A ledge at the back caught her eye.
Edging farther in, she spied a small leather-bound book on the ledge. Ivy reached for it. Easing herself into a cross-legged position on the floor, she opened the yellowed pages. Bits of paper cracked off and slipped onto the floor, so she turned the pages with care. It was some sort of ledger with pages of numbers. Farther back in the slim volume was a receipt. She lowered it to read it better. Building supplies. January 15, 1942.
The feathery writing on one page composed a list of furnishings. Each one had a check mark beside it as if someone had been taking inventory. For what purpose, she wondered?
Deciphering the old script, she read a few lines. Was this a list of furnishings for this house or for another home? Bennett said the couple had owned another home in San Francisco and had later returned to Europe. Maybe this was a shopping list, or more likely, these were the furnishings that had been sold.
Ivy looked around the vacant room. Because they’re sure not here. She’d have to figure out some way to bring the house to life.
She turned the pages to the front of the ledger, which had rows and rows of numbers. She couldn’t imagine what they meant.
Later that afternoon, Ivy walked back through the house. With windows cleaned, wooden trim polished, light fixtures cleaned, and most rooms painted, Ivy was pleased that the old house looked much cheerier. The paint colors had been a success.
“Wish I had furnishings for the photos we need to take for iBnB,” Ivy said. They were just weeks before the high summer season for rentals began in Summer Beach.
Standing beside her, Poppy snapped her fingers. “Why not take the photos, and I’ll Photoshop furniture in place?”
Ivy laughed at the thought, although she had to give Poppy credit for creativity. “Wish we could, but when people arrive, they’d wonder what happened to the room they thought they were reserving.”
Poppy giggled. “Guess you’re right. But I can get started on the iBnB site right away. We can upload interior photos later.”
“That sounds like a plan,” Ivy said. They set a date for Poppy to come by the house and take exterior photos. Ivy was worried that her funds were dwindling fast, and she had to be ready for the summer season. A delay of a couple of weeks might be more than she could afford.
Chapter 12
“CAN YOU BELIEVE how much they accomplished?” Ivy and Shelly had seen the last of their family off, and now they were walking through the mostly empty rooms. Clean windows framed the ocean view, and every surface and light fixture gleamed. The long weekend had been worth it, though every muscle in her body ached and her jeans and T-shirt were covered in paint splatters. “I can almost feel the house smiling again.”
“Funny, I know exactly what you mean,” Shelly said. “Time to tackle the landscaping.”
Ivy groaned. “Isn’t that your department?”
“Sure, but I have a landscaping plan I want you to see.”
They made their way into the kitchen, where even the turquoise appliances sparkled with retro brilliance. Pulling up two stools, they sat at the counter. Shelly went through her plan.
“We’ll start with cleaning up the palm tree skirts a little. It’s kind of trendy to leave the skirts on now, and that will save a fortune in trimming off those stubborn suckers.”
Ivy nodded. She liked that shabby chic look. “I’m all for that.”
“The coast live oak in the back is in good condition, too. Again, just light trimming for now. We can trim more in the winter when the trees are dormant. Next, drought-resistant plantings will reduce your water requirements, but you can still have a lush look, almost tropical, in fact.” Shelly rattled off a list of plants that Ivy hardly recognized.
“Can you add some gardenia and jasmine near the patios? Guests will love the scent.”
“Sure,” Shelly said, adding that to her list. When she had finished, she gave Ivy a cost figure. “We can follow this plan in phases so that it’s not as expensive up front.” She tapped a number. “I can get started with this.”
“Okay, but try to hold it to that.” Ivy chewed on her lip. The faster they could open their doors, the better.
Ivy reached for a calendar her mother had given her. It was one of Carlotta’s calendars that she received every year from the animal shelter for her donation but never used. Ivy flipped it open to June. “Hey, cutie.” An adorable rescue puppy that looked like a Labrador mix gazed out at her as though ready to scamper around. She’d always wanted a dog, but Jeremy had been highly allergic to pet dander.
Ivy drew a circle around the first day of June. “That’s our opening date. Even sooner if we can.” As she stared at it, she realized this was the first positive goal she’d had since before Jeremy had died. A goal that meant expansion in her life, not forced contraction.
They both stared at it.
“Think we’ll be ready?” Shelly asked. “Still a lot to do.”
“I don’t have a choice.” She leaned on the counter and touched Shelly’s shoulder. “We must get bookings as soon as we can. Poppy will take photos when we have furniture in place.”
“I’ll handle the floral arrangements. And I’ve got some great before-and-after shots that I took for the blog. Poppy took a video of me describing the before shots, as well as the work-in-progress. We can use that to tell the story. People love that. They might want to see it in person.”
“Great idea.” Ivy loved having Shelly and Poppy involved. “We can do this. We just have to get creative and think of all possibilities to further rentals, no matter how crazy.”
“Our rooms are furnished. We could rent out those first.”
Ivy grinned at her
