“I need to get drunk,” Stevie says, climbing off my lap. “I just need to blot this all out.” She traipses into the kitchen, leaving me alone with Hadley.
“That won’t help,” Hadley says.
“Trust me, I know that better than anyone.”
“But she needs this.”
“Agreed.” I rub at the pain in my chest. “I’ll take good care of her. She can stay here tonight. I have something to show her that might cheer her up.”
“Doubtful, but I appreciate your willingness to try.”
Stevie ambles back into the room with a bottle of white wine tucked under her arm and three wineglasses in her hand. Hadley hops up to grab the bottle before it falls. The girls pour the wine into glasses, and Stevie hands me one before climbing back into my lap. I’m not complaining. If she draws comfort from being close to me, I’ll gladly oblige.
Hadley watches with shrewd eyes, wisely saying nothing as she kicks her shoes off and curls her feet up on my couch. “Nice place you got here, Beck.”
“Thank you. I love living here. I’m a real homebody, and I spend a lot of time in this apartment.”
“I love it here too,” Stevie says in between guzzling her wine.
I spot an opening and go for it. “I’m glad you do. You know I love having you here.” Taking her wineglass, I set it down beside mine on the end table. She pouts, and I chuckle. “You can have it back in a minute. I have something to show you.” I stand with her in my arms, reluctantly placing her feet on the floor. I’d happily carry her around all the time if that was an option. I like having her in my arms.
Clutching her hand in mine, I jerk my head in Hadley’s direction. “Come look.”
We pad out to the bedrooms, and I discreetly wipe my sweaty palm down the front of my jeans. I hope she likes it and that it’s not too overwhelming for her.
Before I open the door to the guest bedroom, I turn to face her, softly tipping her chin up with two fingers. “I want you to feel comfortable here. I want you to know you always have a place to stay here. Any night you don’t want to go home, this room is yours. No strings attached. No agenda.” I smile. “No more sleeping in tub chairs.”
She gulps. “Show me.”
Without further ado, I open the door to what was once Sarah’s bedroom when she slept over, revealing the new interior.
Stevie’s eyes go wide and Hadley gasps as they drink it all in.
A distressed white brick wall behind the bed houses a black-and-white framed print with a lone red poppy. Two white and gray bedside tables rest on either side of the bed with small red lamps on top. The bedcover is mainly white with red poppies scattered across the material. The underside is patterned with small red dots. Copious pillows adorn the bed. Some are in plain white or red silk. Others match the covers. Pale gray floorboards rest underfoot, and an enormous fluffy white rug covers most of the space. Poppy drapes frame the window.
“Is that Nana’s field?” Stevie asks, spying the eight framed pictures on the wall at the end of the room. She moves toward them.
The photos are stacked side by side, in two rows of four, making one giant picture in squares. In the corner is a large gray leather recliner chair, and I had fitted bookshelves built into the wall. A tall lamp curves over the chair for nighttime reading.
I toyed with the idea of putting a desk in here in place of the large chair, so she could work or make dried-flower pictures, but I want this room to be a place of rest and relaxation. I decided to add a second desk in my study instead, but I won’t do that yet. I don’t want to overwhelm her, and I can tell this is already a lot to take in.
“It is.” I can’t keep the smile off my face. “I swore Nana to secrecy when I dropped by last week and took photos. A photographer friend of mind printed and framed them for me.”
“They are stunning,” Hadley says. “The whole room is.” She offers me a warm smile before fixing it on Stevie. “What do you think, babe?”
Stevie audibly gulps as her gaze darts wildly around the room. She tips her head up to look at me. “You did this for me?” Her voice is thick with emotion.
“I did.”
“But what about Sarah? Won’t she be angry?”
I shake my head. “Sarah hardly ever stays here, and it was never officially her room. I replaced the king bed in the lavender room with two doubles, so if both my sisters are here together, they can just share that room. It’s rare they stay over, whereas you are here more often.”
“I don’t mean to intrude.”
I step close to her, lightly placing my hands on her hips. “You aren’t intruding. You’re my best friend, Stevie. I wanted to do this for you so you feel comfortable to stay over when you want to. I know Hadley has plans to travel during the summer. If you don’t want to be alone, you can stay here any night you want. Or not,” I add, stepping back and creating space between us when I see the emotions flitting across her face. “There is no pressure. I just wanted to create your own space here. You don’t even have to stay. You might like to come in here and read at times when I’m writing.”
Slowly, she walks toward me and circles her arms around my waist. “Thank you,” she whispers. “This is one of the nicest things anyone has ever done for me.”
