we’re feeding you the lines. Reciting other people’s words isn’t easy for everyone. We just have to roll with it, improv-style.”
“Sounds risky.” And potentially disastrous. “I don’t want to cause any more problems.”
“Trust me.” Aria was already walking out the way the director had run off. “I’ll go talk to Signor Huffy Pants.”
Aubrey avoided meeting anyone’s eyes and shuffled off to grab some water. By the time she finished the bottle, Aria and Stan returned arm in arm. He was still red in the face, but he looked more alarmed than angry. The poor man had obviously been bamboozled by Aria.
“All right,” he said, settling in his chair. “Use the script as a guideline, but you could use your own words for this episode.”
When given the chance to be herself, Aubrey’s passion for desserts spoke for itself. Aria was quick on her feet and was able to guide her along with great questions and perfectly timed comments. They were actually able to finish filming her first segment on schedule.
“Oh, thank goodness.” Aubrey sagged onto the kitchen floor when they wrapped up for the day. “I honestly don’t know how you do this. It’s exhausting.”
“It is, but it’s so much fun.”
“I can tell you’re having fun.” Aubrey didn’t want to offend Aria, but it was about as fun as scraping burned cake off the bottom of a pan. “As for me, my part of the filming can’t be over soon enough.”
“Well, I think you did splendidly, sweetheart,” Aria said with a warm smile.
Smiling back at her, Aubrey thought how fortunate she was to have Aria on her side. She genuinely liked the warm, vivacious woman.
“You’re pretty awesome, you know that?” Aubrey said.
“Well, yes. Maybe a little.” Aria’s laughter twinkled in the air. “And so are you. Never doubt that.”
“Thank you.”
Aubrey stared at her hands. With less than a week left at Bosque Verde, she was worried about the renovations at the diner. She’d been communicating with her contractor, but his team was running far behind. The old appliances were out, but the new ones hadn’t been installed because the permits hadn’t come through. It took multiple phone calls to have something done and more calls to have it fixed. She was bleeding money. The renovation costs could exceed her carefully planned budget, and it was only going to get worse, from the sound of things.
Aubrey glanced around her. The set kitchen looked beautiful, but it had taken a lot of wrong turns before coming together. She should’ve paid more attention to Landon’s headaches with its progress. But her plate had been so full, she’d chosen to hide her head under the sand.
She hadn’t mentioned her renovation nightmare to Landon. They hadn’t discussed their relationship or where it was headed beyond their time in Bosque Verde. Aubrey wasn’t ready for it to end, but Landon hadn’t made any promises. If she told him about her troubles with the expansion, he might feel obliged to help and end up staying with her longer than he’d wanted.
Her heart bled, her head hurt, and her entire body ached.
“Is everything okay?” A warm hand covered hers.
“I’ve been struggling a bit with Comfort Zone’s expansion.” Aria was her friend, and no matter what happened with Landon, she hoped Aria would remain her friend.
“Oh, honey. Why didn’t you mention this sooner?” Her friend listened attentively and asked insightful questions as Aubrey laid out her problems. “Is that all?”
Aubrey’s eyes widened. “Isn’t that enough?”
“Hang on. I can’t believe you’re having contractor problems. I mean, I can believe it, but your timing is unreal.” Aria fished out her cell phone and dialed a number from memory. She spoke so rapidly, Aubrey couldn’t quite follow her one-sided conversation. It sounded like she was discussing Comfort Zone’s expansion, and it seemed to have gone well, because Aria turned to her with a wide smile. “I have a plan.”
“A plan?” She’d just needed to unload. She’d never expected a plan.
“As far as renovations go, your problems are comparatively minor. I called in a favor with my close friend and favorite TV contractor. You know those guys who tear down buildings to studs then rebuild them in two days?” Aubrey nodded with her mouth gaping. “Well, he and his team are wrapping up a project next week. Once they finish, they could get your kitchen renovated and your dining area remodeled in about two weeks’ time. They obviously need to see your place for more accurate time and cost estimates, but they’ll be working