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“I don’t know… I’d love to see my family in Jersey. And I’m sure that they’ll let us crash there.” Stella pauses for a second. “Max just walked in. Let me ask him what he thinks.”
I hear muffled sounds as if Stella has covered the phone, and then a minute later, she gets back on the line.
“Max says, hell yes.” Stella laughs. “We’ll catch an early flight in the morning and be there as soon as possible. Oh, this is exciting! I can’t wait to see you and what you’ve done on those paintings so far.”
I can’t help the smile that crosses my face at the thought of seeing my friends. Honestly, with how things have been with Dante, I really need it. “I’m looking forward to seeing you guys, too!”
* * *
The next morning, true to their word, Stella and Max make their appearance bright and early. Stella’s eyes are round as saucers as she takes in Dante’s penthouse suite. and I wonder if that’s how I looked when he first brought me here.
“Holy shit…” she murmurs, tiptoeing across the floor like she’s afraid she will break something.
Max whistles and rubs his blonde beard. “I’ll say one thing for him, the man’s got taste.”
“More than likely he had some fancy expensive designer do everything.” I laugh with a shake of my head. “Not that I’m complaining. This place is beautiful.”
My phone rings and I grab it out of my back pocket, then grin when I see Dante’s name. “Speak of the devil…” I say, briefly showing Max the phone before answering it.
“Hi, Dante.” My voice seems overly cheerful. Probably because I’m excited my friends are here and I get to leave for a few hours.
There’s a slight pause before he talks. “Good morning, Kylie. I just thought I’d call and check in to make sure you don’t need anything. Is there anything you do need?”
“Would you get a look at this?” Max asks, pointing at a sculpture on the table. Stella walks over to it and I shake my head with a smile.
“Who’s that?” Dante asks, and it takes me a minute to realize he must have heard Max talking.
“Oh, that’s just Max,” I answer offhandedly. “Everything’s great here, Dante. Thanks for checking in, but I really need to get going. I’ll be out all day but I’ll be back tonight.”
I glance at the time and say, “Gotta go. Bye.”
I don’t wait for Dante to answer, I’m too excited to spend time with Stella and Max. After ending the call, I stuff my phone into my back pocket and practically skip over to my friends.
“I’m so glad to see you guys!” I draw them in for a brief group hug. “Now, let’s go get something to eat!”
“I’m starving,” Stella agrees. “Those cookies on the plane are good, but they don’t do anything to satisfy an appetite.”
* * *
The moment breakfast is done, we pile into Max and Stella’s rental car and go to a few of the locations I had picked out for Stella to see. I watch her closely, but she doesn’t seem overly enthused by any of the choices, for which I’m secretly glad.
The whole point of showing her other options is so that she doesn’t get suspicious when she suddenly received an anonymous donation towards her art studio and youth center, that is technically coming from Dante’s client for the paintings I create. I want Stella to get that studio she wants so badly, but I have to be careful how I go about it.
“What do you think about this one?” I ask as we stand outside a single-story red brick building with large glass windows and a rickety white door. The place definitely needs some work done to it, but I can see its potential.
Her eyes turn to me with a questioning gaze as she raises a brow. “Kylie, I love you… but this place isn’t worth the price. Not to mention, you and I both know the lighting isn’t right—it doesn’t catch any morning sun, and the building next to it blocks evening light.”
I nod, understanding exactly what she means, before looking down the street. “Why don’t we get a coffee… looks like there is a place right up the road, and I don’t know about you, but I need a break. And to get out of this heat. July in Jersey is no joke.”
Max and Stella both agree, and before I know it we step into a shop that smells of coffee and fresh baked goods. It reminds me of Madi’s mom’s place back in Willowcreek. It doesn’t take long for us to get our drinks and a snack and find an empty table.
“So, you didn’t like any of them?” I ask and then take a sip of my iced coffee.
Stella cocks her head to the side and smiles. “They’re nice,” she says after a minute, but it’s obvious none of them really called to her. Not like the one she wants.
“Well, they’re just backups, which I’m sure you won’t need,” I say with an encouraging smile.
Stella sighs, her eyes showing nothing but defeat as she runs her hand through her short hair. “The problem is, I do need one. I can’t afford the place I want. I mean, that is my dream studio. I know I need to be realistic, but I just feel…”
