Page 8 of Wishes at Water's Edge
But I wouldn’t change a thing, she thought, feeling her heart ache with happiness.This is the life of my dreams, I just didn’t know it then.
She pulled out her phone and checked to make sure that Cash was still sleeping soundly. He was, and she turned back to Grayson, wondering if she should wake him up. Part of her was telling herself that she needed to get up and put the charcuterie board away, and turn off the TV?—
She shook her head with a smile. They’d already eaten most of the perishable things off the charcuterie board. She would let Grayson sleep. She would just stay there with him, nestled under the blankets, and she…
I hope things do get easier soon, she thought.Once Grayson and I get more used to this whole parenting thing.
A few moments later, she was sound asleep.
CHAPTER FIVE
Julia’s brow was furrowed in concentration as she scrolled through her phone. She was sitting at the kitchen table, searching for place setting cards for her and Cooper’s wedding. She wanted to get something that perfectly matched the vibe of the décor they’d chosen, as well as the quaintly elegant vibe of Turtle Dove Hall.
She smiled as she found place setting cards that had a gilt edge and black sketches of lavender along the borders.
These look perfect,she thought eagerly.I’ll just send these to Cooper and see what he thinks. Hopefully he likes them just as much as I do.
Once she’d sent Cooper a link to the place setting cards, she turned back to her planner, which was open to the page where she’d written out her wedding to-do list. She’d been trying to chip away at all of the tasks that had to be done bit by bit, since it all took so much of her time and energy. She absolutely adored planning her wedding, but it wasn’t the kind of thing that a perfectionist like herself could do in an easy-breezy amount of time. She carefully considered each of her decisions before making them, and she tended to get lost in the process of planning.
She was just jotting down a note on her to-do list when her phone began to ring. She blinked when she saw that it was her mother calling.
“Hi, Mom! What’s up?”
There was a short pause, and then Julia heard the sound of Vivian clearing her throat.
“Julia. Do you know what time it is?”
“Uh—” She glanced at the clock. “A little after ten. Why?”
“You’re late for your shift.”
“Oh!” Julia squeaked, standing up in a flurry. “Oh my gosh, Mom—I completely forgot. I’m so sorry. I’ll be right there.”
Vivian laughed. “It’s okay. We’ll see you soon.”
“I completely lost track of time. I’ve been looking for place setting cards, and—oh, never mind. I’ll race over there. See you soon.”
“Don’t rush! Bye, honey.”
“Bye, Mom.”
Julia hung up the phone, shaking her head at herself. She was still wearing pajamas and her bathrobe, and she raced upstairs to change. She scrambled into a pair of black slacks, glossy flats, and a deep purple sweater. Normally she would have paired a necklace and nice earrings with an outfit like that and taken the time to do her makeup carefully before going to work, but she decided to skip all that.
I’m late enough as it is,she thought with a wince.I can’t believe I forgot about my shift! I’ve never forgotten about a shift before in my life. This whole wedding planning thing has got me totally distracted.
She grabbed her purse and hurried out the front door. Ordinarily she walked the short distance to The Lighthouse Grill, but under the circumstances she decided to drive to save time. A few minutes later, she was scrambling out of her car and hurrying into the pub through the back door.
Vivian was nowhere to be seen in the kitchen, so Julia went out into the dining room to try to find her. She spotted her a moment later, talking to Sally near the front doors.
“Hi, Mom.” Julia gave her mother a hug. “I’m so sorry I’m late. I totally lost track of time.”
“You’re okay, honey.” Vivian laughed. “It’s not like you to be late like this, though. I was hoping you could help us with waiting tables. Stacey is out sick at the last minute, so we’re short.”
“Oh sure.” Julia was used to jumping in and helping wait tables, even though her job was technically managing the pub’s finances and it usually involved her being holed up in the pub’s office until she ventured forth for food and coffee.
“You’re lucky you’re not getting fired,” Sally teased. “A whole two hours late for a shift? My, my.”
Julia grimaced. “I am really sorry. It won’t happen again, Mom.”
