Page 18 of Second Chances
Finishing her yogurt, she reviewed the images she’d put together as an idea board for Caroline’s studio and exhibition, trying to take into account some things that she knew about her and what she’d been able to glean from her style of art and previous showings.
Ten o’clock. Showtime.
Stopping in the kitchen to throw away the container, Beth moved back into the closet to see what her options were as far as clothing for this morning. She decided that a nicer pair of pants and blouse with flats was her best bet since she was going to be spending the afternoon on her feet. She quickly blew out her hair and got dressed, grabbing an Uber to Balthazar, excited to see Jane and meet her newest client.
When the car pulled up,Beth got out and saw Jane standing outside waiting for her.
“Hey, you didn’t have to wait! Is Caroline here?” Beth asked, hugging her sister.
“I’m not sure, I haven’t gone inside. I just thought I would wait for you,” Jane responded, fidgeting shyly.
Beth smiled and gave her hand a reassuring squeeze before leading the way into the restaurant. The hostess informed them that the other member of their party was already here and led them over to their table, where the exquisite blond that Beth vaguely remembered from the party was sitting. Caroline was gorgeous, there really was no other way to describe her. Her loose-flowing blond curls were softly pulled back from her face. She was wearing what was meant to be a loose-fitting style of pants, yet they seemed to be made for her body, hugging her curves just enough and in the right places. Her blouse, too, was attempting to be loose except her breasts didn’t give it much of a choice. She filled it out and made what most would consider a modest top, appear incredibly enticing. Beth couldn’t help but envy those women whose bodies could literally make a sack of potatoes look sexy because that was definitely not her.
On seeing them, Caroline stood up and gave them both a dazzling smile amidst the expertly applied makeup on her face. She came around the table and gave them each a hug and reintroduced herself, her personality seeming much warmer than it had the first time Beth had met her.
“So good to see you both again,” Caroline exclaimed as they all took their seats at the table.
“You too! I’m glad we could meet up and get a chance to hang out and chat. Charles has told me so much about you,” Jane replied warmly with a smile.
“I’m sure some of it was not-so-flattering,” Caro said with a laugh, “I don’t have the best track record with my family, but I’m working on it.”
Well, she was definitely a straight-forward, no-nonsense type of person.
“Well, we know how that can feel,” Beth chimed in with a smile. She didn’t want to be too involved in the conversation just yet because she didn’t want to hijack Jane’s opportunity to get to know her future sister-in-law with all business talk.
“So how long are you in town for, Caroline?” Jane asked.
“Oh, please! Call me Caro - everyone does. Well, don’t hold me to it but, I think I’ll be in town for the foreseeable future; I just signed a year lease on a townhouse, which is the longest I’ve even leased something for. So, hopefully, with your sister’s help and guidance, I can hit the ground running with my studio here,” she replied with a confident nod to Beth.
“Wonderful! Were you tired of Europe? I mean, Charles seemed to think that being in Europe really fueled your passion and inspiration; he was - pleasantly - surprised when you told him you were coming home.”
“I do love Europe, but I went there for certain reasons that I’ve moved on from and I felt it was time to finally come back and begin my career here, where I always wanted it to be, and repair certain relationships that I’d destroyed,” Caroline explained as she took a deep sip of her coffee.
Beth watched the interaction between the two yet she kept having this gnawing feeling inside that there was just something off about Charles’ sister. Maybe it was because she’d been in PR for so long that she recognized when people were hiding something, but she couldn’t shake the feeling that there was more to Caro’s return than she was letting on. Granted, she’d basically just met Jane and her, so why would she share her personal struggles with basically two strangers?Still.
They ordered mimosas and brunch and Beth continued to be a passive participant in the conversation, mostly observing, her curiosity listening for any clue as to what really brought her back here. While they ate, the conversation turned towards Jane and Charles and their upcoming wedding. Caro seemed genuinely interested in Jane’s plans for the wedding and how she and Charles met and fell in love. Beth thought she glimpsed a look of longing mixed with jealousy in her eyes as she listened to Jane’s responses, but she couldn’t be sure. Her mental investigation was paused when Caro addressed her directly,
“So, Beth, I’m really excited for you to see the studio. I’m not sure if you’ve seen any of my work…” here she trailed off, waiting for confirmation or denial.
“Yes, thanks to Google, I was able to look at a couple of pieces that were popular and sold in Europe,” Beth informed her, while Jane just gave a slight nod indicating that she too had seen or, more likely, heard from Charles the subject of his sister’s pieces.
“Great! So you’re familiar with my subject matter,” she said wryly before holding her hands up to her mouth, mock-shielding her next comment, “I hesitate to just start talking about naked portraits here - the general public of the US is so sensitive!” She set her hands back down with a laugh.
“Yes, Europe is overall a little more laissez-faire on that subject,” Beth agreed.
“Anyway, so I was thinking of giving the studio space a very rustic, ‘naked,' if you will, vibe,” Caro continued her original thought.
“I think that would work really well with the subject matter,” Beth agreed. “For the opening, we could do some naked cake, berries, etc., and give it that naked and natural vibe.”
“What a great idea!” Caro exclaimed, “I’m so glad I hired you.”
The conversation turned back to Europe as Caro began recommending places for Jane’s honeymoon. Soon enough they had finished eating, paid for their meal and were saying goodbye to Jane and getting in a cab to take them to Caro’s studio space.
“Ok, I want you to be completely honest with me if the theme is going to work for the space. I may be an artist but interior design is not my forte,” Caro said as she unlocked the door to the studio.
As Beth stepped inside, Caro turned on the track lighting, illuminating the space.
“Well, the hardwood floor is going to work well. The exposed beams we can work into a rustic appearance. Overall, I think it’s a great space, lots of room to work with and nothing that jumps out that wouldn’t work with your vision.”
