Page 9 of Second Round

“A wwwunderful wine,” agreedSharon.

I reached for a new wine glass, but he shook his head. “I’ve got a nice Cab breathing on the counter to go with the roast. I’d like to save my palateforthat.”

“Wickedly wise of you,” said my evil bestfriend.

“Actually, this is perfect timing.” Wayne rubbed his palms together. “Wendy tells me you’re looking for a job,Jackie.”

I nodded, and he continued. “Well, you know that my company does executive relocation. We have a lot of clients, including the Vancouver Millionaires hockey team. Anyway, their farm team, the Vice, have hired a new coach, and we’ve been asked to pull together a furnished two-bedroom suite for him. I was thinking that this would be exactly the kind of job you might be able to do. Wendy’s always admiring your place, and she tells me you’ve got a real nose forbargains.”

Wendy’s own nose wrinkled up. “Wayne! That’s not a good job for Jackie. You told me it was half the budget and a quarter the time of your normal projects. Besides, she has noexperience.”

He patted his wife on the shoulder. “I know, dear. Look, Jackie, I’ll be honest with you. Normally, we wouldn’t even touch a job like this. The Vice don’t have the big budget of an NHL operation. However the Millionaires are good clients, so I agreed, but I don’t have anyone available to work on such short notice, and then I thoughtofyou.”

“Jackie’s not going to want to do this,” Wendy protested. But only a few minutes ago, part-time shifts at Michael’s were good enoughforme.

“Actually, it does sound interesting. What would I have to do exactly?” Iasked.

“It’s pretty simple. We have a leasing agent, he’s already looking for a place, and then we’ll send you in to furnish it. You’ll have a budget, and it won’t be a huge one. But he’ll need everything: pots, pans, sheets, the whole she-bang. First, I’ll set up a meeting with Fiona—she’s one of our most experienced designers. She can give you a rundown on what thebasicsare.”

My excitement rose. I loved decorating almost as much as I loved bargain shopping. I was famous for my “shopping bible,” which was a list of secret sources for anything home-related. “Who is thiscoach?”

“Leo something. Goatee or some name like that,” Wayne replied. “I’ve never heard of him, but I don’t know anything about the AHL. They’re pretty hot on him, or they wouldn’t be giving him all these perks. Most guys at that level have to find their ownhousing.”

“Will he tell me what he likes? I’d hate to paint the place blue and find out hehatesit.”

“From what I hear, he doesn’t seem to care too much. It’s going to be him and his daughter. Maybe not too froufrou. But I’ll get you his number, and you can talk to himyourself.”

“When does this have tobedone?”

“Yesterday,” Wayne replied with a grin. “The guy’s already here and staying in ahotel.”

I hugged Wayne. “Thank you so much. This job soundsamazing.”

Wendy shook her head. “You don’t even know how much it pays yet. This is going to be a lot of work in a veryshorttime.”

“But it’s something I know I can do,” I replied. I had furnished our house on a budget. We bought before Brent was making good money, and our huge mortgage meant there was nothing left for furniture. I’d managed to transform hand-me-downs and garage sale finds into a lovely home. Even Brent acknowledged that the place looked like a million bucks on a minisculebudget.

The Harrises got ready to leave. Wayne told me to come by after dinner, and he’d print out a contract. “It may not pay a fortune, but it’ll be better than what you’re making at that artstore.”

After they’d gathered up Wyatt and left, I had a quick panic attack. “Oh my God, can I even do this job? Do you think I’m doing the rightthing?”

Sharon nodded. “It’s right up your alley. And if you do a good job, who knows, maybe Wayne will hire you again. Or maybe you can get work staging homes orsomething.”

“Yes. It’s work experience. Something real I can put on myrésumé.”

I felt happier and more optimistic than I hadinages.

4

Welcome toShitsville

Leo

Lucky stoodat the end of the dressing room before morning practice and addressedtheteam.

“Gentlemen, as you know, Bob Pankowski is still recovering in hospital. The latest update is that he’s already begun his rehab, so that’s a good sign of progress.” He paused, and there were a few nods and grunts ofappreciation.

“Great news,” one player piped up. It was Rico Aleppo, the winger that Barber had been shitting all over at last night’s game. Last night when I finally got to the hotel, I’d gone through team roster on the programme and matched every face to theirstats.

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