything else in the SUV," Ace states.

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