Page 93 of New Day at the Beach House

“I think I have to,” Claire said. “There’s just too much stuff to go through. You can’t do that all on your own. It’s going to take days.”

“It can’t take days. Not more than two, anyway,” Kat said. “I need to be back here, organize whatever comes with me, and be ready to start work. I know it seems daunting, but there just isn’t a whole lot in that house we need to keep. Other than the few antiques you want, our clothes, and whatever sentimental items there are.”

“And my baking things.”

“Right.”

Claire exhaled, doing her best not to get bogged down by the weight of having to clean out that house. “I need to focus on minimalizing and not getting caught up in the process. Because the sooner that house is sold, the better. That money will help a lot.”

“All you need to do is identify what you want to keep. Then you can pack up your baking stuff, your clothes, and personal items in your car and come back here. Me and the boys will take care of the rest.”

“It’s so much for just three of you.”

Kat smiled. “Mom, I can do this. Those two men are very capable. And I’ve already been in contact with the local veterans association. They have a thrift store that will take pretty much anything we want to give them. They are ready and waiting with a truck.”

“Really?” Claire shook her head in wonder.

Kat nodded. “And I hope you don’t mind, but I reached out to Nick Walker.”

Claire blinked in confusion. “Who?”

“You know, that guy who advertises he’s the number one realtor in Landry? I figured if anyone was going to sell the house fast it would be him. I asked him to come by the house and give us an idea of what it could sell for and what would need to be done to get the best price. Like painting. Have the carpets shampooed. Stuff like that.”

“Wow. You are really on top of things.”

“Just trying to help, because I know you’re busy.”

“Thank you for doing all of this.” Claire was amazed at how her daughter had taken charge of this big job. Kat had really grown up lately and Claire was thrilled to see it.

“I’m happy to do it. Happy the guys are going to help me, too.”

“So am I. That’s very kind of them. Alex isn’t even family. By the way, are we any closer to having a dinner date for the four of us?”

Kat sighed. “No, I forgot to ask him about that. I will, though. Promise. There’s just been a lot going on.”

Claire had a feeling her daughter meant because of Ray. “No worries. We’re going to be here a long time. We’ll make it happen.”

“How are things going with the bakery?”

“Good. Dinner last night was great. They loved the cookies I made and we talked a lot about different ideas for promotions and who we need to hire and when we’re going to get that underway…all kinds of stuff. Thankfully, Danny’s daughter, Ivelisse, is handling a lot of the ordering. She’s getting us bags, product boxes, and nice Mrs. Butter’s Bakery aprons for all of the employees to wear. Danny’s handling the equipment side of things. But I’m in charge of the edibles.”

Claire’s lists of items to be made got longer every day, but the lists were also keeping her sane.

“You’re really going to be swamped, aren’t you?”

Claire tipped her head back and forth. “I don’t know about swamped, but as we get closer to opening, I foresee some long days in my future. Maybe some long nights, too. Getting a bakery up and running is no joke. The amount of product we’ll need for opening day is kind of staggering.”

“I bet. You really need the cases full, don’t you? I mean, there’s something appealing about abundance, isn’t there?”

“Yep. You said it. And we’ll have to do our best to anticipate which products we’ll sell the most of so we can be ready to restock. The cookies and the popcorn bars won’t be too hard to keep up with. I’ll have extras of them, no problem. But cakes, pies, cupcakes—those things all take longer. Especially when they have to cool before being decorated.”

Kat looked at her. “I literally can’t imagine the amount of work and planning you have ahead of you. I’d be a nervous wreck.”

Claire laughed. “I probably would be if I let myself think about it too much. Which I’m not.”

“Is that why we’re going shopping today? Because you need the distraction?”

“Maybe. It won’t hurt. But it’s mostly because Jules liked everything I got and wanted to go herself.”

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