Chapter 9
CHAPTER
NINE
Francis
The next week was busy with preparations for the inaugural Maison De Reve event, the first dance social, followed two days later by the writers’ retreat.
Crews were completing work inside and outside of the house.
I worked my ass off painting and decorating the guest rooms, and though I was more physically tired than I’d been in forever, I woke every day thrilled that this was my life.
In addition, a few important things occurred:
Mom and Auntie Judy came back from Colusa and decided that, yes, they wanted to stay for a while in the cottage.
That meant bringing in a cleaning service again.
This time, instead of using the company Derek referred me to, I contacted a local woman who ran a well-reviewed housekeeping business, and we agreed to work together on a regular basis.
Her name was Francine, and we thought it kismet that we’d met.
She was Filipina, only a few years older than me, and originally from the Bay Area, so we had fun getting to know each other.
I felt safe with her employees, and they did a spectacular job.
Then Kendall referred me to a local handyman, who happened to be the son of Foggy Basin Fire Chief Eladio “Lalo” Ortiz.
Miguel Ortiz agreed to be on retainer for Maison De Reve.
That was a huge load off. I breathed a sigh of relief when he fixed the damn toilet.
I wasn’t sure I’d get over that nightmare of rushing water anytime soon.
Max and Derek agreed to help the moms pack up what they’d need for the next month.
I was excited to have my family on this adventure with me.
The two women cracked me up with their plans to hit the casino weekly and to cook for my events.
I’d had a guy I was looking to line up for some regular cooking classes, but Auntie Judy wanted to watch his YouTube channel first. The two sisters roasted him the whole time.
“You want to teach cooking, we’ll teach cooking, not this disaster. Who uses olive oil in their fried rice?”
Mom also seemed to want to be here not just for my sake, but to try something new at this phase of her life.
Auntie Judy had been struggling more than she’d let on with moving on after my uncle passed, so this was an opportunity for both of them.
They claimed they were looking forward to having this time together to “get a little wild.” I was damn grateful to be able to give it to them.
The second big thing that happened was that I got three messages from artists who were interested in extended stays.
A writer asked if she could rent a space for two weeks, as she was on a deadline.
I told her she could rent the room on the bottom floor of the main house which had its own entrance and was separated from the great room by the kitchen and a storage room.
She’d have privacy there during the other events, and she said she’d like to give it a try for a weekend, with the option to stay the full two weeks.
It also had a small fridge and microwave, in case she didn’t want to join us for meals.
A painter from New Orleans reached out to ask if I had a space he could use to work on a large painting. He and his wife would be staying in their RV. I sent them pictures, and they fell in love with the space. They’d be out in a couple of weeks.
And thirdly, Kimo called me two days after we’d Zoomed.
We had the best conversation about Kendall, and I told him about the surprise I wanted to commission.
He said his wife, who was originally from California, was excited about coming out for a while.
Kendall had offered them the mobile home he had on his property, but they’d decided to bring out their trailer.
I told Kimo he could set up his shop in my second shed and to put together a list of supplies he’d need.
I was excited to watch him work. Perhaps the New Francis would learn metalworking as well.
The sky was truly the limit for my artistic endeavors.
My retreat was serving its purpose. I was thrilled with the response from the local community, as well as those coming from other places. The ability to help other artists get on their feet was just icing on the cake.
Meanwhile, Kendall and I kept up a steady text conversation, complete with silly pics, serious questions, and swoony suggestions for our next date.
The issue, however, was that between my preparations and his pond project starting up, we had little time to do anything but meet at the fence line for a few whispered words and kisses before bedtime.
On the night before the opening dance social, I told him to meet me out back, that I had a surprise for him.
Thankfully, he’d been on shift the past two days, and he was tickled to find that the landscapers had finished our rendezvous project: a gazebo next to the fence line that was raised enough to provide a clear view of the lake, and it was private enough that we could make out without worrying who was around.
He absolutely loved it.
He immediately swooped me up into his arms and sat me on his lap, holding me tight as we gazed around our shared little paradise.
