Page 39 of Call It Home

Determined not to give anything away, I did my best to keep my features looking excited. Hopefully, I did a better job fooling the camera than I did Mac.

“Everything okay?” Mac asked.

“I hope so,” I muttered.

“First, we want to welcome Ken Nguyen. Ken is a celebrity chef and television personality who has appeared on several cooking shows. He is known for his creative approach to food and his ability to think outside the box. Ken is also a passionate home cook and enjoys entertaining guests in his beautifully designed home. He’ll be judging your kitchens for functionality as well as your design elements.”

I clapped along with everyone else. I was confident he’d like our design.

“Next, from season three, we welcome back Vivien Lambert. Vivien is an interior designer and blogger who has gained a large following for her stylish and modern designs. She has also appeared as a guest judge on a previous season ofRenovation Station, where she impressed audiences with her eye for detail and her ability to create stunning spaces on a budget. Vivien is known for her creative approach to design and her commitment to making homes both beautiful and functional.”

She was indeed. She was also a former classmate of mine in college.

Shit.This was not good.

Ken’s smile was friendly as he nodded and greeted all of us. Vivien’s was, too, but when her gaze turned to Mac and me, her grin grew a little cockier.

In all the seasons of the show, they hadn’t had repeat judges, so it never occurred to me that Vivien might return. Now all I could do was pray she’d be fair, because while some might think her knowing me would result in favoritism, I knew it might be the opposite.

“Remember, the winner will be determined by who best created luxurious amenities fit for a professional chef, as well as an ideal area to enjoy eating. Good luck to all of you. Contestants, if you’ll return to your homes, the judges will be there shortly for you to show them around.”

“Want to tell me why you got so tense all of a sudden?” Mac asked once we were out of earshot.

I looked around to make sure we weren’t currently being filmed. “Vivien and I went to school together. Let’s just say we weren’t on the best of terms.”

“In what way?”

I sighed. “We started off friendly enough. But by our second year, things grew cooler. All the design students moved along the same path. We had to present every assignment to each other. We also had to critique each other. It was all designed to help us grow, look for details, and to learn to take criticism.”

I took a breath, reflecting back to my school days. “Let’s just say I usually received better scores than her. That’s not to say she wasn’t talented. But she saw me as her rival. It got particularly ugly over a bathroom design. I swear, I tried to be fair. I always pointed out what I liked about her work. But I also described where I thought there might be some flaws. Let’s just say she didn’t take too kindly to it.”

“You’re worried she’ll be unfair?”

I frowned. “I wouldn’t put it past her. She could never stand to hear compliments about my work. She spent more time tearing it apart. Even our professors had to keep her in check on more than one occasion.”

Mac’s face was grim, but he gave me a reassuring side hug. “Well, now she’s also subject to public opinion. She’ll be careful with what she says. Besides, you’re no longer her rival. And maybe she’s matured since then.”

We couldn’t say anything further because the camera crew was set up and ready to capture us as we waited to learn whatever Vivien and Mike had to say.

We sat on the barstools at the enormous island we’d added to the design. I looked around, trying to see it critically. Were there things we could have done differently? Sure, if we’d had time to knock down exterior walls and expand the square footage of the house.

But even trying to see my work through Vivien’s eyes, I was pleased. Even the pickiest clients I’d worked with in the past would have liked this kitchen. And Mac’s kitchen table design itself was a masterpiece that I knew could easily sell for well over a thousand dollars.

Chelle gave us a hand roll, her signal that we should say something.

Mac nudged me with his elbow. “What are you thinking?”

“Just wondering what everyone else did. I mean, I still believe it will be hard to top this, but it’s hard not knowing what they’re doing in their designs. I just hope the judges appreciate the little details, you know?”

“That’s why we’re here, to point it out.”

A tapping on the front door caused us to look at each other.

“Knock knock,” a familiar voice sang out.

I held my head high and walked to greet our guests. “Hi,” I called with every ounce of enthusiasm I could muster. “Welcome to our home.”

“Wow,” Ken said, looking all around as he stood still and looked around. “This is gorgeous. Take us through what you did.”

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