Answering it with my Bluetooth connection, I said with a shaky voice, “God must’ve told you I needed you.”
“Whoa, whoa, amica. What happened?” she asked, worry in her voice.
“Vicky, oggi per poco non mi licenziavano.” The tears were flowing too hard for me to drive, so I pulled into a nearby parking lot and parked.
“What? What do you mean they almost fired you today, Ren? You’re the best designer that sorry excuse of a boss has,” she said, ready to do battle on my behalf. If she didn’t live in San Diego, she probably would’ve come to help me throttle the man.
Wiping my tears, I recounted what happened moments earlier, her gasps reminding me how bad this was. This was no doubt going to hurt my stellar reputation in Tuscany.
“Ren, listen to me. He’s not going to fire you. You make too much money for him, and he needs it to keep replacing his horrible hairpieces.”
My watery laughter rang out in the small car. She knew how much I needed it. As a fellow interior designer, she understood what was at stake, too. Your reputation was everything in this business.
“Grazie, amica. I’m so worried, though, Vicky. This could ruin my career,” I cried, checking my now-running mascara in the rearview mirror. “The only good thing is he’s going to pay me while I’m gone. Won’t be the same as a commission, but something is better than nothing, I guess.”
“Okay, well, that gives us more options.” I could almost see her brain working. Finally, she said, “Listen, this is what you’re going to do. Since he’s going to pay you, you can swing this. Plus, you should have a ton of miles from flying here for my wedding.”
“What are you talking about?” I sniffed and wiped under my eyes.
“Get on a plane and come spend the month with me,” she said excitedly. I could almost see the wheels turning in her head. I made good money at the firm, but transatlantic travel and lodging in California were astronomical.
“No way. You and Miles have only been married for six months. You’re still newlyweds. I’m not going to stay with you guys. Not happening,” I said firmly.
“I figured you’d say that, and I know how expensive everything is here, but Luke has a cottage he rents. Two of them now that he and Sofia have moved into a bigger house after having their son, Dean. I can call him now and see if either of them is available.” Luke and Sofia were Vicky’s friends who I’d met at her wedding, and if it were true that they’d rent me a cottage, that would be amazing.
San Diego. A whole month there would be a dream.
When I visited her for her wedding, it was only for four days because of the villa remodel. I scowled, thinking about everything I gave up for that project, only to be blamed by my ridiculous boss.
“What do you think?” she asked, her voice high with excitement.
Long walks on beautiful beaches. Blue water. Great food. Time with Vicky when she wasn’t working. A chance to breathe again, not to mention a reprieve from this crushing loneliness that was getting worse by the week.
“Yes,” I said firmly, making up my mind. “If Luke has a cottage available, I’ll come.”
I had to pull the phone away from my ear when she shrieked. Her poor husband, Miles, and their daughter, MJ, had no idea the chaos that was coming their way for this extended visit.
“I’m going to call him now. I’ll text you what I find out. And Ren, this is God. I just feel it,” she said, her smile evident in her voice.
“I’ll be waiting. Love you, amica, and thank you.”
“Love you more, my friend.”
We hung up, and I took off again toward home. The hum of the AC and the tires on the road lulled me into a peaceful state. She was telling the truth. Something felt very right about this. I breathed easier for the first time since leaving that horrible meeting.
Vicky and I were more like sisters than friends. Our shared faith and love of design made us kindred spirits. Both fiercely focused on our careers, we were the consummate young career women. But when we were together, we were reduced to high schoolers, laughing at the silliest things.
She and I had been dreaming of opening our own design firm since we met in college years ago. We never imagined she would move from Rome to California for an incredible opportunitywith her mentor, Elena Salas, and that her first job would be in San Diego. Nor could we have guessed that her first design project was at the home of a handsome single dad tech nerd who would later become her husband. And now they were talking about having a baby.
I was sure it was because that dream of working together was far off in our future, and I couldn’t blame her. Neither of us knew how we could make that dream come true anytime soon.
Just as I pulled onto my street, the text came through with so many exclamation points, it was comical.
Vicky: Cottage is urs as long as u need!!!!!!!
A smile grew across my face. When I parked the car, I texted back that I’d send her my flight information. Nothing could’ve prepared me for the way this day had gone, yet an excitement was building.
Rushing inside, I tossed my bag on the kitchen table and sat down at it, phone in hand. Twenty minutes later, my ticket was bought, and a text was sent to Vicky, who answered with gifs of weird people celebrating, bringing a smile to my face.
