Page 27 of A Chance Love

“Will do!”

As April hung up the phone, she smiled. Every day she was becoming further invested in this dream of hers. Each phone call, email, decision about the house, cemented the fact that they were supposed to be here, doing this exact thing, right now.

April could feel Georgia’s eyes on her from behind, but she was so in the zone that she didn’t find a stopping point to look behind her. “Mom, I think you need a break.”

“A break? I’m in my prime. I’m on some kind of roll,” she said without taking her hands off the keyboard of her laptop.

Georgia walked over to her mother and put a hand on the back of the laptop, slowly closing it until it slammed shut. “Seriously, I think you have to stop thinking about this. You’re going to go insane if this is all you do all day.”

April took a deep breath, adjusting to not staring at the screen. “What do you suggest I do, then?”

“I looked up some stores and as it turns out, there’s a discount furniture store on the island and a thrift shop known for some good pieces just off the island. What do you say we go and get some ideas for this place?”

It would be nice to get out of the house. April knew she was starting to go stir crazy just like her daughter said, though she didn’t want to admit it to herself. “Okay, that sounds fun! Do you have any ideas of what you want to look for?”

Georgia looked taken aback.

“What?”

A smile spread across Georgia’s face. “I’m just a little surprised… You want to leave now? You’re okay with that?”

She nodded. “Of course. Let’s go now. We can hit the stores and then we can hit up the hardware store for anything we need to start cleaning and fixing up the little things. We can go grab lunch with Nigel, too.”

“That sounds great!” April still didn’t know why Georgia was so surprised, but she decided to try and let it go. No sense in worrying about her child’s excitement. They should just spend the time together that they could.

The first store had plenty for Georgia to look at. The aisles were long, filled with different furniture with little defects.

One piece in particular was a long desk with several drawers that Georgia thought would be perfect for one of the single rooms. They took measurements and dreamed of exactly where they would put it.

“What about this one?” April asked, pointing to a vintage, bright orange sitting chair. “That used to be all the rage.”

Georgia stared at the worn seat, the tall back the only part of the fabric that hadn’t been dulled over time. She winced. “That’s not really the vibe we’re going for. That’s more… seventies era cool girl. We’re looking for modern beach.”

April remembered having something similar in the house twenty years ago. Except it wasn’t bright orange, it was a darker green. To her it was as cool then as it was now. But she took a step back and remembered that this wasn’t her own house she was designing; it was the bed and breakfast.

They had considered adding an owner’s suite, one just for them to stay in. Maybe she could buy the chair later and put it in there. It would look beautiful next to a reading nook.

Every piece of furniture that Georgia pointed to in the store was beautiful. April was impressed with her ability to see things in the design that she couldn’t, the way she talked about the space in a room as if it could breathe.

“That wouldn’t fit there. The room needs to flow. If we put that by the door it’ll feel closed in. Don’t want our guests to feel suffocated on vacation,” she’d said with a smile. April could only look on with admiration.

Until she found it. The one piece of furniture she’d dreamt of.

A long, blue, cloth couch with firm armrests and a subtle pleated back. “This is the one,” she told her daughter. “This is what I’ve been dreaming of for the lounge in the living room! Oh, it’s perfect. Don’t you think?”

April prepared herself for the worst. If her daughter didn’t like it, maybe it was just another one of those things that would end up in her personal suite.

It was disappointing though, because the way the light hit the fabric made it look almost sparkly. It was magic on its own. The way the windows would let in beams of light, the couch would look even better.

“I love it.”

April had to do a doubletake as she made her way over to sit on it. “What? You really like it?”

Georgia nodded. “It’s perfect for the lounge area. It’ll be the focal point of the whole room. And the fact that it’s exactly what you were picturing, I think that tells us both enough. We have to get it.”

April smiled from ear to ear, but was quickly interrupted by her phone vibrating in her pocket. Another call from Maxwell that would go ignored. “Everything okay?”

She nodded. “Of course. Let’s go tell them which pieces we want and put them on hold until we can pick them up.”

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