“You light up a little more every day that you’re here. I’m so happy for you, Francis. This retreat seems to be doing a lot to heal you, and you’ve barely gotten started.”
I rested my head on his shoulder and ran a finger up and down his chest. He’d come straight from work and was still wearing his super-hot uniform, but after the past three weeks, I was so ready to see him with a lot less clothes on.
“Will you be my date for the dance social?” I asked him. We’d talked at length about it, and he’d even helped me get the word out. All the off-duty firefighters were coming, as well as some of their extended network.
He shifted me in his arms so we could face each other.
“I would be honored.” He lifted my hand and kissed the back of it.
He hadn’t been kidding about the romantic side of him.
He’d sent flowers, a pic of John Wayne with a little cowboy hat on his head and a sign that said, “Thinkin’ of you, pardner,” and he’d even sent a playlist of songs about dreams, many of which I didn’t have on mine.
I was going to have to up my game if I was going to treat him the way he deserved.
“That’s great,” I said, nervous all of a sudden. “Because I’d like to renegotiate the terms of our contract.”
“Contract? I thought we had an indication of interest.”
“Darling, we’ve moved way past an IOI.”
Kendall’s head fell back against the gazebo wall, and he pulled me tighter against him. “I’ll hear your terms,” he finally said.
“Thank you,” I said, shifting out of his arms so I was on my knees on the bench next to him. I took his hands in mine. “I’d very much like to enter into a discussion of sexual relations.”
Kendall shifted next to me and sat up straighter, his eyelids hooded. “What about sexual relations?”
I cleared my throat. There was a fine line between flirty and making it weird, and I obviously didn’t want it to go the weird direction.
“I’d like to put the option on the table. Tomorrow night. After the dance social. And if not then, any time after. I’m ready, Kendall. We said we’d discuss it when we weren’t in the heat of the moment…”
He brushed my hair off my face. It had grown quite long, and I didn’t know what I was doing with it. I kept forgetting to ask Derek for a barber recommendation, but when Kendall touched me so gently, running his fingers through my hair, I didn’t want to cut it ever.
“Your terms are acceptable,” he said, leaning forward to brush a kiss against my lips. “But I have terms as well.”
“Please submit your terms for evaluation.”
He grinned, but it wasn’t his flirty one. He was a little hesitant.
“Since you’ve moved in, we’ve met here, I’ve been to your house, I’ve met your mom and your aunt briefly…
” When she and Auntie Judy moved into the cottage, Kendall had walked over with me to say hello.
I’d nearly sprained an eyeball rolling them at Auntie Judy’s flirting and Mom’s attempt to make him sweat.
He’d been so good about it. I should have known he would be.
Kendall was a master at handling old ladies, little kids, pretty much anyone.
Especially me. He handled me so well, and I wanted him to handle more of me.
I’d been thinking about it since he’d left for shift this time, and I knew…
this courtship, this negotiation process, had come to its natural conclusion.
I wanted him, he wanted me, and like two adults, we should… seal the proverbial deal.
“But you haven’t met my crew yet. Francis, nearly everything about this process has been perfect, but I need to know that you can accept me for all that I am, scales, shells, claws and all. Can I give you a proper introduction?”
He said it so seriously, I stopped breathing… until I realized what he was asking.
“Oh my goshness, Kendall. I would love that! I can’t guarantee I won’t be a little fraidy cat, but how could you think—”
“You’d be surprised at how much some people in my life have not been okay with them.”
“Yeah, but I trust you. If you swear they won’t murder me in my sleep, then I believe you.”
His expression reminded me of the day I’d asked him what he wanted to do with the fence. So, not only had no one ever asked what he wanted, but no one had trusted him when it came to his animals?
Those were all things I could do. Easily. Wanted to do. More and more, any remaining barriers to a successful partnership fell away the more time I spent with him.
“Well, what are you waiting for? Show me your collection.”
Without a word, he stood and held out a hand for me. “Thank you, Francis.”
“Thank you for humoring me and my negotiations.”
He put an arm around me and guided me down the steps of the gazebo and to the path we’d worn in his yard.