Page 16 of The Hometown Dilemma
The new workspace provided the drive I needed, and I started to pull together my ideas, creating mood boards with the basic materials I had. Without access to the fabrics and swatches usually at my fingertips, I found it harder to come up with something that would work. But I lost myself in the project, relishing the peace to work in.
An hour later, I realized I was hungry since I hadn’t eaten breakfast. Stretching out my shoulders and neck until they gave a satisfying crack, I got up and went to the kitchen.
Cami obviously didn’t believe in doing a full grocery trip. When I opened the refrigerator, the shelves held little apart from some milk, eggs, and a pile of unidentified green mush. On closer inspection, it could have been mint, no doubt bought for cocktails and subsequently forgotten about after one mojito. Holding the offending item between my thumb and forefinger, I dumped it in the trash, wrinkling my nose against the smell.
We’d have to have a serious chat about who would be doing the shopping going forward.
I whipped up a simple omelet and made some coffee. It would have to do until I had the opportunity to go to the store later. Trying to separate myself from my work, I ate in the kitchen, leaning against the counter. Once finished, I went back to the dining room with every intention of having a super short social media break before getting back to the designs. But all those thoughts disappeared as I saw the messages from my sister filling my phone screen.
Cami:SOS! Mom’s texted. She’s coming home this weekend for a visit and she’s bringing her man.
She’d followed it up with a scream emoji, which nailed my exact thoughts about the visit too.
Jaime:Shit, really? I thought I’d at least have the chance to settle back in.
Cami:Said something about being worried about you and whether you’ve made the right decision coming back to Abbott Ridge.
I fought the urge to roll my eyes. As if Mom had even consulted Cami and I before she’d hightailed it to Florida. What gave her the right to question me? Okay, I guess she was my mother and supposedly had my best interests at heart.
Jaime:Why didn’t she contact me then? Why did she tell you first?
Cami:Because you usually ignore her messages? And I’m the favorite younger daughter, obvs, lol
My sister’s first comment hit the mark. Not wanting to burst Cami’s bubble, I chose to ignore it.
Jaime:Guess we’ll have to prepare for Hurricane Sylvie’s arrival. We can talk more tonight.
Cami:Ugh, and here I was thinking we’d make some cocktails and have a fun night. There’s mint in the fridge for mojitos.
Ha! Knew it!
Jaime:You mean that pile of green sludge? I threw it in the trash.
Cami:Already? I only bought it about a month ago.
Ugh, No wonder it was rotten. Recalling the smell, I almost vomited.
Jaime:I’ll get some more on my way home later. I’m going to see Austen this afternoon.
Cami:Ooo!! Tell me more!!
This time she sent a bunch of heart eyed emojis and a couple of eggplants. I could always rely on Cami for her subtlety. I sent her back the eye rolling emoji.
Jaime:Nothing to tell. Now I have to get back to work.
Cami:Spoilsport. My client canceled so I’m going to have to clean the waxing station now.
I shuddered, wondering exactly what that might entail.
Jaime:Mmm, sounds like fun. See you tonight.
Cami:Have a good afternoon! Send Austen my love! Bahahaha!
Shaking my head, I shut down our message thread and opened up Wade’s from earlier. I tapped my fingertip to my lips, wondering how to respond. Several times I began to type something out, then realized it either sounded harsh or ungrateful. When I started a fifth attempt and deleted it, I tossed the phone down on the table with a huff.
Perhaps not answering would be enough of an answer.
To stop myself from thinking about Wade, I turned my full attention back to Moira Channing’s staging. Despite my earlier struggles, the ideas began to flow, and it didn’t take me long to find a theme to easily pull together the flow of the house and the rooms. Usually, I’d take a couple of days to nail the scheme, but for some reason this moved at a much quicker rate.
