Page 43 of Wishes at Water's Edge
What if he’d been right—had she and Grayson cut their chances of success short by leaving the city when they did?
CHAPTER TWENTY
Julia took a deep breath as she and Cooper walked up the front steps of Turtle Dove Hall. He noticed her inhale and reached for her hand, squeezing it reassuringly.
“It’ll all turn out okay,” he told her warmly. “I promise.”
Julia nodded, trying to keep a brave face on things but feeling her heart hammering in her chest. They were going to speak with Lindsay about the state of Turtle Dove Hall—and whether or not having it as their reception venue would be at all feasible.
They stepped inside the cool, high-ceilinged venue. Soft jazz music played over the loudspeakers, and for a moment, Julia’s stomach did a somersault as she wondered if things were nearly finished, and Lindsay was planning on reopening the venue sooner than expected.
A moment later her heart sank again, however. It was clear that the water damage was still extensive. Wallpaper was peeling and the beautiful floor had warped in the places where the water damage had been the worst. Some of the light fixtures in that area had been removed, and as she got closer to the spot, she smelled a musty odor that hinted at mildew.
“Do you think she’s here?” Cooper asked, looking around the room.
Julia was about to shrug and suggest that they call her when a door opened on the side of the room and Lindsay stepped out. She was looking down at a clipboard, but a moment later she looked up at them with a smile.
“Julia! Cooper. Glad you made it.” She hurried across the room and shook their hands. “I asked Jacob to come to our meeting as well, since he’s more knowledgeable about the state of this place than I am. But I talked to him earlier, and he said that things look promising.”
“Really?” Julia asked hopefully. She wanted to ask “Promising for the venue overall, or promising that things will be ready by our wedding?” but she didn’t want to seem as though she didn’t care about the venue for Lindsay’s sake. She did—she simply hoped that everything worked out well for both the business owner and her and Cooper.
Jacob came into the main room a moment later, his tool backpack slung over his shoulder. It seemed that he’d been doing repairs in another part of the building. His face lit up into a grin when he saw Julia and Cooper.
“Hey, guys! You’re here to talk about how the repairs are going?”
“Yes.” Julia sounded a little breathless, but she couldn’t help it. “Do you have an update for us?”
“I can’t put a timeline on it, unfortunately, but things are going much quicker than I’d expected, so that’s great. The plaster behind the wallpaper doesn’t seem to be damaged, and I removed the light fixtures to be sure, but the insides of the walls seem to have avoided any damage. So that’s great—we just need the pipes in the attic replaced, the wallpaper redone, and the floor and ceiling repaired.”
“An easy little to-do list,” Cooper joked.
Jacob grinned. “Yeah, well, it could have been much worse. I think that if we get a whole bunch of hands on deck, and it’snot just me puttering away slowly, we can get this place back to rights in time for your wedding.”
Julia felt hope explode in her chest like a firework. “Really?” she asked, thrilled. “Do you really think so?”
“I do.” Jacob gave her a sideways hug. “I know how much this place means to you guys, so I wouldn’t get your hopes up without cause. I think it could all work out great, as long as we get enough volunteers on board.”
“Sounds wonderful.” Cooper’s eyes shone with happiness. “I bet between the four of us, we know enough people in town who would be happy to help out.”
Julia thought of all the times the people of Rosewood Beach had come through for her and her family. She felt a glowing feeling in her chest, and she realized that there was a huge smile on her face.
“I’ll say it sounds wonderful,” Lindsay said with a laugh. “I could sure use the business sooner rather than later, considering how much all of these repairs are going to cost.”
For a moment, all of them stood there smiling at each other, the happiness and hope apparent on all of their faces. Then Jacob’s phone began to ring, and he pulled it out of his pocket eagerly. When he saw the screen, his eyebrows lifted.
“Ah, I have to take this,” he said. “Excuse me, everyone.” He hurried away across the room as he answered the call. Julia heard him say. “Hello? Yes, this is Jacob. Yes! Oh, that’s wonderful news!” before he disappeared from the room.
I wonder what that’s all about,she thought with a smile.Looks like there’s all kinds of good news today.
She turned to Cooper and they shared a determined look. The next step would be asking for help with Turtle Dove Hall. Hopefully, the people of Rosewood Beach would come together as a community and save the wedding venue in time for Cooper and Julia’s wedding.
“Here we are! Micah did great.” A smiling nurse stepped up to Hazel’s receptionist desk at the doctor’s office. Beside her was a little boy whose broken arm had just been covered in a bright blue cast. “He was so brave.”
Micah’s mother was standing beside the nurse, and she bent down and kissed her son on the head. “So brave!”
“Great job, Micah.” Hazel stood up, smiling at the little boy, who looked a little pale after his ordeal but was smiling as well. “Would you like a lollipop for being so brave?”
Micah nodded, his smile widening. Hazel chuckled and reached inside one of her desk drawers, where she kept a stash of lollipops for child patients. She picked out a bright blue one that was blueberry flavored. She had a feeling that Micah’s favorite color was blue.
