Chapter 7
We drove all night long. We didn't want to risk getting caught by Sloane. We finally stopped in a town just outside Mendacino called Westport. It was a very cute little town, with a population of 1,000. We stayed in a bed and breakfast called DeHaven Valley Farm. It was a very nice place and the owners were very nice to us, but we couldn't stay there forever. We need to find a home.
On the fifth day we were in Westport, we drove down the main road when we stopped to look at an old house. It had a For Sale' sign out in front. Vaughn stopped the car and we both got out.
"Let's go look inside!" I said. I loved how cute it was. It looked like an old farmhouse with a traditional red barn next to it. There was about 2 acres of rolling green meadows out in front. There was also a little cottage next to the big house. I automatically fell in love with it.
We walked inside the main house and looked around. There was no furniture inside, and there were about 10 rooms all together.
"Hello?"
Vaughn and I turned around to see a small woman with short blonde hair standing in the doorway.
"Hi." I exclaimed, trying to be as friendly as I could.
"Hi. You must be new here huh?"
"Yeah. We were just passing by and I fell in love with this house." I said happily. "Oh! By the way, I'm Haley Williams and this is my husband Dave."
"Hello." Vaughn said, extending his hand out. The woman shook it.
"Nice to meet you both. I'm Kelly Clarks, the real estate agent in this town. So let me know if you need an y help finding a home." She turned around to head back out the door.
"No wait!" I called, running after her. "We'll take this house!"
* * *
One week later, Vaughn and I began to get the house ready to move into.
"You know what I think?" I asked Vaughn, brushing away the hair that was sticking to my face. Vaughn and I were cleaning up the house. We swept all the floors and had now moved onto dusting.
"No, what do you think?"
"I think we should take advantage of our new skills and open a bed and breakfast."
Vaughn stopped dusting and turned to me. "Really?"
"Yeah, I mean there are so many rooms and this town is so cute! I could use my decorating skills and you could use your cooking skills! There are trails up behind the house, the beach is right across the street, and we could get a few farm animals to occupy the fields and the barns! Come on, what do you say?" I walked over to him and put my arms around him and placed a light kiss on his cheek. "Please?" I pleaded.
He stared deep into my eyes. I could tell he was thinking hard and long. Finally, "Oh alright! It would be fun."
"Thank you!" I cried, jumping up and down.
* * *
About a month later, the house was beautifully decorated, thanks to me, and we had a wonderful chef, thanks to a Learn How to Be a Wonderful Chef in Just 20 Minutes' video. We were ready for the guests to start coming.
We called it the Beachside Bed and Breakfast, since we were right next to the beach. I walked outside on the front porch and sat down on the giant swing. The breeze lightly pushed me in the wind. I could smell the salt in the air coming from the ocean.
I looked around to see several little tables with chairs surrounding them. I glanced out into the fields to see 2 horses and a small donkey.
"Tucker! Ellie!" I called to the 2 horses. They whickered and came trotting up to me. I gave them each a carrot. Annabelle, the donkey was next to come up. She poked her head in between Tucker and Ellie for her carrot.
I walked back up to the house and went inside. I walked into each room, checking to see if everything was all in place. Each room looked like a cottage style room. There was a bed, a small table with a few chairs scattered around it, a big bureau, and a bathroom in each room.
Vaughn and I opted not to put a TV in each room because we didn't want our guests to sit around watching TV all day. In the living room there were a few tables with games such as cards, chess and checkers set up. The kitchen was right next to it. There were two big tables in the kitchen. I sighed and headed back towards our home.
We took the little cottage next to the main house for us. We wanted only the guests to have the main house. I opened the door, smelling the smell of tacos blow through the house.
Two small kittens and a small dog greeted me. "Why hello Morgan and Beau!" I said, reaching down to scratch each black kitten on its head. I could hear them purring. "And hello to you too Frankie!" I said to the small Labrador retriever puppy. I scratched him on the neck.
I figured Vaughn was practicing his cooking so I walked into the kitchen and found Vaughn, working away at something. I crept up behind him and tapped him on the shoulder.
"Hey!" He called. He wiped off his hands on his apron and bent down to give me a kiss.
"Hey yourself!" I said. "What are you making?"
"I'm trying something new. It's taco soup. Here try it!" He took out a spoon and filled it with a small bite of soup. I tasted it.
"Yum! That's really good! What's in it?"
"Tomato soup, pieces of seasoned meat, vegetables and that's pretty much it."
"It's good!" I walked over and sat on the counter. "Vau. I mean Dave?"
"Yes?" He asked me.
"Are you happy here?"
He turned off the stove and walked over to me. "I'm happy here because we live in a beautiful place, I have my beautiful, wonderful, amazing, spectacular wife. And we have our amazing animals. Tucker, Ellie, Annabelle, Frankie, Morgan and Beau."
He kissed me again. "I love you," I said when we broke apart.
"Well I love you too."
Vaughn scooped some soup into two bowls and we headed over to our little table. We sat down and began eating.
"So you're sure now?" I pestered him again.
"Yes, Haley. I'm positive. How could a guy not be happy with you?" Vaughn smiled.
"Awthanks Davey." He hated it when I called him Davey. He said it was too childish. "You wanna go down to the beach after dinner? We could take Frankie, he hasn't had his walk today."
Frankie whined when he heard his name. He trotted over to me and lay down at my feet.
"Oh alright!" Vaughn said, giving into me.