Page 6 of The Beach House With You 2

“Ay! Yes, Jeanette called me about you two!” Gloria squealed, switching to English in a beautiful accent. “Welcome, darlings, welcome.” Coming around the corner of the counter, she wrapped Carmen and Franny up in a hug, and, very much like their mom and cousins, she squeezed them tight to her.

“Your mom didn’t warn us about how friendly this town is,” Franny murmured with a laugh as she was held tight.

“Ay, yes, sorry,” Gloria apologized, pulling away, “We all grew up together here, you know. It was a very close community and still is mostly.”

“No, please don’t apologize,” Carmen replied quickly, going in for another quick hug. “It’s nice. And thank you so much for squeezing us in today. I hope it didn’t cause any trouble.”

“No, no trouble at all,” Gloria assured her, patting their cheeks before going over to Jacob. As she did to them, Gloria wrapped her son up in a tight hug, and for a moment they spoke back and forth in Spanish again. After a few minutes, Jacob untangled himself from his mother’s arms and grinned over at Carmen and Franny.

“My mom’s going to take great care of you,” he promised them. “If you want a ride when you’re finished, she’ll give you my number and you can call me and I’ll come pick you up.”

“Thanks, Jacob,” they replied in unison as he made his way toward the door.

“Come, darlings, come with me,” Gloria said, beckoning them to follow her. “Let’s get you squared away, yeah? The locker rooms are right through here and here are your keys. There are already robes inside the locker and some disposable booties if you want to wear them. When you’re ready, just go through the door that says Botanical Spa Room. That’s where we’re going to be today.”

Carmen and Franny thanked her once more, and then eagerly went into the locker room to change. In no time at all they were ready and heading toward their designated door. When Carmen opened it for them, a burst of warm air hit them. They both let out a gasp as they felt the warmth and took in the view. It was a sunroom, with floor-to-ceiling privacy windows facing the beach. Tropical plants, rock statues, and water features were sprinkled artfully everywhere, and somewhere a humidifier was letting out lavender and rose-scented essential oils into the moist air.

Throughout the sunroom, which was approximately fifty feet in circumference, there were white canopies spaced evenly throughout the privacy screens and trees. They spotted the one that had two women in white standing outside of it and began walking toward them.

“I would have had no idea this was back here,” Franny said in awe, taking in the view of the glass-domed ceiling.

“Kudos to Gloria,” Carmen added, also taken aback at how beautiful the spa room was.

“Good evening, ladies,” the woman on the right greeted them with a smile, bowing slightly at her waist. “I’m Marley and this is Suzanna. We’re going to be taking care of you today! Gloria has informed us that you will be getting the full package today, which comes with complimentary snacks and wine. Inside your canopy, you’ll find a small menu that you can circle your selections on, and we’ll be bringing those out throughout the day. Are you ready to be pampered?”

Excitedly, Carmen and Franny answered yes, and let themselves be shuffled under their canopy. After looking over the menu, they both ordered the champagne, fruit platter and charcuterie board. Once they were finished, they handed it back to Marley, who quickly left to fill their requests.

“This is going to be so amazing,” Carmen whispered as they sat in the pedicure chairs and Suzanna began to fill their foot basins.

“In case I’m too relaxed to tell you later, sorry for being a grouch earlier,” Franny whispered, leaning her head back against the soft, cushiony chair.

“It’s okay, I forgive you. Plus, I was kind of grouchy too,” Carmen replied, squeezing her best friend’s hand. “But when we’re done here, we definitely need to pick up something nice for Mom.”

“Agreed,” Franny chimed in happily.

* * *

“Darlings, you look absolutely radiant!” Gloria exclaimed as Carmen and Franny came out of the locker room.

“We feel radiant,” Carmen replied, meaning it. The Mermaid’s spa treatments were the best she’d ever received by far, and she and Franny had already agreed that they needed to come back at least one more time before they went back to Montreal.

“Wonderful, wonderful,” Gloria sang, hurrying behind the counter to check them out. “Now your mami already took care of the bill and the tip, so you don’t have to worry about that. But is there anything else I can get for you before Jacob comes to pick you up?”

“Yes, please,” Carmen and Franny said in unison.

“We wanted to buy my mom a gift certificate,” Carmen explained, pulling her wallet from her purse. “And we were thinking about stopping at a couple more shops before heading home. Could you give us some recommendations?”

As Gloria activated a gift card for them, she rattled off a quick list of the nearby shops that were open that day, and then once more asked if she could call Jacob to pick them up.

“I think we’re going to walk a bit,” Carmen explained, accepting the gift certificate. “The Sea Glass Cottage isn’t that far anyway and we can make it home on foot.”

Gloria gave them a look that all protective mothers gave their children. It more or less read I don’t want to step on your independence, but please don’t do what you’re about to do.

“Very well.” She sighed, giving in as she began to write something down on a sticky note.

“If you change your mind, this is Jacob’s number. He’ll be happy to pick you up wherever you are, so don’t be afraid to call, okay?”

Carmen and Franny promised that they would give Jacob a ring if they needed it, and after one more round of goodbyes, they headed toward the door. Outside, it was easy for them to find the shops Gloria had mentioned to them, and for the next couple of hours, the two young women got lost in the fun of their shopping excursion. They oohed and aahed over the handmade trinkets sold in the small businesses, tried on new clothes, and found a gift to give Jeanette for sending them to the spa.

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