mention cost-effective.
Lani frowned. “I haven’t been in any of those buildings, but I know they’ve been closed up for at least a decade or more. I can’t imagine it’s livable, at least not before you do some work to it. Plumbing, lighting, air, I mean. You have no idea—”
“I know,” Honey said. “Don’t remind me.”
“I’m sorry,” Lani said, instantly contrite. “I’m not trying to rain on your parade. When I found this little place empty and made the decision to relocate here permanently to stay close to my dad, and to start something under my own name it was terrifying and thrilling all at the same time. If anyone had told me how hard it was going to be to get it up and running, I’d have hopped the next train back to New York. All I can say is, there will be those days, a lot of them, but hang in there.” A smile creased her face that was nothing short of blissful. “It’s all worth it, trust me. And then some.”
“I hope so,” Honey said, intimidated and bolstered. “Don’t worry about the rest of it. I’ll figure it out. I did want to ask you one thing. No one seems to know where my aunt might have stored her personal things. I found out she took most of her furniture and things like that when she moved to the senior center, but none of her personal effects—the things she gathered over a lifetime, her mementos, photo albums, that sort of thing—are at the center. Neither her attorney nor the management company have them, either. I thought she was still living over her shop, so is it possible she left anything there? Or had it stored somewhere on the island when she moved to Savannah?”
“She did!” Lani put her hand to her forehead. “I’m so sorry. I completely forgot about that. We turned the upstairs into Kit’s office and storage, but yes, yes, there is a big old steamer trunk and some other boxes. I was going to ask the management company what to do with them, but never got around to it. They’re tucked in a back corner and, honestly . . . I sort of forgot about them. I’m so sorry!”
“No, no, that’s okay.” Honey’s heart squeezed and emotion choked her throat, so it took a moment before she could continue. She’d have something of her aunt’s after all, and she hadn’t realized how much that really meant to her. “I’ll . . . I’ll arrange to have it all moved over to the shop space. I’m just—”
She paused, dipped her chin, and pushed at the corners of her eyes. “Thank you,” she said, smiling through the glimmer of tears. “Truly. It’s all been such a shock, but that makes it more bearable, more . . . tangible. I—thank you.”
“You let us know whenever you’re ready and I’ll have it taken over. No hurry. If you want to go up and look through it all before moving stuff, that’s fine, too. Whatever is good for you. I feel so bad. If Kit wasn’t still living in the apartment upstairs over this place, I’d invite you there, but with Morgan having Lilly and all, they’re being a bit more careful about her staying at his place and—”
“Stop. It’s fine,” Honey said, realizing it really was. “Nothing may be going as I’d thought it would, but it’s all going. I’ve got something to work toward and that’s all I really wanted. Meeting you all tonight, having everyone so open, and so . . . understanding has been great. You can’t know how much that means to me. You really can’t.”
“I can’t claim to know what it’s like to be that isolated, no,” Lani said. “My life in pastry kitchens was the exact opposite. I might have wished I had your life then.” She laughed. “And I’ll have you know it’s still killing me not to hug you right now. But I do know something about wanting to start over, wanting something for yourself . . . to be respected for your work, and to build something worth growing. I got so much more than I ever bargained for, coming here. If you talk to Kit or Charlotte or Riley or Franco, they’ll all tell you the same thing. You came to the right place, Honey. None of us are ‘normal,’ you know?” She grinned as she made quotes.
“It’s like the island of misfit toys, only we’re bakers and stylists