“Let me plug it in. I’m down here anyway.”
While he did, she glanced over at the couch. The throw, folded, draped over the back.
“Want it on?”
“What?”
“The printer. Do you want it on?”
“Oh. Yes, please. You’re stronger than you look.”
When he straightened, he smiled at her. “How do I look?”
“Well, lanky. More like a runner than a weight lifter.”
“You can do both.”
“Apparently. Are you sure I can’t get you coffee? Or coffee cake?”
“Anna’s coffee cake’s tempting, but I’ve got a client.”
“I really appreciate you taking the detour.”
“No trouble,” he said as they started down. “How’s it going for you? Figuring things out, sleeping okay?”
“Slowly figuring, and sleep hasn’t been a problem, as I’ve conked early two nights running. A little off, I guess, moving things around when I’m half-asleep.”
Watching her, he shrugged back into his coat. “Really?”
“Like not remembering putting my phone on the charger, but hey, there it is. Absent-minded stuff, which tells me I need to get out. I’m going into the village today, try to get my bearings there.”
“Good idea.”
He looked at her, she thought, as he had her mood board.
Taking time.
“If you’re up for it, you could come by the office, meet with Dad. He’ll want to follow up with you.”
“I could.” Should, she amended. “I’ll call for an appointment.”
“I’ve got that.” Trey pulled out his phone. “His schedule’s on here, since Ace and I would handle his appointments if the boss didn’t clear him. He’s got eleven-thirty, one-thirty, and three open.”
“Ah, well … three?”
“You’re in. We’re on Bayview, a block off High Street, north side of the village.”
“Thanks. Really.”
“You’re welcome. Really.”
The minute she shut the door behind him the music started.
“Are you serious?” “Hooked on a Feeling,” she thought, rolling her eyes as she started upstairs. She hadn’t known she’d put it on her playlist, only recognized it from the Guardians of the Galaxy soundtrack.
“And I’m not hooked on a feeling just because he’s got those blue eyes, and the rest. Plus, I’m going to stop talking to myself. Right now.”
Calculating the time, she decided to start a fire after all. She could take a couple hours, print out what she wanted, go over the work for Anna one more time, then send it off before she cleaned up and drove to the village.
And when she went to the fireplace, she saw a nicely shoveled-out hearth and wood stacked for burning.
“When the hell did I do that?”
She tried thinking back, going over her steps, but just couldn’t remember.
“Doesn’t matter,” she muttered. “Just being efficient.”
She lit the starter, and caught herself rubbing a chill from her arms as she stepped back.
“Adjusting. I’m just adjusting to a lot of everything. And why shouldn’t I talk to myself? Who the hell cares?”
She went back to the desk, printed out the templates for the projected brochure, business card, a design for a potential ad.
Once she’d retrieved them, added them to her board, she sat again. She brought up the inactive website on her computer screen, on her tablet, on her phone.
“Really want those photos, from clay to finished piece. A time-lapse video. Oh yeah, wouldn’t that be cool?”
It wouldn’t hurt to have some visuals of the village on the About tab, she considered. She’d take some with her phone when she got there, upload them, see how they worked.
The bare bones of it looked good on a mobile, she thought as she scrolled through on her phone. The typography, the color, the shapes. Of course, there would be photos to load, the shopping cart to build, but yeah, good bones.
Satisfied, she wrote the email to Anna and sent the links.
If she didn’t like it, well, she’d be wrong, but she was entitled.
She turned her tablet off, left it charging. Taking her phone with her, she crossed to the bedroom.
Where the fire simmered.
She didn’t remember turning it on. She sure as hell didn’t remember making the bed.
Pressing her fingers to her eyes, she did her best to breathe through the sudden crash of nerves.
She just needed to get out, get some fresh air. Walk outside.