Page 22 of The Hometown Dilemma
“Oh, such a shame. He’s a nice guy. Few too many tattoos for my liking but seems like a sensible man with his head screwed on straight. I assume he’s still working at the bar?”
“He’s the owner now, Mom,” explained Cami. “His dad’s not been too well, so he stepped back from the business. Wade’s pretty much running things on his own.”
Wade’s offer for me to go back and work in the bar came back to me. I had dismissed the idea because I thought I’d be overwhelmed with design work. But if that wasn’t going to come to fruition, I needed a Plan B. Although I didn’t have to pay rent at home because the house had been paid off, I still needed money to live on. The meager savings I had since coming back from New York were starting to run out.
“Sorry to hear that, Lloyd and Violet were always such a good team.” Mom drained her wine. “Does anyone want coffee?” She waved the waiter over and we ordered. Mom quizzed Cami some more about the salon and seemingly satisfied with her answers, turned her attention to me once more.
“Tell me again why you thought leaving a highly paid job with a well-known firm in New York to come home was a good idea?” She’d had a couple of drinks and I could tell her filter was well and truly off.
Cami placed a reassuring hand on my arm while Jerry stared down at his plate, his discomfort obvious.
“I wanted to break out on my own. Start my own design business. Apply forInterior Nirvana.” I stated my ambitions clearly, almost for my own benefit and not my mother’s.
Her eyes narrowed. “Why would you want to be on television? Putting yourself out there in the public eye to be shot down by people who don’t know you?”
“As opposed to being shot down by people who do know me? Like you?” I should have been used to my mother’s disapproval as she’d pretty much been giving it to me my whole life. But to have her shoot down my dreams stung.
She softened. “That’s not what I meant. Being on a show like that can be damaging and I know how sensitive you can be about things.”
I ignored her attempts to smooth it over. “But it’s what I want to do. And I’m going to go after it no matter what you think.”
Sylvie stirred her coffee. “You’ll regret leaving New York. There must have been a wealth of opportunities you could have taken. Coming back here almost seems like defeat.”
My fists clenched under the table. Trying to keep my voice even, I responded. “I like to think of it as more of a triumph if I can set up on my own. Be my own boss. Do things for myself.”
“If.” The word came out as more of a snort. “Why you couldn’t have chosen a more sensible career like your sister, I’ll never know.”
Cami reached for my hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze. When I’d been in New York, Mom had openly criticized my sister for her career choices. Oh, how the tables had turned.
But it strengthened my resolve to make things a success.
* * *
Later that night,alone in my room, I clicked on the link on my phone which took me straight to the application site. When I read the announcement there, everything I’d wanted so badly came crashing down around me.
Attention: New Applications!
Interior Nirvana regret to announce that we will no longer be accepting applications to appear on our third series due to cancellation by the broadcaster. We thank you for your interest in the show and wish you all the best in your future design career.
All the other pages on the website had been taken down.
I actually wanted to throw up.
The one thing I had pinned all my hopes on had disappeared.
Mom was right.
I was defeated.
What the hell was I going to do now?
ChapterTen
Wade
Leaning against the bar,I chewed the end of my pen. Much like my father, I hated the admin side of the business and the thought of completing all the forms and online information for the sports channel licenses left me cold. But if I wanted more people to come into the bar, I had to do it.
There were a few people there, getting a snack and a drink as the lunchtime ‘rush’ kicked in; mostly regulars who liked the quiet atmosphere and enjoyed Sonny’s haddock and bacon chowder. Thank God for the lunchtime specials.
