"Name one time that happened, Payton."
"Where shall we begin? There was the time you were going to start your Herbal Care business. That was a hoot. No one could tell you anything. You had all of us going around town, putting up signs to order your products. That was short-lived when we found out that hanging up the signs was against the town ordinance. Then, you bribed Abby and me to drive you to your multi-level marketing meetings. You used to come out of those meetings all pumped up and ready to sell products by the box load. All of that quickly came to an end when you realized just how difficult it was to climb the MLM ladder."
"I was nineteen. All teenagers think they have everything figured out. I was very consistent and responsible before that point. You're just not giving me any credit."
"Oh, yeah? What about school fundraisers? Once again, Rebecca comes home all pumped about winning a brand new bike as the first prize. I can still hear you today. "I'm going to outsell every kid at school… weeks later, Mom and Dad were stuck trying to figure out how to get rid of forty plus boxes of assorted candy bars."
"Okay, Payton, you've made your point. The one thing you seem to be forgetting is that I finally grew up and made something of myself. I don't think becoming a successful lawyer is anything to overlook. "
"You do have a successful career. But the way you're acting over this whole property thing reminds me of the old Rebecca that gets excited about an idea without giving it a lot of thought. As I stated earlier, I don't have the money or time to be involved in something like this. Neither of us can be in Savannah to properly oversee everything while managing our lives here in Pelican Beach."
"I have given this a lot of thought. There are people we can hire to ensure things run smoothly."
"Rebecca, I don't know how many other ways I can tell you that I'm not comfortable with the idea."
"I didn't expect you to be comfortable with the idea immediately. I'm just asking you to continue being open to hearing the details. Tomorrow I was hoping all three of us could talk through it at Mom and Dad's house."
"I have to get back to work," Payton concluded.
Convincing my sisters to get on board was proving itself to be a lot harder than I thought.
Payton
Sundays had become our new family day, which now included Emmie and Cole. We set up a volleyball net on the beach near my parents' cottage. It was fun watching Cole and Wyatt engaging the kids in a few rounds while the women sat on the deck to talk.
"Mom, do you think you could ever live somewhere else besides Pelican Beach?" I asked.
"I don't think I've ever considered it. Your father and I have lived in this town for so long I can't imagine living anywhere else."
"You're in a dreamy location. I would give anything to be right on the beach,” Rebecca said.
Mom nudged Rebecca with her elbow. "You didn't do too bad for yourself, Rebecca. Your home is lovely, and you're not that far away. Your only problem is you work so much you don't get to spend enough time enjoying it."
I wondered if what Mom was saying was sinking in for Rebecca. Even she recognized that Rebecca didn't have time to do anything besides focus on her career. How on earth would she be able to take care of a renovation in Savannah?
"Is there room for me to join you, or is this a ladies-only affair?" Cole joined us from his game of volleyball, and I gladly pulled out the chair next to me.
"I have a seat waiting right here for you. Who won the game?"
"Technically, Wyatt and I won, but we allowed the kids to have the final victory,” he said.
Emmie ran over and sat beside me.
"Emmie, guess what?" I said.
"What?"
"I was thinking we should have a special date for you, me, Maggie, and Aidan to hang out soon. How does that sound?"
"That would be awesome! Maybe we could go for milkshakes or go swimming or maybe both?"
"I like the way you think. Milkshakes, swimming, or both… hmm."
I turned to Cole.
"What do you think? Does that work for you?"
"It's your call. I'm just jealous I'm not invited,” he said.
Emmie took out her dad's old cell phone, which she carried around for fun.
"Payton, as soon as you name the date, I can put it on my calendar."
"Oh, wow, okay. How's next weekend?" I said.
"That works for me!"
She truly was the sweetest kid ever. I didn't know how I got to be so lucky to have Emmie and Cole in my life.
Dad slid the screen door aside and joined us outside. Abby followed behind him with a tray of snacks.
"Hi, Dad. How are you?" Rebecca said.
"I'm pretty good. I just had my mid-day nap. It doesn't get any better than this."
Dad positioned himself to take a better look at Emmie.
“Well, who's this fine young lady?" he said.
"Hi, Mr. William. It's me, Emmie. Don't you remember me?"
"I think so."
Dad looked at me to be sure, so I nodded in agreement.
"It's nice to see you, Miss Emmie,” he said. He mosied over to find a place to sit in the shade.
"Whose birthday are we celebrating today?"
"No birthday, Dad. It's just the family getting together to eat." Rebecca rearranged herself to sit closer to him.
"Hey, Dad, do you remember our great Uncle Samuel?" she said.
While they talked, Abby continued to set up the snacks and threw a dagger my way. I knew she didn't want to hear Rebecca bring up the property.
"Good old Sammy. I have to give him a call."
"He's no longer with us, Dad."
"He's gone?" he said.
"Yes, he passed away. But he has a home in Georgia that his daughters want to give us. I was wondering if
