Total pages in book: 60
Estimated words: 55395 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 277(@200wpm)___ 222(@250wpm)___ 185(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 55395 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 277(@200wpm)___ 222(@250wpm)___ 185(@300wpm)
“Perfect timing. My scheduling program decided to wake up and realize it is not in fact a Monday and shouldn’t be acting crazy at all,” Joss jokes.
“Well, it is Friday. Maybe it’s thinking about quitting time.”
“Ha, it’s too early in the day for that, plus this is an ongoing issue.” Maybe their system needs an overhaul. These types of things always happened at the dentist’s office I once worked at, and because the facility was on the smaller side, upgrades didn’t happen as fast as they should have.
“Well, that stinks.” I sympathize with her.
“Alright, here we go. I have Monday at eight o’clock in the morning. The general contractor will be Randy. Is the number you’re calling from a good point of contact?” Wow. I breathe a sigh of relief. This is happening a lot faster than I expected it to.
“That’s perfect, and yes, this number is a good point of contact,” I reply.
“I guess I should jot down your name to attach the house to the person Randy is meeting.” We both let out a laugh of our own. I don’t think it’s only her computer program needing a break; we all do.
“Lyric Skye,” I tell her.
“Perfect. I appreciate your patience. Randy will see you Monday morning. Thank you for calling Jagged Edge.”
“Thank you as well. Have a great rest of your day.” I hit the end button, drop my phone to the table, then raise my arms and feet while remaining sitting on the chair to do a dance of sorts.
Now that I have the ball rolling, I need to send Naomi a text to let her know what’s going on. When I left North Carolina, she stayed back and is in the process of rifling through stacks of paperwork that I didn’t have the time or energy to deal with. She rented an Airbnb for the time being, and we brought the boxes to her place, where she’ll go through them and decide what’s important and what’s not. I’m hoping it won’t be too much, then Naomi can just ship one package and be done with it.
Me: Good morning, I have a contractor coming out Monday. I’m going to get the ball rolling on the landscaping even though I’m sure it’ll be a mess once a construction crew gets started.
When I called her last night after getting settled, she had plans with Mr. Bennett, so we kept our conversation short. I gave her the details of the house, told her to have a great night, and we’d chat today. I don’t see a response right away or a notification under the thread saying read.
Interesting. Very interesting.
Naomi always has her phone near her. Even when she’s in Paris and our time differences clash, it’s always within reaching distance. I have my fingers crossed that maybe she had a late night and is sleeping in, or maybe she’s with a certain handsome lawyer and never made it back to her place.
I abandon my phone on the table, stand up, and stretch. I raise my arms over my head, move my body side to side, place my legs shoulder-length apart, and bend forward until my hands touch the carpeted floor. I do this a few times, trying to loosen the stiff muscles in my aching body.
Between the drive down here, the stress that’s been my life for too many years to count, and then sleeping in a bed that isn’t mine, it has made me entirely too tense. I should probably add a yoga mat to my list while I’m out shopping today. I’m sure there are going to be more days ahead when my muscles are absolutely going to protest.
My phone goes off on the table, an alert for a text message, and after walking my hands out to further stretch my lower back, I do the reverse and stand up. The blood rushes to my brain, causing a slight dizziness to take hold. I take a deep breath and wait until it disappears. I really need to get a move on. The light dinner I had last night has long since worn off, and I’m going to need nourishment to fuel the calories I’m likely to burn.
I grab my phone and look at the notification while walking to the ensuite bathroom, an added bonus when a lot of bed and breakfasts don’t have this advantage.
Naomi: Ma chérie, that is wonderful news!
Me: I’m excited and nervous. How’d your date go?
Naomi: I’ll have to get back to you. I’m still on it.
Me: FINALLY! Love you! Chat later!
I toss my phone on the counter and get to work. I have my teeth to brush, clothes to change, breakfast to eat, a store to shop at, and a yard to tackle. I look at myself in the mirror. Even though the losses I’ve been dealt, I’m still standing, I’m still breathing, and I’m still smiling.