“How?”
“A big production company wants to do a show about my house. A renovation show that captures all the character and history that goes along with it. And guess what the best part is?”
“What?”
“I’ve convinced them that your show,Facelifts to Flips, is the perfect platform.”
That had Poppy stopping dead in her tracks. “They want to film my show?”
“And not for YouTube, like you do. It will be a feature on Home and Hearth Network.”
That channel was a giant in the streaming space. Poppy suddenly resented the many,manyhours she’d spent on Homeand Hearth, watching her favorite British cooking competition.
“There will be a big crew and a budget to go with it,” Opal continued. “They’ll pay for all the renovations, and the exposure alone will double the value of this place. It will be likeBig Brother, airing the same week it films. Just think of how many new subscribers you’ll get on your YouTube channel.”
“Big Brother, huh?”
It would also make any attempt Poppy had at making an offer to purchase Stark House look like Monopoly money. The exposure alone would add nines to the price tag.
“I can finally take that Alaskan cruise I’ve always dreamed of. Go to Florence and visit where my parents were born.” She took Poppy’s hand. “I know this place has a special spot in your heart, but if you’re not interested, then I think it’s time to let another family make memories here.”
Poppy thought back on her own memories of family. Like when she learned her dad wasn’t interested in being her dad anymore. After a painful scandal blew through her hometown—and home—her parents had split. Even at a young age Poppy understood why some parents weren’t meant to be together. What she hadn’t understood was why her dad had left her, too.
After her dad bailed, Poppy and her mom had moved into Opal’s. Then when her mom died in a car crash when Poppy was only ten, Opal was there for her, stepping in like a surrogate mother.
“Just think of how many new viewers you’ll gain. I bet you reach your millionth subscriber by the end of the show.”
“Maybe.” And that was a dream Poppy had had ever since she started her channel showcasing her flips and furniture restoration. But this house? She’d dreamed of restoring it. And in front of millions of viewers? Doing her show her way was one thing. Doing it on a major streaming platform meant she’d have no control over the outcome. After a chaotic childhoodfilled with daily unknowns, Poppy didn’t just like control—she craved it.
“What about Kiki?” she asked, referring to her trusted sidekick. For the past six years, they had been a two-woman team taking on the crazy-making world of filming and flipping homes. She couldn’t do it without her demolition goddess, contractor, and all-around hype-girl.
“All taken care of. She’ll be right by your side as usual.”
“She’s my old faithful. I can’t bump her down to laborer. If Kiki isn’t a serious part of the show, then the deal is off.”
Aunt Opal beamed with pride at Poppy’s die-hard loyalty. “I will make sure that the producers know that.”
“What if the producers override me on historically significant things and want to change them?”
“It’s in the contract that you have final say over the construction.”
Immediately the wall between the kitchen and living area that her aunt put up in the eighties came to mind. It wasn’t original to the house and blocked the natural flow of the main living quarters. Plus, it was an eyesore. Poppy had been wanting to demo that wall for years, but there hadn’t been the capital to do so. And don’t get her started on the 1990s powder blue linoleum and matching toilet in the guest bathroom.
“What are you not telling me?” Poppy asked. Because when it came to her auntie, there was always an ulterior motive.
“The producers have final say over… um…,” her aunt said in a tone that had Poppy’s gut sounding the alarm, “matters having to do with the storyline of the show.”
“Auntie, only half the show is the remodel. The other half—arguably theimportanthalf—is the details and decisions I make while filming and editing the show. Camera angles, the order of scenes needed to tell the best story, things like that.”
Camera angles, monologuing to her audience, and makingthe house’s character the spotlight of the show—it had all been critical to her success.
“You’ll have creative input.”
“Input but not control.”
Poppy thrived on control. Growing up with a clinically depressed, alcoholic mother made Poppy view control as the anchor in any storm—the only way to weather the unpredictable.
Then there was the crash.
