Two of a Kind

by Kay Correll

  “Their loss.” He shrugged and took a sip of his wine.

  “I’m thinking I won’t be getting a bunch of texts this year like usual, commanding me to come to Austin for Christmas.”

  “Then you can have Christmas here.”

  “I haven’t been here for the holidays in years. I guess I’ll just see what the next months bring.” It might be interesting to see Christmas here on the island again.

  “And you have your paintings at Paul’s gallery this week. Are you excited?”

  “More nervous.” She just hoped they sold. Any of them. Just to bring in some cash. And if she could get ahold of Bella, then this week she would work on a few pieces of furniture for Bella’s shop. Maybe things could turn around for her. At least she didn’t have the stress of her family in town now.

  The meal ended all too quickly as far as she was concerned, and they slowly walked back to Bayside Bungalows.

  They stood awkwardly on her porch and she didn’t know if she should ask him in, or kiss him, or what.

  “I… I better go. Really early morning tomorrow.”

  She should ask him in.

  Or kiss him. She wanted to kiss him.

  He leaned over and gave her a quick kiss. Not exactly the type of kiss she’d been thinking of…

  He smiled at her and with a little wave, he headed across the courtyard to his bungalow.

  Next time she’d speak up quicker and invite him in.

  Or she’d kiss him like she wanted to be kissed…

  Chapter 20

  Charlotte clicked off her cell phone the next morning and set it on the counter. She’d just spoken to Bella who was excited to put some pieces of furniture in her shop. Charlotte was going to hit up Goodwill and a local antique mall and see if she could find some pieces for a low cost that might work. Bella mentioned that teal colored furniture was selling well and also nautical themed pieces with anchors or compass stencils on them.

  She wanted to finish the pieces as soon as possible, so maybe she’d get some money coming in. That along with working on redecorating the two rooms at the inn should tide her over for a while. Robin had offered to pay the full rent for a month or so if things got tight, but she didn’t want to do that.

  She grabbed her phone again and searched for places to shop on the map app. She quickly made a list. The best shops were on the mainland so she’d head there.

  She grabbed her purse and keys and headed to the inn, hoping to borrow their van for her shopping expedition since she’d also be looking for a couple pieces of furniture for remodeling the rooms at the inn while she was out.

  She hurried into the inn, looking for Robin or Lil to check on using the van. Lil was at the reception desk and Sara was chatting with her.

  “Hey, Char.” Sara waved.

  “Morning. I was wondering if I could borrow the van. I’m headed to the mainland to do some shopping for furniture. I talked to Bella and she said I could sell some pieces at her shop and I want to get some for the remodel of the rooms here, too.”

  “Of course you can.” Lil nodded.

  “Mind if I tag along?” Sara asked.

  “Not at all. Aren’t you working today?”

  “I worked on a presentation all weekend and I’d love to take a bit of time off.”

  “Perfect. I’d love the company.”

  She and Sara headed to the mainland and stopped at the first shop on her list. They wandered around and she checked on how sturdy a small table was and eyed a dresser with good lines, but she’d need to fix the drawer runners.

  They bought a few pieces, a worker helped them wrestle them into the van, and they headed for the next shop.

  “Hey, look, you’re in luck. Thirty percent off if you spend over a hundred today.” Sara pointed to the sign.

  She swallowed at the thought of all the money she was spending today. The first shop’s prices had been ridiculously low, which was great. She hoped this one was the same.

  They wandered around and she found a desk, a few chairs, a coffee table, and a darling set of nightstands. She’d put them on her credit card and hoped something sold before the whole bill was due. She hated doing that, but she needed to invest in this to be able to earn something back. But she never put things on credit that she didn’t have the funds to pay for. She stood in front of the nightstands, chewing her lip, and debating on not getting them.

  “Let me buy this batch of furniture for you.” Sara offered. “Some of it will be for the inn, right? Then you can pay me back for what you sell at Bella’s shop.”

  “I can’t do that.”

  “Of course you can.”

  “No… I don’t want charity. I made this financial mess, I’ll get myself over it.”

  “Okay, then which pieces are for the inn. I’ll buy those, at least. Then we’ll still pay you for fixing them and painting them.”

  “The dresser from the last shop and these nightstands I think would work for the inn.” She did the quick math. If Sara paid for those pieces, she’d almost have enough to pay off the rest. She’d just cut back on something.

  Like eating…

  They loaded up the furniture and Sara suggested they stop and get lunch at a place by the harbor before they went back to the mainland.

  “I can’t.” She shrugged. She certainly didn’t have funds for eating out.

  “My treat.”

  “No… I can’t.”

  “Charlotte, don’t argue with me. We’re eating at Harbor View and I’m buying.”

  “You’re getting as bossy as Robin.” She gave in with a small smile.

  “I learned from the best.”

  They went to the restaurant and she ordered a small salad. They watched the boats go by in the harbor.

  “Wow, look at that one. I swear it’s bigger than our bungalow.” She pointed at a huge yacht heading out of the harbor toward the gulf.

  “Some people have more money than… well, than I don’t know what.” Sara shrugged.

