Chapter 744: Bobbi-Lee's Cottage
Thursday, March 23rd, Afternoon
Light poured into the loft office of the modest cottage. There was an orange hew to the light, which indicated that the sun was going down. She looked at her watch and understood that she had overworked what time she was supposed to work. She stretched out and felt a few pops in her back. Finally, she leaned forward and looked at the sketch on her table.
Bobbi-Lee sighed and reached for her water bottle. Her cat Rooney was laid out in a nearby chair, napping. Bobbi-Lee turned her head left and right, popping her neck. She looked over her shoulder to see the time and date. Often, Bobbi-Lee would lose track of what day it was.
There was a noise coming from below. Bobbi-Lee took notice and turned her head. She listened to hear it was a key in the door lock. That limited it to only a handful of people. Bobbi-Lee didn't give out her house key freely. With a sigh, Bobbi-Lee sat down on her drawing board's stool and waited.
The front door opened, closed, and locked. The person downstairs moved across the great room and onto the stairs. Bobbi-Lee listened to the person walking up the stairs; by the speed and sound, it was a youthful person.
Coming off the stairs, Bobbi-Lee saw who had entered her house. The two redheads looked at each other, and Bobbi-Lee smiled at her oldest niece. Brett Pierce-Burke looked over at her aunt and smiled.
"Hello, Brett," Bobbi-Lee said with a now tired voice.
"Aunt Bobbi," Brett said.
"What do I owe the pleasure?" Bobbi-Lee asked.
"Well, I've not seen you in a while," Brett said.
"You're busy, and I'm boring, no big deal," Bobbi-Lee said.
"You're not boring, Aunt Bobbi," Brett said.
Bobbi-Lee nodded, "Right," she said, walked out from behind her drawing board, and sat on a nearby sofa. She patted the sofa cushion. "Come, join me."
Brett nodded, crossed the floor, and sat opposite Bobbi-Lee's sofa. They looked each other over.
"So, why did you come for a visit?" Bobbi-Lee said.
"I told you already," Brett said.
Bobbi-Lee nodded and gave Brett a sly look. "Right," she said.
"You don't believe me?" Brett asked.
"I know you," Bobbi-Lee said, "In some ways, you are me."
Brett sighed, "Really?" she asked.
"Yes," Bobbi-Lee said.
Brett shook her head, "Well, you mentioned you were willing to design my prom dress," she said.
Bobbi-Lee nodded, "I knew it was more," she said.
"I also wanted to see you as well," Brett said.
"But you also want a prom dress," Brett said.
"Well, yeah," Brett said.
"What type of prom dress do you want?" Bobbi-Lee asked.
"Something special," Brett said and handed Bobbi-Lee her phone. Bobbi-Lee looked over the picture.
"Something like this?" Bobbi-Lee asked.
Brett nodded, "Yeah," she said.
Bobbi-Lee cocked an eyebrow. "A revenge dress, huh? What happened?" she asked.
Brett rolled her eyes, " Yeah, something happened," she said.
"What happened? You know you could tell your Aunt Bobbi anything," Bobbi-Lee said.
Brett sighed, "You won't understand," she said.
"I was your age once, so try me," Bobbi-Lee said.
Brett shook her head. "I caught Garvan cheating on me," she said.
Bobbi-Lee made a face and nodded, "I see," she said.
Brett lowered her head and shook it. "You don't understand," she said.
Bobbi-Lee put her hand on Brett's shoulder. "Oh, Baby Girl, I know all too well," Bobbi-Lee said.
"How would you?" Brett asked.
"I once dated Uncle Andrew's brother," Bobbi-Lee said.
"Yeah, so?" Brett asked.
"We were serious, pretty serious, people were waiting for us to announce our engagement," Bobbi-Lee said.
"So, what happened?" Brett asked.
"I caught him cheating on me," Bobbi-Lee said.
"What?" Brett asked.
Bobbi-Lee nodded, "Yeah," she said.
"What did you do?" Brett asked.
"Nothing healthy, destroyed DZ's truck and took up day drinking," Bobbi-Lee said.
"Oh, how did this all happen?" Brett asked, gesturing around the loft.
"Jackie pulled me out of it, and I cleaned myself up," Bobbi-Lee said.
Brett nodded, "I don't want to go down that…" she started to say.
"Way," Bobbi-Lee finished.
"But I still…"
"Want to show him up," Bobbi-Lee said and sighed.
"Yeah," Brett said.
Bobbi-Lee stood up and headed over to her drawing board. "Your heart calls for a Miranda, your head a Carrie, but be a Gabby," she said.
Brett nodded, "So, what are you planning?" she asked.
"First off, get you a killer House of Davis dress, and second, find you a date that would make Garvan jealous," Bobbi-Lee said.
"Is that it? That simple?" Brett asked.
Bobbi-Lee nodded, "Yes, it's that simple," she said and started fiddling with a pencil.
"But a date for the prom to blow Garvan away? How?" Brett asked.
"We have our ways," Bobbi-Lee said.
"Should I be scared?" Brett asked.
"No, you're in good hands," Bobbi-Lee said.
"Okay," Brett said, "Oh, Aunt Bobbi."
"Yes?" Bobbi-Lee asked, looking up from her sketch.
"What's happening at Mrs. Ivanova's place?" Brett asked.
"Her family sold it, and I guess they're getting ready for the new owners," Bobbi-Lee said.
Brett nodded, "Oh, so I'm in your hands," she said.
Bobbi-Lee smiled, sent a quick text, and returned to sketching.