Page 38 of Broken Pieces

Chapter Eighteen

Raelynn

After a long day of baking with a hangover, I am ready for lounging by the pool. It’s a beautiful day and I could use the peace and quiet. I run into the cottage and change into a swimsuit. I pull forty dollars out of my purse after I change and leave it on the kitchen table with a note for Brooks. He might be an asshole but the fact that he carried me into bed last night was deserving of a new whiskey bottle. I am grateful I don’t have a sore neck like I did when I slept on the deck.

I stop by the shed near the pool to grab a floatie to relax on. As I walk up the stairs of the deck, I throw it in the pool. I decide to treat myself to a margarita. I tell myself it’s just to stop the hangover, but there is nothing I love more than floatin’ and sippin’ in the pool.

As I walk into through the kitchen, I notice crumbs on the island. I know only one person who would eat my damn pastries. There better be enough left for the guests that should be arriving in a few hours. I groan as I walk toward the parlor room and notice some of the cupcakes near the guest book are missing.

I stomp into the parlor room pissed off at Brooks and make my way to the bar. Summer always keeps the bar stocked to make margaritas. She told me I can have whatever I want and she wouldn’t tell Easton. She also said she was sad that she couldn’t drink margaritas by the pool with me since she is pregnant.

Once I pour the concoction into a large glass. I make my way to the pool. I set the glass on the deck next to a book I started reading last week and jump in to grab the floatie. I pull myself up on to it and grab the margarita and my book.

I sigh as I sip the margarita. Nothing like lime and tequila to relax the mind as I bask in the rays of the sun. My tan has gotten significantly darker over the last few weeks here. I can’t help but think how great this place is for the soul. I don’t want to leave. Ever. If only I could live in peace here without Brooks.

Can’t he go back to his parents’ house? I mean I know his brother relies on him for everything and I overheard him telling Summer how hard he works and how much he gets done. He wishes he had hired him on last year when they bought the farm.

I open my book and start reading when I hear a table saw start grinding. Damnit. It’s Thursday. There should be no construction because the bed and breakfast is open for business today. I take a long sip of my margarita and toss my book back onto the deck.

I close my eyes and drift in the pool when my phone starts ringing. Am I going to get any peace of mind today?

I paddle over to the deck and see it’s Tacoma calling. A sigh of relief escapes my lips, glad it wasn’t Ivy needing me again.

“Hello sister,” I say as I answer the phone and put it in speaker mode.

“If it isn’t my impossible to reach sister, finally answering her phone when I call. For a while I thought you fell into the pool and drowned since you have been ignoring my calls.”

“I have not! I’ve just been busy.”

“Whatever, Rae. I see how it is. You are replacing me with Summer.”

I laugh out loud at that one.

“It’s not funny,” she says.

“And it’s also not true.” I take a sip of my margarita and push my feet against the deck so I can float around.

“Are you loving it there?”

I look around and breathe in the smell of magnolias, look up into the cloudless blue sky, and skim my fingers along the water of the pool. “You have no idea. It’s like a freakin’ sanctuary.”

“I’m glad to hear you are happy.”

I wouldn’t call it happy. More like trying to find my inner peace. It’s a long way away, but I don’t tell her that. “I’m tryin’ to be.”

I let the silence take over our conversation for a moment before I sip more of my margarita.

“What are you up to now?” she asks. “Baking?”

“No, I am done for the day.” I think about how she asked if I fell in the pool earlier and it causes me to giggle. “I’m actually in the pool now, floatin’ around, drinkin’ a margarita.”

“I am entirely one hundred percent jealous of you. So much so I might tell Easton that you have the freedom to drink there. Maybe he will take you back home.”

“You wouldn’t!” I shout at her.

“No way,” she laughs into the phone. “But I am seriously thinking of coming to visit. I need a break from the city.”

I hear a despondency in her voice. Which is very unlike Tacoma. She is always a positive force even when she is having a bad day. It’s rare to hear her not put together. “Is everything okay?”