  “So how are things with you and Noah?” She turned from watching the boats. Or ships. When did a boat become a ship? She shook the thought away.

  “Things are great.”

  “So you two are getting serious?”

  Sara smiled. “Maybe. We’ve done some talking about the future, but nothing definite. It all seems a bit unreal to be dating him again. I can’t believe we ended up together after all these years.”

  “You two were meant to be.”

  “How about you and Ben? I heard you guys had a date.”

  “We did. I had a great time. He’s a good guy. Funny. Nice. And we like a lot of the same things.”

  “You going to go out again?”

  “I don’t know. He hasn’t asked me again.”

  “Hey, you know you could ask him out.” Sara eyed her over the fish taco she was holding.

  “I could, but… well, I want him to ask me.” She shrugged.

  Sara laughed. “I’m sure he will soon.”

  Unless he hadn’t had as good a time as she had. He’d walked her home after Magic Cafe, kissed her once, then said he had an early morning and left.

  “I don’t know. Maybe we’re just kind of friends or something. I just don’t really know where I stand with him.”

  “Dating is awkward sometimes. Especially at first.”

  “I hate not knowing where I stand with him… or how out-of-control my life is now. And my finances in a mess.”

  “But you’re working things out.” Sara sent her an encouraging look. “Your paintings will be in the art show this week. Maybe one will sell right away. You’re doing this furniture for Bella’s shop. You’re a strong woman and you’re making your life turn around. I really admire you.”

  Charlotte basked in Sara’s compliment. There was nothing like having friends like Sara and Robin. Nothing. Always supportive, always there for each other. “You know I love ya, right?”

  “Right back at you, Char.”

  Ben decided to drop b
y his mom’s house again to check on her. Okay, so he’d checked the community center’s website and saw that the knitting club was meeting again today. He hoped his mom was going to go.

  He walked into the kitchen and was pleased to see his mom packing up her knitting bag.

  She turned to him. “You know, I’m perfectly capable of walking to the community center on my own. And I’m quite aware that you started this whole invite Ruby to the knitting club thing.”

  He put on his best innocent expression—not that it had ever worked for him with his mom. “What are you talking about?”

  “Benjamin…” She waved a knitting needle at him. “I know what you’re up to, but I’m fine. I like puttering around my house. I like to read and knit and just… Anyway, I’m fine. You should stop worrying about me.”

  He walked over and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “I do worry about you. I just want you to… be happy.”

  She looked directly at him. “I am happy, son. In a different way though. I miss your father. He was… my whole life. Well, you and your brother, too.” She turned her back on him and kept rustling around in her knitting bag. “It has taken me a while to… adjust. It’s hard to go to the marina now. So many memories. I expect to be standing on the dock and seeing him pulling one of his endless supply of boats in. But… that’s not going to happen again.”

  “Mom, I’m sorry. I know you miss him.”

  “I know you miss him, too.” She turned back to face him. “But life goes on, doesn’t it?”

  “It does. We have to learn to deal with both the blessings and the pain that life dishes out to us.”

  “That, we do. And I’m trying. But you know what? It’s not your responsibility to fix things for me. I need to work it out on my own.”

  “Maybe you could join the book club at the community center, too.”

  “Ben, are you listening? I love you son, but you’re a fixer, just like your father. But sometimes a person needs to just work things out on their own.”

  “Sorry, I’ll step back.” He’d at least try to. But he only wanted to help…

  She smiled at him. “Now, would you care to walk me to the community center?”

  He grinned. “What a great idea.”

  Chapter 21

  Charlotte stood in Paul’s gallery on Friday evening, nervously waiting for the show to open. She chatted with a few of the other local artists. She especially enjoyed talking to the woodcarver. He’d carved a large blue heron that if she’d had the money she would have loved to buy.

  She moved over and stood in front of the wall that held her paintings. Paul had chosen a mix of beach scenes and town scenes. He’d priced them higher than she thought they should be, but he insisted they were priced fairly. He knew better than she did. She’d always left that to Reginald. Not that that had turned out well.

  If even one painting sold tonight, it would start to help her out of her financial mess.

  Paul’s wife, Josephine, was busy in the corner arranging a small table of hors d'oeuvres and glasses of champagne.

  She glanced at the loose watch on her wrist, twisting it so she could see it clearly. One more minute.

  She saw Paul head to the door, flip the sign to open, and unlock it. A few people were waiting to come inside. She swallowed, not sure why she was more nervous about this showing than big, fancy openings in L.A. and Chicago and Boston. This was just a small town in Florida, not an artist Mecca.

  She made small talk with customers when they walked by her paintings, answering questions and smiling—always smiling.

  “Hey, you.”

  She turned at the sound of Robin’s voice. A familiar face. Excellent. “I’m so glad to see you.” She threw her arms around her friend and hugged her close. Exactly what she needed. Moral support.

  “Sara and Noah are over there grabbing some champagne. I told them to get one for you. You look like you could use it.”

  “I’m… a bit nervous.”

  “You look it. Just take a deep breath. Relax.”

