“No, I most certainly am not.” Seth paused while Marlowe fumed. What was going on? “But I am enjoying this.”
Enjoying this?The words set her off. “Okay, maybe I’m turning forty this year and yes, I’m single but I don’t need my aunt fixing me up. Please try to understand.” The last was added in an almost apologetic tone. Marlowe had to make the situation clear. No fixup. Never.
Silence hummed. “Are you still there?” Maybe she’d been too forceful.
“Um, well. I don’t know what to say.”
She dug one hand into her hair. “Me either. That’s just the way it is. I’m glad we’re straight about this. So, good-bye.”
“No, wait…we haven’t discussed…” The guy sounded upset. Frantic. Maybe there was a shortage of eligible women in Charlevoix.
“Discussed what? Your last relationship and why it didn’t work out? How many children you want?” Those had been some common topics during some disastrous blind dates. Her serving spoons were spread out on the table. Picking one up she began tapping it on the table. “What haven’t we discussed?”
“Bathroom fixtures.”
“What?” Had she heard him correctly?
“Yes, your aunt asked me to contact you about bathroom fixtures and closet design. We’re starting the renovation on your bedroom.”
His words stung her like pellets. What had she done? Dropping the spoon, she slumped down in her chair and groaned. “I am so sorry.”
Was he laughing? “If you really want to discuss those topics…if you have to get something off your chest, why I’m happy to listen.”
He was laughing at her. “No, no that’s not it.” With one hand over her face, Marlowe could hardly get the words out.
“Have at it. I’m, ah, really sorry. You seem to have had some painful experiences.”
So now she was a problem person? This mess was all her fault. “Well, I’m still alive.” She cleared her throat and made herself sit up straight. “I thought we already made the decision to have modern fixtures. Why did my aunt ask you to call?”
“She thought that since we’re starting with your bedroom, we could…er, you could iron out a lot of these questions.”
“Okay. Thought we already did that.” What had she missed?
“Cate wants me to check with you and make sure the changes are to your liking.” Oh, so now her aunt was Cate to Seth Barrett?
Her aunt had left messages on her phone for the past two days and Marlowe had not had a chance to get back to her. Aunt Cate had said that nothing was urgent. Once Shari’s boxes arrived and Marlowe started packing up her stuff, she seemed to run into... more stuff. Instead of pitching things, she'd tossed a lot into boxes and labeled them. They were resigned to her basement storage closet. Maybe she should have bitten the bullet and hired a moving company to handle the packing. But she was worried about her budget.
“I'm so sorry.”And mortified. “Guess I'm a bit behind on all of this. What exactly did my aunt want you to check on? We're adding a bathroom and a closet, right?”
“Correct.” Now he was all business. “Fortunately those bedrooms are a generous size. We’re shaving off the room along one wall to accommodate a bathroom and expanded closet.”
Her mind was fried. Her condo was going on the market in three days. She was seriously involved in decluttering. Once she finished with the storage shed she had to work on her closets. Sticky notes with lists were posted all over her condo.
“Didn’t I see some drawings? I can't recall the details.” She rubbed her forehead.
“I can e-mail that sketch to you. No problem. Your aunt just wanted to know if you wanted any special detailing in the closet.”
“You'll have to bring me up to speed. What is she talking about?”
“You can have the California closet with all the wire racks or...”
“I prefer shelving.” She’d had her condo closet in Naples designed with special glass enclosures for her shoes so they didn't get dusty. The clothing racks were different heights and the shelving were the same, tailored to her needs. But she didn't want to go through that now. Did she have to be in charge of everything?
But that wasn’t fair. Poor Izzy was the one living at the house with her baby. And her sister was petrified of ending up being the sole decision maker.
“Although I know I'm in charge of decorating that room, I'm really not sure where I'll end up.” Now that was way more frank than she wanted to admit. How long would she live there with Izzy? And would Aunt Cate stay at Sunnycrest too? What were Sam’s plans? Sometimes Marlowe worried that Sam would move in with Josh. But that family dinner at his home had probably put the kibosh on any hasty plans like that. “I’m not sure where we’ll be living.”
“I see. I didn't realize that you had someone else to consider. But if that's the case you'll surely want to involve that person.” Seth sounded about as confused as she was feeling.
