Sunny laughed. “For a change, right?”
“Not at all. I’ve always been proud of you and your potential.”
A knowing expression filled Sunny’s face. “I just hid it well for a long time.”
Ivy shrugged that off. “Let’s just say you were evolving.”
“Well, it took a while.” Sunny quirked a grin, much like Shelly’s. “Now I feel bad about that first-class ticket home from Europe I put on your Amex Card before I came back. That was bratty of me, but I had no concept of the price of things back then. Now I realize how much that must have hurt you financially.”
Ivy had to admit that. “It was exasperating at the time.”
“I was hurt because Dad died, and I guess I wanted to hurt you for that. I don’t know why I felt that way, but I thought if you’d taken better care of him, he’d still be around. And he never denied me anything like you did.”
“Oh, sweetheart, I’m so sorry you felt that way.” Her husband had died suddenly of an aneurysm that had given no warning.
“It wasn’t rational. I know that now.” Sunny waved a hand at the donations. “Maybe this is me trying to make up for it. I’m not perfect, but now I realize that. I used to think working at the inn would be easy, but it’s not. Guests expect a lot, and they’re not always reasonable. Like that sorority reunion where they all jumped into the pool, naked and drunk.”
Chuckling, Ivy shook her head. “We can laugh about that now. I was just thankful that woman didn’t die on us.” She had hit her head, nearly drowned, and Ivy had brought her to safety. It wasn’t the woman’s finest moment.
Sunny crossed her arms. “Except they posted it on social media. Now we get calls asking if we still allow nude parties at the pool. I thought those were prank calls until someone mentioned the sorority and the posts. This is a tough business, Mom. I had no idea.”
Ivy was glad her once-spoiled younger daughter was starting to appreciate her efforts. “Let’s start loading the SUV. I’ll get the dolly from the garage.”
Half an hour later, Bennett emerged from the shower after his morning run. He wore jeans and a faded Summer Beach Volunteer Fire Department sweatshirt. A matching baseball cap shaded his eyes.
Bennett eyed the stacks of boxes and baskets Ivy andSunny had assembled by the SUV. Sunny was lifting them in.
“I see the Seabreeze Inn guests have been generous,” he said.
“This was all Sunny.” Ivy told him the story. As she did, she saw Sunny’s modest smile.
It took them nearly an hour to load the SUV, with Bennett carefully arranging and rearranging to make everything fit, but they’d still need to make two trips.
“That should be the last of it,” Ivy said, handing Sunny the last bag of pasta.
Every available space was filled in the vehicle, except for the driver’s seat and one passenger seat.
Ivy eyed the remaining boxes. “Let’s put the rest in my car. Sunny, do you want to drive it?”
Her daughter’s eyes brightened at the chance to drive the vintage, cherry-red ‘57 Chevy convertible. “Sure. That’s such a cool car. Can I put the top down and turn on the heater?”
“Whatever you like.” Ivy had never let her drive it before because of Sunny’s irresponsibility. But now, her daughter seemed like she could handle it.
They loaded the large trunk and the wide back seat and placed an armful of jackets in the front.
With Sunny following, Bennett maneuvered the SUV through town. Ivy watched the familiar scenery pass by. Boutiques and restaurants on Main Street were putting up decorations, and people were wrapping palm tree trunks with lights.
“The village will be lit up tonight,” Bennett said.
Ivy loved this time of year. “It feels like the holidays arereally on their way now. I wish this spirit of generosity could last all year.”
“Then it wouldn’t seem special.”
She gazed at the sparkling decorations going up in shop windows. “But how lovely life would be.”
“I can’t disagree with that.”
As she thought about this, she realized this was the feeling she tried to capture in her paintings. A sea could be stormy and rough or sunny and smooth. Life wasn’t without its challenges, but her job as an artist, as she saw it, was to share sunny skies and the feeling that a beautiful day at the beach might evoke.
