Page 40 of The Hometown Dilemma
Jaime
“I can’t believeyou and Wade.” Cami peeled a piece of pineapple from the top of her pizza slice and popped it into her mouth. “Never figured you two would get it together.”
Sylvie and Jerry had finally gone back to Florida, leaving earlier that day. Both of us were visibly relieved by their departure, finally being able to relax again in our own home. We loved Sylvie dearly but having her around for such a long time sometimes became wearing. Her constant questioning over my career choices wouldn’t be missed either.
We’d treated ourselves to pizza again, having a quiet night in because I had a book club meeting later. Chatting with Cami was exactly what I needed right now, even if it was still a bit weird talking to her about Wade since we’d both slept with him. When she’d reacted badly to finding him in my bedroom the morning after the storm, we’d had a heart-to-heart that afternoon, each of us apologizing for how we’d acted.
I wrinkled my nose at her choice of topping, enjoying the pepperoni feast on mine. “It certainly wasn’t planned.”
“Exactly. Wade likes to seize an opportunity and run with it.”
It wasn’t as if I didn’t know that. We’d been friends before and I knew all about his checkered relationship history. While I wasn’t exactly expecting a ring and a wedding, I hoped it would be more than simply a notch on his bedpost. We knew each other better than that.
“Maybe it’ll be different.”
Cami giggled. “It would be totally like you to tame the town bad boy.”
“He’s hardly that,” I snorted.
“Did you ever talk to Austen after your non-date?” She reached for her glass of wine. “To find out why he lied to you?”
I shook my head. “I probably should. And I should thank Mom for doing something nice for me for once. If she hadn’t told me about Moira, I might be dating Austen now instead of Wade.” I’d gotten caught up in the excitement of doing the job I wanted to do and became oblivious to Austen’s own motives. While I worked at Dempsey’s, the interior design dream had been parked. Helping Wade meant more to me right now.
“So, what are you going to do?” Cami asked, taking a swig of her drink. “What happens now? I mean, I know the design show thingy is out the window, but you can’t work in a bar forever. You can’t waste your degree and all that experience.” She sounded like our mom.
Stalling for time, I grabbed my own glass and took a sip. “Honestly, I don’t know. I’m enjoying a job that doesn’t have too much responsibility and although it can be long shifts and late nights, it’s not draining me the same way my job in New York did.” Everything I’d said was true. I could treat this like a sabbatical, maybe give myself another couple of months and then try to start my own business again. Maybe the book club girls would be able to shed some light on my dilemma. We usually spent at least some of the meeting talking about what was going on in our lives before we got stuck into the book details. Daphne would definitely have an opinion as my former mentor.
“Such a waste of all those glorious dresses though,” Cami pouted.
“You’re more than welcome to borrow any of them whenever you’d like.”
“And when am I going to have the opportunity to wear a replica DVF wrap dress? Can’t exactly wear it to the salon and the parties Braden takes me to are more jeans and a hoodie than dress-up.” She let out a long sigh.
“Yeah, true.” As I thought about how much my wardrobe had cost, I winced. But a girl had to have the latest styles and dressing up for client meetings had once been my thing. More recently, I’d been dressing down or been naked when Wade was around. My phone pinged with a reminder for the book club meeting. I wasn’t in the mood for it tonight, but guilt prickled me if I pulled out on such short notice. I didn’t like letting the others down, ever the people pleaser. “I’m going to go and set up for book club.” I filled my wine glass before going upstairs. It never hurt to have a drink on the go while we chatted.
Once in my room, I decided to get changed into something more comfortable. After getting dressed in a pair of denim shorts and an old, comfy sweatshirt, I stared in the corner at the discarded portfolios and mood boards. Pulling out the ones I’d done for Moira Channing, I was struck by how good they were, even if nothing would ever come of them. With a sigh, I wondered if working at Dempsey’s was enough or whether I should try again with the design side of things. Never a quitter, my confidence had been knocked by recent events and I should get over myself. But in Abbott Ridge, carving out a new niche was hard. Particularly when people saw you in a certain light. My enthusiasm for discussing books tonight dipped. I wanted the time to think about the future again, to work out what I should do. And while I loved this month’s book,Kiss Me Ever Afterby Julie Archer, I didn’t just want to talk about it. One of the main characters, Lennon, had taken a chance and moved back to London to secure her dream job. If a fictional character could do it, so could I. And the opposites attract element also reminded me a little of Wade and me.
Pushing the mood boards back into the corner, I settled myself down in the middle of the bed and switched on my laptop. Logging in, I automatically checked theInterior Nirvanawebsite out of habit. Nothing had changed, despite my hopes it would. It would have been a total dream to have auditioned and maybe even gone on to win. I couldn’t dwell on what might have been. Reality was right here in Abbott Ridge. And not everything about being here was bad. Living with my sister again was turning out to be a lot of fun and getting together with Wade had been an unexpected bonus. Sometimes actual reality was better than imagined.
Finding the right link for the video call, I logged in and leaned back against the pillows. If things went as they sometimes did, I could be here for the night. Right on time, the various pictures changed, and the grid filled up with the familiar faces of Daphne, Brandi, Skye, Catherine, Mila, Shannon, and Arlowe. Despite my mood, I couldn’t help but smile when I saw them. One day we’d get to have a meeting in person again. If I’d have thought about it earlier, I could have invited the Abbott Ridge girls over to my place for drinks and nibbles, then joined the meeting together. Definitely too short notice now.
“Hey, ladies,” said Catherine. “Jaime, it’s great you’re back in town. What have you been up to since you’ve been home?”
“Not a lot. Been working with an old friend at Dempsey’s and trying to work out how to get a design business off the ground.”
“Honey, you should talk to Riddick,” suggested Brandi. “I keep telling him he needs to do more with the restaurant.” Mutely, I nodded. Being able to work at The Fall Line would be a great start to my portfolio.
“And you can always come and take a look at The Inn,” added Shannon. “It’s probably due for redecoration.”
Why hadn’t I spoken to these girls when I’d first come back to town? It was as if each of them already had something I could do for them in terms of design. Mentally, I slapped my forehead for being so dumb.
“Aww, thanks, girls. I should have spoken to you sooner.” I blew kisses at the screen. “Then maybe I wouldn’t have needed to work at the bar.”
“From what I’ve heard, it’s turned out to have alotof extra benefits.” Daphne chuckled.
Heat flooded my cheeks. Damn Cami and her gossipy ways at the salon. My sister was the only one who really knew what was going on between me and Wade.
I held my hands up, palms towards the screen. “Surely we don’t have to talk about this now, we’re supposed to be discussing the book.”
