Page 60 of Gulfside Girls
She gave him a wadded-up string, and he got to work. He had significantly more success with his strand than she did with hers.
“See, I’ve got skills.”
“I got that one started for you,” Ali replied.
The two had fun untangling the lights and stringing them about the base of the palms in the courtyard. The irritation she’d felt at the start of her little light project evaporated into something like giddy fun. This was fun. This was the same fun as decking the halls for Christmas or creating a cool display in the convention center. She liked creating experiences, and it appeared Henry did too!
“I have to say, not something I thought I’d be doing on my fact-finding trip. But it looks incredible!”
The already charming common area of the Sea Turtle Inn was now twinkling in the late afternoon sun.This is so cute!It was no kingdom of magic one could experience in Orlando, but it was a little nook of magic, and she’d made it so.
“You have a good eye for creating beautiful things, just like Didi.”
“That’s a high compliment,” Ali said, and she meant it. Didi, in short order, had made Ali feel like part of the Sea Turtle family. Even if the older woman wasn’t up to the physical tasks that the place required, she’d welcomed Ali with open arms. The thought filled her with a spike of guilt. She was about to pull the rug out from under this little magic carpet ride.
Henry helped her get the food and chairs sorted and soon, Erica arrived with all manner of cookies for the kiddos.
“This is so helpful. What do I owe you both, truly? I appreciate this so much, and so will the guests.”
“Girl, these are my extras,” Erica said as Henry poured her a glass of white. “I let the staff take home a half dozen of whatever we don’t sell so our cookies are always fresh. You’re not paying for what I already give away.”
“I will ask for payment on the wine,” Henry added, “which includes me using the washer and dryer next week. Mine is on the fritz. I’m on my last three pairs of antique jeans.”
Ali nodded. “Deal.”
She looked toward the beach and then back to the little alcove of chairs and food and good people. For a brief moment, Ali allowed herself to imagine what a lovely life it would be, sitting here every night.
“Can we go in? Can we go in?”
Ali’s imagination was interrupted by the laughter and pleas of the Hafner and Noble children hopping toward the water.
“You’re kidding? You were in all day!” Doreen Noble shook her head, but Brock Noble stepped up. “I’ll keep an eye. Let’s go!”
The five cousins ran toward the water. Doreen, along with her sister Kerry and Kerry’s husband Dale, approached the little spread of food and drink.
“Welcome to the Grand Finale,” Ali announced. “White?”
Both moms nodded, and Dale decided on a beer, which Ali had set in a cooler. She was mindful of the fact that not everyone was a wine drinker. Her dad never let anything but Bud Light lubricate his downtime.
“Take a load off, ladies,” Ali said, and the moms gratefully sat in the beach chairs. More beachgoers trickled toward them, and so did a few more local business owners.
Erica introduced her to a man who rented beach equipment, a woman who owned a hair salon a few blocks over, and then Kent Churchill from Moe’s arrived.
They all greeted each other warmly and exchanged highlights of their day.
It was an informal business owner of Haven Beach get-together, and Ali got to be a fly on the wall. They talked about everything from a repaving of a nearby street to a new condo proposal for a vacant lot around the block.
“Oh, did you hear that Ford Taylor’s house is set to be done this month?”
That caught her ear.
“Is that the Ford Taylor I think it is?”
“If you think it’s the one who has a billion-dollar fashion and home décor line, then yes,” Erica said.
“Wow.” Ali was impressed. She’d met all these amazing business owners but none of them seemed like they were used to having billionaires in their midst.
“He bought two older beach cottages, side by side, tore them down—what, four years ago—and has been constructing a behemoth mansion. It’s about a quarter mile that way,” Kent explained.
