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Paige nodded. “It is. But I like depending on myself. I also like having the ability to go easy on some days and harder on others. If there’s something I am just not up for one day, I can put it off. There’s also no one breathing down my neck, which is really nice.”
That all sounded good.
“Not to be bleak, but there aren’t a lot of jobs in Castleton, which is another major reason a lot of us freelance. We love living here, and that’s how we can make it work,” she said. That was a good point. I hadn’t even looked up any job openings in the local paper. The pickings were bound to be slim. There were definitely zero fitness studios that needed managing, and I didn’t even think I wanted to do that anymore.
“That’s a good point. I’m used to being in the city where you can get a job easily. I don’t think I want to have a boss, so that narrows my options now. I just have to figure out what I’m good at.” I laughed, but internally, I was panicking.
“We’ll all help you out,” Paige said. “Everyone has something that only they can do.”
“What if my only skill is reading?” I asked.
“I know book reviewers don’t get paid. Esme has a blog and the only thing she gets are free books, which is nice, but doesn’t pay the bills. You could definitely work with authors, though. Ask Sasha about it. And another friend, Alessi, she’s an author. She’s quitting her job as a teacher to write full time, so she’ll be joining our group soon.” I hadn’t met Alessi, but I didn’t think being an author appealed to me either. The skills required to write a whole book and make a coherent and original story? I did not think I had those. I was good at describing books, though.
“You should also talk with Piper and Natalie.” More Castleton friends. I was struggling to remember everyone’s names.
Paige told me all about Piper’s business, and how Natalie was her assistant and Piper’s fiancée, McKenna, who taught yoga.
“Let me know if you want the chart,” Paige said.
“The chart?” I asked.
“The Castleton Crew chart. Julia keeps it updated. We’re going to need to add you.”
I couldn’t help but blush at my inclusion in the group.
“You’re all too nice to me,” I said, ducking my head.
“Well, we’re very discerning when it comes to character, and you passed all the tests with flying colors.”
“I’ve been tested?” I asked.
“Not really,” Paige said with a smile. “We go mostly on vibes.”
“And how are my vibes?” I asked.
“Excellent,” she said, smiling. Her laptop dinged with another email and she rolled her eyes. “Okay, I definitely need to get back to this.”
I told my mom that night about my day with Paige.
“I’m so glad you have a good circle around you. I worry, you know.”
“I know,” I said with a sigh.
“It’s my job to worry about you all the time. That’s the task I took on before you were born.”
I didn’t argue with her that I was grown now, and she could cut back on the worrying.
“Have you thought about doing something part time?” she asked.
“Yeah, I have. I mean, I’m going to do the library volunteer thing until I get a better idea. I don’t know if I want to add more to that with the house and everything. I feel like ever since I started working that I’ve felt this need to fill my time and now I don’t have to do that and I can really… chill out.”
It was still a strange feeling, not to have to slam an alarm button and get out of bed with the intention of going to spend eight hours of my time working for someone else.
“You know, I’m really proud of you, Kendra. Taking on the renovations on the cottage by yourself and now figuring out a whole new career. You’re brave.”
I didn’t feel brave. I felt like I had no idea what the hell I was doing. I felt like any moment someone was going to burst in and call me out as an impostor adult.
“Thanks, Mom,” I said.
“You’ve got to get some art in that room. It looks so sad,” she said. We’d had this discussion many times before. She knew I wasn’t putting up anything until I had the walls painted and the furniture delivered.
“Patience. It will happen.” I couldn’t imagine what it was going to be like when it was finished. It was almost overwhelming thinking about everything that still had to be done.
Remodeling a house wasn’t for the weak.
I think I helped Hollis even less than I helped Paige.
“What about this one?” she said, showing me shots that had been sent from a photo shoot for one of her authors.
“That one has more boob,” I pointed out.
