“Oh my gosh! You’re kidding?” Monica was clearly shocked. “I’ve never heard you mention a word about country living before. Seriously? And with your parents? On a farm? Is this really you, Jewel, or am I being punked?”
Jewel laughed. “I grew up in the country and now I’m going back. Maybe it’s a DNA thing. You know, it’s in my blood.”
“Could’ve fooled me. I thought you were pretty citified, girlfriend. And what about Cooper?”
“Change will be good for her. For both of us.”
Monica laughed like she didn’t believe a word of it. “And your gallery?”
“Jess might take it off my hands. If we can agree on a deal.”
“Yeah, of course. He must be over the moon. Hey ... what about your condo?”
“I shouldn’t have any trouble selling it. I was about to call Hayley to—”
“No,” Monica said quickly. “Don’t call Hayley. I mean she’s a good Realtor, but wait, okay?”
“Okay?” Jewel closed the back of her SUV, then returned to the gallery through the back door, pausing to straighten up some packing materials.
“Sell it to me.”
Jewel nearly dropped the items she’d gathered. “Seriously?”
“You know how I adore your place. The building, the location, the view, even your decor. Please let me buy it. You know I’m sick of renting a room from my brother and his wife. Plus, she’s pregnant now. I’ve been looking for something for over a year.”
“Yeah, but can you afford the mortgage?” Jewel always got the impression her flight attendant friend was strapped for money. Jewel made more than Monica, and her monthly home payments frightened even her sometimes.
“I think so. I’ve been saving for a down payment for ages, and I got that inheritance from my grandma. I think a fair market price, not to mention less Realtor fees, might fit into my loan approval numbers. You can at least let me try before you call Hayley.”
“Okay, I’ll wait.” Jewel made another note. “But I’ll do someprice checking on comparables and get back to you, okay?” As she hung up, she couldn’t help but do a happy dance. This was all working out better than expected. Like it really was meant to be. And why not? Cooper needed a change, and Jewel’s parents needed her. And truth be told, she probably needed them too. Maybe it really would take a village to raise a child.
When Terra came to work her usual afternoon shift in the gallery, Jewel decided to act like nothing whatsoever was in the works. Terra naturally leaned toward negativity and would probably assume her job was at risk. Better to just play it cool with this young woman and hope that Jess would keep her on, if he took over.
“I have to leave early today,” Jewel told Terra. “I want to get home before Cooper for a change.” She laughed as she grabbed her bag from beneath the counter. “Gotta keep my eye on that girl these days.”
Terra just nodded with a serene expression. Cool and calm and collected. Well, until something went wrong. Then watch out. “Have a good evening. Call me if you need anything.”
When she got home, Jewel went straight to work. She was a minimalist by nature, so clutter, at least on the surface, was never her problem. But if you dug deeply enough into closets and cupboards, she looked like more of a hoarder. But she’d recently read a good rule. If you keep it out of sight and rarely use it, get rid of it. And so that’s what she started doing. Old wedding gifts, clothes she hadn’t worn in years, shoes that were ridiculous—all were tossed into boxes to be donated. And just a couple boxes were set aside to keep.
By the late afternoon, Jewel had stacked quite a few packed boxes inside the front door. The ones on the left to give away and the ones on the right to take to Oregon. She hadn’t heard back anything for sure from Jess or Monica, but it all still just felt right. Like the universe was truly lining everything up for her. And then she heard the key turning in the front door. Cooper was home from school.
“What’s up?” Cooper demanded as soon as she stepped inside.She closed the door and dumped her backpack next to the giveaway stack. “Spring cleaning?” She gave Jewel a dubious look. “You better not have touched anything in my room.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll leave that to you.”
“So what’s going on, Mom? Why aren’t you at the gallery?” Cooper’s attention was more on her phone than on her mother as she talked. “I thought you worked until six on Tuesdays. Something wrong?”
Jewel studied her daughter with suspicion. “Why? Did you have plans? Is my presence here messing things up for you?”
Cooper shrugged. “No ... of course not.” But she scowled as she typed something into her phone, holding it at an angle that prevented Jewel from seeing the screen. Probably a warning text to her new friends. Maybe they were on their way up here. Was her daughter canceling some dubious plan? All the more reason to get out of town. ASAP.
Cooper slid her phone into the back pocket of her torn jeans, then, cocking her head to one side, pursed her lips. “Something’s up. I can feel it. What’s the deal?”
“Come sit down.” Jewel led the way to the breakfast bar with Cooper trailing her like a suspicious animal.
“You’re kinda freaking me out. Is this serious?” Cooper perched on the edge of the stool and tugged at the edge of her black rocker T-shirt, something Jewel had tried to discourage her from wearing to school. Honestly, she doubted Coop even knew who the Grateful Dead were. Did she realize they were from her grandparents’ era?
Jewel sat down across from Cooper, trying not to stare at the lime-green tips on her otherwise sleek brunette hair. Jewel would’ve loved to have thick, dark hair like her daughter’s as a teen. Instead she’d been stuck with mousy brown. “Here’s the deal, Coop. I talked to Grandma today. I think she needs help with Grandpa.”
