“Would you take my car as a trade-in?” Gina knew her car was worth almost ten thousand more than the price tag on the Honda. She still owed a couple thousand on the loan, but maybe she could walk away with some money in her pocket.
Shiela glanced back at the Mazda and pressed her lips together. “Generally, we don’t take trades that are worth more than the sale.” She looked back at Gina, her face softening. “But if you take this one for a test drive and still want to buy it, maybe we could work something out.”
“Sounds good. Let’s go for a ride.”
Two hours later, Gina drove off with the Honda and a check for ten thousand in her pocket. It turned out that Shiela had had a similar experience as Gina during her divorce. Who knew bonding over divorce would help her get what she wanted?
The Honda had been ready to go, and they’d been able to do the paperwork quickly since she wasn’t applying for financing. She’d transferred a few things from her car, then she was off to get the new one registered.
As she sat in the Honda familiarizing herself with the controls, she remembered her cousins talking about how they would contribute from their savings in order to buy the things they needed for the motel rooms. She’d felt guilty not pitching in, but the truth was she had no money, and besides, she wasn’t really that invested in the outcome of the motel. Still, it was only right that she pitch in, even if she didn’t plan to stay out the project. Hugh always said to use other people’s money, but he ripped people off, including her. She wasn’t on board with that anymore.
She sighed and mentally allocated two thousand dollars from what she’d received. It wasn’t really lost money. Jules had said they would pay themselves back when they got the loan.
She put the paperwork on the passenger seat, jostling her phone, which lit up, displaying the pie recipes she’d looked up online. The ingredients were pretty simple: flour, sugar, butter. Maybe she should pick some up at the market and try a recipe.
As she drove off, she felt uneasy. Contributing money to the motel project and baking pies? What was happening to her?
* * *
* * *
Maddie satin the kitchen of the motel and looked down at the blank piece of paper. She was supposed to be making a list of events that could bring people to the town, but so far, no good ideas had materialized.
A car pulled in, and she looked out the window. It was a blue Honda she didn’t recognize.
“Who’s that?” Jules turned from her place at the sink, where she’d been washing out the paintbrushes.
Gina got out with several bags of groceries. “It’s Gina. But whose car does she have? Looks like she brought some food. I hope she got peanut butter.”
Gina came to the side door that led straight to the kitchen, and Maddie opened the door for her.
“Hey, guys. I stocked up.”
“Did you get peanut butter and bread?” Maddie asked.
Gina nodded. “And Fluff.”
“What’s with the car?” Jules asked as Gina started to put the groceries away.
Gina shrugged, her back to them. “It reminded me of my ex, so I got rid of it. It was fun, but I felt like something more practical was better for me now. I liked the color of this one.”
Maddie wondered about that. The new car was quite a step down from her sports car, and while it could be true that Gina didn’t want to be reminded of Hugh, Maddie had a hard time believing that she wouldn’t spring for a more luxurious model.
Gina pulled a stack of bills out of her pocket and put them on the table. “I wanted to contribute to buying the comforters and decorations for the motel rooms. I would’ve said something earlier, but all my money is tied up because of the divorce.”
“Thanks.” Maddie neatened the bills into an even pile, glancing up to see that Gina was unloading things like flour and sugar. “Hey, that looks like baking goods. Are you going to bake something?”
Gina shrugged. “Well, if you come up with an idea for the town, we’ll have another town meeting, right?”
“I suppose so,” Maddie said.
“And the welcome-wagon ladies will want signature dishes,” Gina said. “Last time it was a little embarrassing with those fruit kebabs.”
“You do have a point,” Jules said. “But are you going to make a pie? I think those are hard.”
“Maybe.” Gina went back to putting things away. “Gram taught me how to make dough, but that was a really long time ago. I thought it would be nice to try, though, since it was her specialty. I don’t know how to do anything else, anyway.”
“I think that will be great,” Maddie said to encourage her cousin. Plus, she liked to eat pie.
