The white foam of the waves bubbled and frothed as the water became more unstable. I stopped for a moment, smiling as I took in the beautiful sight in front of me before continuing to try and paint it. Large splatters wetting me slowly at first made me pack up a little of my belongings, Hamptons weather could be a little unstable. But as they dropped more frequently I knew I had to get out of the rain fast or else my painting would be ruined.
Grabbing as much as I could, I run up through the sand to my little blue cottage where I drop most of the paints and of course the canvas to run down to the water and grab the last of my belongings. Laughing to myself, I take a moment to let myself to be immersed in this small shower.
Back on my porch, I unlock the front door and bring in my painting, the rest of the supplies will be fine until tomorrow. "There you are Cass" I jump as my sister Steph comes into sight.
"Jesus Steph give me a heartattack why don't you"
She laughs a hearty chuckle, something inherited from our father that passed me by. "Sorry Cass I did call but you left your phone here. What if something happened to you?"
"Steph I live by the ocean in a quiet town that's only busy when the tourists are here. I'm very sure nothing bad ever happens here"
"Pish posh, take your phone with you always. You never know if I need to get hold of you"
"Steph you call to rant mostly or to invite me to your tv show thingy"
"Exactly, you're always holed up in here except for the holidays but I came to ask you a huge favour"
"Go on then"
"So Paul and I were thinking and we want you to join us on the road with the company, dad agrees by the way. We want to commission some paintings of the crew to be auctioned off for charity and I can't think of a better painter than you"
"Why can't I do this from here?"
"We want the paintings to be real, to show the subject in their element and I know how particular you are about using other people's photos to draw from so I want you to photograph the matches, backstage etc and paint them all yourself. Everything is your property and we'll pay you if you want?"
"Steph if it's for charity then I want no payment. Instead buy my supplies but how long is this for? I have a few shows for my art in New York from February to March"
"That's fine by me. Please will you do it?"
"Yes" She hugs me jumping up a little in excitement. "Calm down, I don't want any attention at this company by the way"
She looked a little upset as she spoke. "You don't want them to know you're a McMahon?"
"Not really. I like my solitude as you might guess by the Hamptons" I love my home, my town and the fact it was so laid back and peaceful.
Steph looked like she wanted to argue back but chose not to. "I understand your reasons and as your sister I'll support you. How soon can you fly out?"
"I need about a day or two to pack up here and make sure I can get a neighbour to look after my house whilst I'm away. When do you need to get back to Paul and the kids?"
"Oh they'll be fine. Paul wanted to spend time with them anyway so I'll help you pack and I can write down an inventory of supplies you need"
"Aw thanks Steph, my art room is in the back there. I'm just going to call next door and ask if they can look after here" She nods, heading into my supply room as I move towards the kitchen where my landline is.
I dial next door and wait for dear old Deirdre to answer. "Hi Deirdre it's Cassie from next door. I was wondering if you could keep an eye on my house for a while. Oh about a year max but I can give you a call every month or so or give you my sister's phone number as I'll be with her. Yes everything is fine in the family. Aww thank you, I'll drop a key round tomorrow. Thank you, goodnight". Hanging up the line, I start to tidy up the kitchen, moving the dirty dishes into the dishwasher and straightening up any papers lying around the countertops.
Satisfied with that, I move into the hallway and grab my old black suitcase from the cupboard it hid away in. Wheeling it to my bedroom, I toss it on my bed and unzip it. "Um Steph what do I need to bring with me clothes-wise?" I call out to her.
Opening my wardrobe and a few drawers, I stood with my hands on my hips unsure of what to pack. Of course I had packed underwear and nightwear but I didn't know how to dress as I always saw Steph in her corporate gear or something completely smart-casual.
Thankfully Steph padded into my room and immediately started going through my wardrobe only stopping to throw clothes out for me to pack. "There that should do for now. I've taken photos of your paints, brushes and canvases and sent them to the finance people to buy but I want you dressed how you normally do. Okay not those shorts and ratty old jumper but you know jeans etc. Something that allows you to work comfortably whilst blending in" She said after we'd packed the last of the clothes she deemed appropriate. At least they were jeans, t-shirts and jumpers mixed with a few vests and shorts that might suit the warmed states.
"Oh that's fine. I worried you might make me wear suits etc. I think I'd rebel on purpose then" I teased holding up a pair of jeans that had more holes in than they really should do.
"They are not coming with us" She said trying to take them from my hands. "If I get my hands on them, I swear I'm going to toss them"
"There goes my plan to wear them for the flight" I half-joke.
"Actually then that's fine. If you're comfortable wearing them, go for it" She said having a quick change of mind. Surprised, I looked up at my older sister and for once seeing how much she'd changed in the past ten years.
Gone was the tight-laced girl who never disobeyed her parents, the sister who always tried to scold her siblings and instead was a vibrant, strong woman who ran a successful company, had a beautiful family and had strengthened all bonds with her siblings. I loved my sister now, more than I used to now I was older.
"Steph thanks for this. I mean supporting me and popping in like this" I said suddenly catching her off guard but she smiled softly moving closer to me and I hugged my sister tightly. "Let's go order food before we end up over-emotional" I joke and she ruffles my hair in that older sister way.
"About time squirt"