Riva smiled. “That was my sewing room.”
“You’re a seamstress?”
“Only as a hobby. It’s been ages since I did any mending, and I was never very good at it. I gave away my machine and all of that years ago.”
“My sister-in-law Mae is a quilt maker. I admire her work but don’t care to try it myself.” She held up a violin case. “Music is my main hobby.” She smiled. “Have you a hobby now?”
“Not to speak of. I used to dabble in painting a little.” Riva cringed remembering the promise she’d made Paul that she’d take it back up after he was gone. A promise she had yet to keep. She forced a smile. “I’m glad to have you here,” she told Fiona. “Please, make yourself at home. The woman in the ensuite across from you is Laurel and her cat is Fred. Windy lives on the third floor, and she’s fixing us dinner tonight at seven. And Kitty, inthe room next to yours, plans to move in today too. So this will be a busy place.”
“Like a girls’ dormitory.” Fiona hoisted a bag strap over her shoulder. “It’ll be just crack.”
“Crack?”
“Ah, excuse me Irish. Craic means fun. It’s C-R-A-I-C.”
“Right. It’ll be craic,” Riva tried it out. “I hope you teach me lots of your Irish words.”
“In no time at all, we’ll get you all set to visit my homeland. It’ll be grand.”
As Fiona carried a load upstairs, Riva retreated to her own room. She knew the house would be busy with comings and goings today. That would create the kind of noise, or craic, that Riva wasn’t used to anymore. Not yet anyway. And so she decided to spend a quiet afternoon in the bath with a book. It’d been a while since she’d enjoyed a peaceful soak in her big tub. Back before Paul got sick, she used to take an occasional “home spa day” in the master bedroom. Usually before a big event or date night. And although she had no big evening plans, she felt the need to do some pampering today.
She tried to remember how she used to do it. First, she’d forewarn Paul that their room was off-limits for a few hours, and then she’d turn on some soft music, give herself a facial, take a relaxing bath, followed by a pedicure and whatever other sort of beauty maintenance felt good. But she hadn’t done a “home spa day” once since losing him. She was well overdue. And it would be a good distraction from the activity filling her house today.
As she soaked in lavender-scented water, Riva hoped she hadn’t taken on too much. Four housemates? Three who were practically strangers. And one friend who was feeling a bit like a stranger too, thanks to Laurel’s schoolgirl crush on Marcus. But without that rent money, Riva would be looking for a new place to live. As she ran a bit more hot water, she decided that no matter how it all turned out, she would be okay. If having rentersworked, she would be grateful to remain in her home. If it didn’t work, at least she’d know she gave it her best shot.
After her spa treatments, Riva sat outside her bedroom door for a while, reading and soaking up a little sunshine from the large windows. And then, feeling sleepy, she decided to take a nap. By the time she woke up, it was late in the day. She could hear random movements in the house and instead of feeling jumpy like she had a few days ago, she began to enjoy the sounds. It felt like the house was returning to life, happy to be filled with inhabitants again.
It was still warm out and, knowing they’d be dining outside, she decided to dress in something cool. She foraged in her closet until she found a sundress she used to wear for evening lounging on a warm summer night. But she hadn’t worn it since Paul was alive. She held it up in front of her full-length mirror. Was the cheerful floral print too bright for a widow? She knew what her daughter would say. “Lose the widow’s weeds, Mom” had been Kenzie’s response to all the black and gray Riva gravitated toward. But in all fairness, she’d always worn darker colors. The rayon dress was comfy and cool, and the flowing skirt felt good against her legs.
Maybe itwastime to shed the widow’s weeds. She’d known for some time that Paul would hate seeing her trapped in dark shadows of grief, but she’d felt stuck and it had been easy to hole up in her big house, keeping people at a safe distance. But that was over now. She was entering a new era. New friends, new activities, new life ... For the first time in several years, she felt hopeful. Maybe there really was life after death. And she didn’t mean heaven. She knew there was life there and had been longing for it since losing Paul. But today, for some reason, she felt ready to embrace life on earth. At least for the moment. She had no guarantee it would last.
Her hair, still mussed from her bath, was a mess. She pinned it up loosely. Having it off her neck felt cooler but made her realizeshe needed something else. She opened her jewelry box and dug out a pair of dangly turquoise-and-silver earrings that Paul had gotten her for Christmas the year before he died. She still didn’t know how he’d found them since he’d been housebound, but she suspected Kenzie had something to do with it.
Thinking of Kenzie reminded her that she hadn’t updated her about the houseful of new roommates. And so she sat down and wrote a rather lengthy text explaining the situation, assuring Kenzie that her new tenants were good women. She described them as “friends,” which might’ve been a stretch ... or maybe it was faith. Because Riva believed they’d all be friends before long.
By the time she sent the text, it was nearly seven. Feeling strangely lazy—having guests for dinner but not lifting a finger—she wandered out into her quiet house. She heard voices in the kitchen and continued on through to discover Windy and Fiona working together to make a gorgeous fruit salad. Riva greeted them, plucking a piece of pineapple from the cutting board. “Looks yummy.”
“I need to go check the barbecue.” Windy paused to look at Riva. “Wow, you look pretty.”
“Thanks. It’s just an old summer dress. Thought I’d pull it out of hiding. Nice and cool.” She suddenly felt self-conscious, like perhaps she should be back in her drab colors.
“Well, it’s nice seeing you in something colorful.” Windy waved a hand down at her own outfit, another colorful skirt she’d paired with a fringed top and several strands of beaded necklaces. “You know how much I like color.” She laughed as she picked up a platter of veggies. “We will be festive tonight. Excuse me, ladies, I’m taking this outside.”
“Need any help here?” Riva asked Fiona as Windy went out.
“Thanks, I’m just about done.” Fiona set her knife aside. “I really like Windy. She is such a free spirit. And she seems a good cook too.” Fiona turned to Riva, then smiled. “Oh my, you really do look lovely, Riva.”
“Thanks.” Riva shrugged. “I’m not used to fixing up much. Notthat I did much. But with summertime, dinner, more people in the house ... I thought it was time.”
“I understand. After losing my Jamie, I never gave a wit about my looks. I’d go about in dowdy old things. It wasn’t until I joined me first real band that I took any interest in my appearance. I told myself it was for the sake of the band, but after a bit, I figured it was for me too. Lifted my spirits.”
“That makes sense.” Although Riva wasn’t sure that her spirits felt particularly lifted as she gazed out the window. Kitty was engaged in conversation with Marcus, with Laurel standing nearby watching. With her arms folded in front and her brow creased, she looked troubled. Meanwhile Kitty, with her platinum blond hair, impeccable makeup, golden tan, and slightly snug tank top, looked pleased as pink punch.
“Have you met everyone yet?” Riva asked Fiona.
“I met Kitty this afternoon. She seems nice. I helped her carry some bags and things into the house. That woman has a lot of clothes! She said she must keep up her image because she owns a hair salon.” Fiona pushed back a strand of sleek silver hair and laughed. “She asked if I have mine done professionally, but I told her it was a gift from Mother Nature.”
“A beautiful gift too.” Riva rinsed off the cutting board.
