“Look at you!”
“Well, don’t congratulate me yet. I still have to get the job.”
“You’ll get it. I know you will.” I could hear Emily’s van humming even through the receiver. “Are you at least enjoying being out in that beautiful forest by yourself? It seems like the most peaceful place in the world to finish your novel.”
“It is peaceful. But I wouldn’t exactly say I’m alone. I have a neighbor.”
“Neighbor?” Emily asked, her voice changing pitch.
“Yeah. I have a really rich neighbor. In comparison, his house makes the cabin look like an abandoned shack.”
Well, it sort ofwasan abandoned shack, but that was beside the point.
“You have a rich neighbor? Is he hot?”
I rolled my eyes and let out a snort. “What makes you immediately assume he’s hot?” My friend was always so eager for drama. Emily could gossip about the weather.
“I’m a hopeless romantic. Of course, I’m going to assume it’s a good-looking guy.”
“You’re crazy.” I shook my head, even though Emily couldn’t see me. “Can’t I just have a healthy exploration of my identity in the forest without meeting a guy?”
“Hope, stop trying to crush my dreams and just tell me what he looks like.”
“He’s got dark hair, blue eyes, and a dog.”
“And…?” Emily pressed.
“I think he might be a doctor.”
“OH. MY. GOSH.” Emily seemed to be having an aneurysm on the other end of the line.
“Chill, Em. He could be a podiatrist, for all we know. He probably removes ingrown toenails all day long.” I bit my lip, fighting a smile. Why was I feeling so giddy talking to Em about Jay? I’d met him once.
The image of Jay’s perfect teeth flashed into my head. Ugh. I was the biggest sucker for a gorgeous smile.
“Don’t you dare try to ruin the mental image I’m conjuring right now with ingrown toenails, Hope Elmswood. Now tell me,is he tall?”
“Ugh, you’re relentless. I’m nipping this in the bud right now.”
“Fine, I’ll stop for now. But Dr. Neighbor Guy is not being sidelined forever. We are talking about this later.”
I chuckled. “Whatever you say, Em.”
There was a short pause. And that’s when I could tell the tone of the conversation was about to take a more serious shift.
“Well, I love you. I’ll definitely be visiting in a few weeks, so make sure the cabin is all fixed up before I come. I really hate spiders.”
“You got it. I’ll get to work on that.” I let out a weak chuckle. “Love you, Em. And I miss you.”
“I miss you too. We’ll talk soon.”
“Talk soon.” I hung up the phone and got out of the car.
It was officially time to start job searching.
Grabbing my laptop, I sat outside on the front porch so I wouldn’t roast like a kebab inside the hot cabin. Balancing the keyboard on my knees, I opened my Safari browser and typed into the search bar:jobs in Big Bear.
It was slim pickings, as I expected. There were opportunities at the ski resort, and it said the pay was twenty-five dollars an hour. Not what I made as a hygienist by any means, but it was better than some of the other jobs I was seeing that barely paid minimum wage. There was a kayak instructor position, but I didn’t know the first thing about kayaking. The next one that popped up was for handling boats at the marina. Something I also knew nothing about.
