Watermelon Wishes

Chapter 2

Evey stretched and opened her eyes to the speckled ceiling of the Watermelon Cove Hotel. She groaned when she reached over and read the time display on her cell phone. 8:18. She had meant to get up at 6:30 to explore the town but sleep did not come easy last night. She finally got to bed after plenty of tossing and turning. It was a stressful situation all around, moving to a brand new town, starting over. But what had really kept Evey up was the haunting look in the neighbor's eyes. That terrible and mysterious caretaker. She had never seen such expressive eyes before, she couldn't deny the fire that burned bright and deep behind them. She also couldn't deny how her heart had sped up when he walked closer towards her - but was it due to her frustration at the sexy stranger's anger or something else?

She told herself that it his grouchy attitude that raced her pulse in order to get out of bed and ready to jump in the shower. She didn't want to delve into any Pandora's boxes today because she needed to focus her energy today on making sure that this was the right move for her. She knew that it was important to get a good feel for the place that she planned to plant her roots but secretly, she kept hearing Ellen's voice in her mind. I really hope you don't regret this. Evey hoped not as well. Everything about Watermelon Cove seemed lovely and charming - everything that she needed but what if it wasn't? What if this was a terrible idea? Ellen was right in that it wasn't too late to turn back. Nothing had been signed yet and if was not the right move for her, Evey could call it a vacation and turn around, although she had sold most of all of her worldly possessions for the move.

Oh well, she told herself, testing the water in the shower. This is what adventure is all about. This what Mom would have wanted.

Showered and dressed in her favorite dark jeans and an emerald green tunic, Evey contemplated what to do with her near waist-length auburn hair. Her tossing and turning had done a number on her hair so washing it was necessary. She didn't have time to blow-dry her hair so a good all-natural air-dry would just have to do. After a quick combing, she applied mascara and light powder, made sure she had her room key, grabbed her bag and Canon Rebel camera and left.

She only had about an hour before meeting with her realtor, Angela and wanted to get a little Watermelon Cove dust under her fingernails. She wanted to see where the hot spots were and get an up close look at those beautiful wisteria tree-lined streets in the sunlight. Mostly, she was looking forward to mingling with the locals. Evey's favorite thing is the world was people. She treasured relationships and loved people who loved life, as she did. More than anything, she was looking forward to forging new and long-lasting friendships.

Bounding out of the small but delightfully furnished lobby, she was caught by the woman about her age who had checked in late last night. Evey observed that her apron almost matched her shoulder-length curls, a color that reminded Evey of warm cinnamon.

"You're in a hurry," she said. "You must have heard about the Studebaker's homemade berry pie."

"I haven't but it sounds delicious," Evey said. She was in a hurry but didn't want to be rude. This woman could be her first friend in Watermelon Cove.

"Oh, it is," the woman smiled as she came around the counter and watered the climbing houseplants that adorned the wooden counter top. "Just be careful with that, it's addictive."

Evey laughed. "So noted. Thanks for the tip. I've got to get going but can you recommend a good place for lunch?"

"Sure, the Studebaker's great for that, too," the woman said, adjusting the vines on a pretty dark green plant.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say that you've got an endorsement deal going on with those Studebakers," Evey said, noticing an assortment of pamphlets, flyers and business cards arranged on an antique maple roll top desk and took one pamphlet that immediately caught her eye, Your Guide to Watermelon Cove.