I’d suffered under the crushing weight of my husband’s thumb for too many years to let my children see me as anything but capable, self-sufficient, and independent as fuck.
After I finished my overnight oats for breakfast and saw the kids to the bus stop, I followed my eldest cousin into her house, lugging my trusty-rusty metal toolbox with me.
“Maverick said he could fix it when he got back, but I know you’re capable,” Gabrielle went on.“He’ll be back later today.”
“Where’d he go again?”I grunted as I tightened the nut connecting the flexible supply line to the angle stop valve.
“Logan, Jagger, and he went over to the mainland to scope out some prefab models for cabins for the property.They saw some really nice log ones that come partially pre-assembled.We could potentially barge them over.”
“You think that’s more cost effective than just building them on-site?”I asked, giving the wrench another quarter turn and adding a grunt for good measure before shimmying my way out from under the sink.
Gabrielle shrugged.“They’re just going to look.I don’t think it will be, and neither do Bennett nor Danica—the number crunchers—but it doesn’t hurt to check them out.We might be able to get the supplies over, then assemble them here.”
I tugged my mother’s old red and white polka-dot hanky from my pocket and wiped my brow and hands.“Kind of crazy that we’re going to start building on the land this summer, huh?”
Gabrielle offered me her hand and helped me to my feet.“It’s going to take a while to get it up and running; might as well start now.”
I stowed the wrench in my toolbox and closed it, then followed my cousin to her dining room.
Gabrielle didn’t even bother asking, she just poured me a cup of coffee, added some vanilla soy creamer to it, and slid it across her big kitchen island.“How do you think their first day with the new principal is going?”
I cradled the mug in both hands and brought it up under my nose, inhaling the delicious vanilla scent, while cocking my hip into the table.“Honestly, any day at this point would be better than all the days preceding it with Otto Pickford.”
Gabrielle nodded.“Still … I did a bit of digging on Lennox Paul last night after we got home—”
“Of course you did.”I smirked.
“He’s got an impressive résumé.Honor roll in high school, varsity basketball, full scholarship to Florida State for basketball.He was predicted to go pro, but an injury took him out for good.”
“Kind of like Jagger, Maverick, and Tommaso,” I mused, taking a gingerly sip of my coffee.“All pro, or almost-pro athletes, sidelined by injury.”I took another sip and shook my head.“It’s why I didn’t bother pursuing a career as a professional tennis player.I was too worried about getting injured and having my career ruined.”
Gabrielle snorted as she brought her own coffee cup to her lips.“You’ve never played tennis a day in your life.”
“Because I was so terrified of getting injured and never being able to play the sport again.”
Her sharp, amber eyes crinkled at the corners as she went for a second sip.“Sure, let’s go with that.”
I set my mug down.“May is flying by, dude.We open the tasting room Memorial Day weekend.Do you think you could meet me in the tasting room later today to go over what I need to restock and order?I know we only do charcuterie boards and stuff, but Raina suggested we ramp things up a bit and maybe talk to Kari over at Let it Rise and see about getting some of their mini quiches and phyllo wrapped stuff as options as well.Spread the island love, and all of that.”
Gabrielle tucked a chunky, auburn curl behind her ear and glanced upward at the pendant lighting in thought.“While I like that idea, I do wonder how much wasted food that would amount to, you know?Like on a slow day, or a slow day or two, are we going to be stuck with expired quiches that we then have to make our kids eat?”
I gave her a sardonic look.“You and I have teenage sons.I don’t think we’d have tomakethem eat quiches.I think we’ll have a bigger problemkeepingthem from eating the quiches.”
“Fair enough.Maybe Kari could sell us frozen ones that we heat up in a little toaster oven?”
My head bobbed with enthusiasm.“That’s a great idea.I’ll pop to the bakery today and see what she thinks.”
Gabrielle’s phone buzzed on the counter, and her eyes went wide.“Oh shit!”
“What?”
“I have a meeting in five minutes.I totally forgot.It’s for myotherwork.”
I drained my coffee and took my mug to the dishwasher.“Say no more, lawyer lady.Go save the world and crush the patriarchy.Come find me in the tasting room when you’re free.”
She topped up her coffee, then headed to the fourth bedroom of their house that she used as an office.“Will do.”
I took my leave, but rather than heading to the tasting room, I hopped in my SUV and drove to Let it Rise.Nothing on the island was more than twenty minutes away, and Let it Rise was closer than that.As always, the parking lot was pretty full.They had a gorgeous garden patio that they opened from April to October, which allowed for an additional thirty seats in the otherwise cramped, converted farmhouse.