  “That’s easy for you to say. It’s my first showing of work of this kind. Well, not counting the party, and we know how that turned out.”

  Noah and Sara walked up and he handed her a glass. “Quite a turn-out. Though the local artist show is always one of Paul’s biggest draws. People love to see work from the locals. I put a notice about it on the community center website.”

  “Your display looks amazing.” Sara stood in front of the pictures, carefully looking at each of them.

  Paul came up to her with a huge grin on his face. He leaned in close to her and whispered. “You’ve already sold a piece. The gazebo one.”

  “I did? I sold one?” She couldn’t keep the surprise out of her voice.

  Robin and Sara spun around. “Ha, I told you.” Robin looked triumphant.

  “Yes. I was sure you would.”

  Paul smiled and turned around to greet some more customers.

  “What’s this I hear? You’ve already sold one?” Ben walked up to them looking spiffy in freshly pressed khakis and a light yellow button-down shirt that brought out the amber flecks in his brown eyes.

  “You came.” She smiled at him. She was finally surrounded by those she cared about all around her. They all turned out in support. Even if her family would never support her, her friends did. And Ben was a friend, right? Or what was he? She’d only seen him once this week, she’d been so busy. And that had been in passing at the inn when she’d been there looking for Sara and he’d been there to meet up with Jay. She pushed the thoughts away, unwilling to dissect their relationship on a night like tonight.

  “Of course I did. Where else would I be on your big night?” He walked over to look at the paintings, then turned back to her. “These really are good. Very good.”

  She felt the heat of a blush creep across her cheeks. Before she could answer him, she turned at a light touch on her arm.

  “Hello, Charlotte.”

  “Del, it’s nice to see you.”

  “I try to always make it to opening nights of Paul’s shows if I’m in town. He’s an excellent judge of art.” He looked at her paintings. “I see these fit in well with the tone of the painting I saw at Camille’s mother’s party. I really do like the style. Do you have an agent who’s representing you now?”

  “Not right now.”

  He nodded. “Let me know if you get one. I might have an opportunity for you if you’re interested. Or I could speak to you directly.”

  She panicked then. What did she know about the financial side of selling her work? Reginald had always handled that for her. She hadn’t dealt with any of the selling or arranging shows or arranging payment.

  She took a deep breath, reminding herself that things were changing now and that she could handle it. She could handle everything, right? She was at least going to make a good attempt at it. “You could speak directly to me.”

  “Perfect. I’ll call and set up a meeting.” He smiled and headed over to look at another display.

  “What was that all about?” Robin came up to her.

  “I’m not sure. He said something about an opportunity.”

  Robin grinned. “See, I told you good things were going to start happening for you.”

  She felt her phone vibrate in the pocket of her skirt but ignored it. She needed to concentrate on the show, and she was riding a high. It felt so good to be showing her work again… not to mention selling.

  She turned as an older couple came up and asked her if she’d painted the lighthouse on the point yet. She told them she had, but that painting wasn’t here on display but would be in a few weeks when Paul was doing a full show of her work. They smiled and said they’d be back.

  She talked to more customers and glanced at her watch, surprised it was almost time for the gallery to close. Where had the night gone?

  Her phone vibrated again. Then again. She finally snatched it from her pocket, wondering who in the world could need her that badly th
at they kept calling. She wanted to just bask in this tiny success of hers.

  She saw she had two voice messages and a handful of texts from her sister. She scrolled through the messages and her hand crept up to cover her mouth. Robin looked at her and hurried back by her side. “What’s wrong?”

  “It’s my mom.”

  “What happened?”

  She turned her phone for Robin to read the message.

  * * *

  Mom is in the hospital. Heart attack. It’s your fault. See what you did when you caused all that stress for her?

  * * *

  “Oh, Char… it’s not your fault. That’s just Eva being Eva.”

  “I did cause a fuss. Mom was so upset.”

  “No, you stood up to them. You’re allowed to do that.” Robin squeezed her arm.

  “I’ve got to go. Get a flight out.” She looked around the gallery, trying to find Ben to tell him she was leaving.

  “I’ll drive you to the airport. Let’s head back home, you can pack, and we’ll find you the first flight out to Austin.”

  Sara hurried over. “You okay?”

  “Her mom’s in the hospital. I’m taking her to the airport. Will you tell Paul she had to leave?”

  “Sure. And, Char, I’m so sorry about your mom.”

  She just nodded. She looked around the room, still looking for Ben, but couldn’t see him. She didn’t have time to track him down. She needed to get a flight and get to Austin.

  “Come on, I’ll drive you home. You can search for a flight on your way.” Robin grabbed her arm and led her out the door.

  She hurried out of the gallery, tapping on her phone as she went, texting Eva that she was on her way, and looking for a flight.

  Chapter 22

  Lil looked up to see Sara and Noah climbing the stairs to The Nest. “How did the opening of the show go? I was hoping to get over to it but got tied up here at the inn. I’ll be sure to drop by this week. Anyway, Jay finally chased me away from helping in the kitchen. I decided to humor him and come back here and watch the sunset and have a glass of wine. You two care to join me?”