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Taeli
Mom grilled me about my day spent with Graham. I gave her the details, leaving out the kissing part, and hurried off to bed, where I stripped off my dress and pulled his shirt back on. I lay awake most of the night, surrounded by his smell and freaking out about said kiss.
In the morning, I get Caleb up and dressed early, and we head to meet Sara-Beth at the Rocky Pass offices before they open. I fill out some paperwork, and she shows me the ropes.
It all seems fairly basic with most reservations coming through the website.
“We have cabins of various sizes sprinkled throughout the mountains with different views. Our largest rental is an eight-bed, six-bath cabin, and our smallest is a studio-style riverside fishing cabin. All are pet-friendly, and we have a minimum of two-night stays. As long as there is no damage, the security deposit is refunded after maintenance inspects the cabin after checkout.”
She hands me a sheet of paper with a list of other vacation rental companies and campsites in the valley: Balsam Ridge Vacations, Mountain Escape Rentals, Stoneridge RV Resort, Cool Breeze Campground and Creekside Motor Village.
“If we fill up or don’t have a cabin that suits someone’s occupancy needs, please refer them to one of those contacts to help them find a place.”
I love that they support other local businesses.
“We usually do direct deposit for employees, but since you’re temporary, for now, I’ll cut you a check every Friday.”
She shows me how to log in to the computer and gives me a map, showing all the rental properties and their names. Then, she, Caleb, and I climb into her vehicle to drive around to some of the locations.
She opens one of the larger cabins, and we take a look around.
“We provide the linens, and the kitchens are fully stocked with all the cookware, dishes, mugs, and wineglasses they could need. All cabins come furnished with gas grills and outdoor firepits. Some have hot tubs on the decks, and some don’t. For the ones with them, we supply bathrobes and spa towels. If a guest calls the office, requesting anything additional, just forward the inquiry to maintenance, and they’ll handle it,” she tells me as we walk around the space.
“In the winter, we do get calls for firewood. It’s not something we generally provide, but the roads can get a bit tricky, and I’d rather one of the boys bring a load up than for guests to try to navigate their way down on icy roads at night.”
I’ll be back in Chicago by the time the snowy season begins, but I don’t point that out.
We stop for lunch on the way back, and Mom joins us. She takes Caleb with her to do some gem mining. He is less than thrilled, but he doesn’t complain. Once we are back in the car, Sara-Beth continues with her instruction.
“The cabins have combination locks that we change after every stay, so most guests will go straight to their location. We do get an occasional walk-in of someone who’s just passing through and decides to stay. If they only want one night, direct them to any of the motels in town. If they want to book a cabin and the receptionist is in the office, you can have them follow you to show them a property. Speak of the devil,” she says as we pull back into the office parking lot.
As we exit Sara-Beth’s car and head toward the office, a woman with shoulder-length brown hair descends the office’s steps and meets us in the lot.
“Hi, Sara-Beth, I was just heading out for lunch. Can I get you anything?”
“No, we just ate. Erin, this is Taeli. She’s going to be taking over the cabin rentals. Taeli, Erin is the receptionist for the realty company. She helps me keep the agents in line,” Sara-Beth introduces us.
“TT? Is that you?”
I give her a tight smile of acknowledgment.
Erin and I went to high school together. We were pretty close back in the day, but we haven’t spoken much the past few years.
“Nobody calls me that anymore. It’s just Taeli now,” I correct her.
“I didn’t realize you two knew each other. That’s wonderful,” Sara-Beth says.
“We go way back,” Erin tells her.
A phone rings from inside, and Sara-Beth hurries up the steps.
“I’ll get that. You two catch up,” she says.
Once she’s inside, Erin turns back to me.
“Well, look at you. I didn’t think you’d ever come back to this one-horse town. How are you? How’s the big city and that handsome husband of yours? Tell me everything!”
“I’m fine. The city is fine. My husband is a lying, cheating jackass. And that about sums up my life at the moment. What about you?” I word-vomit all over her.
She just stares at me with her mouth agape and blinks for a beat.
“Girl, it sounds like you and I took the same cruise on a sinking ship. I married a handsome devil with a wandering eye after graduation myself. He was a smooth, double-talking snake from Alabama, and I was clueless until the rumor mill started churning. My inbox began lighting up like the Fourth of July. He tried to deny it all, but in a small town like Balsam Ridge, nobody is going to let a no-good cheater get away with making a fool of one of its own.”
Now, it is my turn to stare.
I forgot how open everyone in Balsam Ridge is. In my suburban life of luncheons and dinner parties, people only portrayed themselves and their lives in the best light. Even if your marriage was on the brink of falling into ruin, you did everything to pretend it wasn’t to save face. I never realized how exhausting it was to keep up the facade until now. Having Erin just blurt out the messy truth of her life is surprisingly refreshing.
“My husband was boinking his assistant, which isn’t unheard of, but he was stupid enough to knock her up,” I share.
She shakes her head. “What a dumb bastard,” she says without a hint of judgment in her voice.
“I think my son hates me,” I continue.
She holds her hand up to stop me.
“Oh, please. How old is he, thirteen, fourteen?” she asks.
“Twelve,” I answer.
“Close enough. All teenagers hate their parents. It’s practically a biological response at that age,” she assures me.
I think back to my tumultuous relationship with my own mother.
Oh God, please tell me it won’t last that long.
“Do you know what you need?” Erin asks, bringing me out of my thoughts.
“What?”
“A girls’ night out. I’ll rally some of the girls together, and we’ll go blow off some steam. You remember Jena and Ansley from high school, don’t you?” she asks as she fishes her phone from her back pocket and starts typing.
“I don’t know, Erin. I’m not sure I’ll be great company.”
She waves me off. “You don’t have to be good company. We’ll be the good company you need at the moment.”
“But …”
“But nothing. I’ve already sent up the bat signal. Go and arrange a sitter and be ready by six. We’ll pick you up. Are you at your mom’s place?”
“Yeah.”
“Cool. See you after lunch,” she says before she walks off toward her car.
I guess I’m going out tonight.
