Meant To Be (12 page)

‘Yes, I'll need to know all the movers and shakers.'

‘Well, start with Doris at Mitre 10 – she knows everyone who's anyone in the building trade. Her cousin, Will, owns the place. You'll like him.'

‘Duly noted,' he said, tapping his head. ‘So, do you want to head off now?'

‘No rush. I need to plan a menu first, and write a list. And I wouldn't mind going over this a bit more, unless you've had enough for today,' Emily said.

‘Never! It'll be great to nail down some details and get the plans drafted,' he said, clearly excited.

Emily found planning her menu easy – she had a few tried-and-tested favourites, which thankfully, Barbara hadn't served. While she wrote a comprehensive shopping list, Jake tinkered with the rough floor plan of the cottage – not that anything Jake did was rough – and looked over the figures. Emily couldn't believe how straight he could draw freehand.

‘Years of practice,' he said when she commented.

‘Right,' she said. ‘Tell me if you think this menu is okay, and if there's anything you want to add.' She handed him her pieces of paper.

‘Yum. Yum. Yum. Yum. And yum,' he said, making his way down the page and putting a tick next to each item. ‘Looks wonderful.'

‘And the shopping list?'

‘Actually, I know it's naughty, but I'd love some barbeque chips.'

‘Craving salty foods.' She lifted an eyebrow. ‘Isn't that one of the symptoms of adrenal fatigue?' After he'd told her about his condition, she'd got on Google one day while he'd been out with David. Thank goodness he hadn't shown any signs of another symptom – loss of sexual appetite.

‘It could just be that I like them and haven't had them for ages. Can I have some, please, can I? Pleeeease!' He pretended to whine like a child.

‘Oh, ha ha,' Emily said, slapping playfully at his arm. ‘Of course you can, my love,' she cooed, and leaned over to kiss him.

‘Don't start that or else we'll never get to town,' Jake groaned, and pulled away reluctantly. ‘And I want to show you what I've come up with.'

They agreed the design should be as versatile as possible so that the building could cope with multiple uses. The original cottage had consisted of just two main rooms divided by a central hallway that opened onto a lean-to style extension housing a simple kitchen with a small bathroom off it. They were keeping the basic design, but modernising and enlarging it.

Instead of just a bullnose verandah on the front like the original cottage, they were planning to go right around, incorporating an outdoor living area beyond the kitchen. But, of course, it all depended on how the budget looked down the track.

Their finalised plan showed four large square rooms with a central hall. At the back there was a sizeable open-plan kitchen and living area, a laundry, two bathrooms, and a powder room. One of the bathrooms opened into one of the main rooms, which could be used as a master bedroom with ensuite if the building ever became a B&B or permanent residence. Emily was pleased to note that Jake had factored in wheelchair access.

If she went ahead with the art gallery idea, the separate powder room would accommodate visitors and the full-sized kitchen would be ideal for any functions they might have. The four rooms at the front would have high ceilings with large walls for hanging art, and plenty of floor space for displaying sculptural pieces or whatever else she chose to sell.

‘I'm not sure about polished concrete floors – I had floorboards in mind.'

‘Trust me, they'll look amazing – not at all drab like those in the winery we were in the other week. Ours will sparkle. And be warm. You'd be surprised how efficient underfloor heating is.'

‘Oh, I thought we'd have a wood heater or two.' Emily's heart sank. She wanted the place to be classy, but also to have a country hominess about it – even if it was a business.

‘Trust me, the novelty of real flames will wear off pretty quickly – it's very labour intensive. And you'd be surprised how much more dust you'll end up with – not something you want around paintings. Gas log fires in each room will give a nice ambience and extra heating when it's really cold, and be labour-free. Also, gas is much cheaper than electricity.'

‘Are you sure, when you'll have big gas bottles to deal with?'

‘Sorry?'

‘Gas doesn't come by pipe or cable out here like water or electricity – you have to cart large bottles back and forth. Or have it delivered. I'm not sure how much it costs.'

‘Oh. I hadn't thought of that. I don't think it'll be a problem. And I'm sure it'll still be cheaper. We definitely want gas for the kitchen.'

‘I'll have to take your word on that too – I've only ever had electricity. Though, I have heard that gas is what serious cooks prefer.'

‘It's still a much better option than dealing with wood and ash for heating. I think electric hot water, especially if we're going to have to do gas in bottles. Trust me, Em, I know what I'm doing,' he added, clearly noticing her concern.

‘Okay. I know. I'm sorry. I'll try not to question you so much. It's just that it's all so new to me. I only want to be sure.'

‘It's okay. And it's okay to question. You're spending a lot of money – you need to be sure, and happy. But, remember, it's a joint project. I'm going to be using this to advertise my business – anything less than great will not be good enough.'

Emily relaxed. She would let herself trust him. He had years of experience and she had zero. And, God, he was sexy when he was in business mode and all commanding!

Jake explained that with careful thought to positioning and with thick walls, plenty of insulation in the ceiling, and well-fitted doors and windows, the cottage wouldn't need air-conditioning at all. It could always be added later if needed.

‘What about double glazing?' Emily asked.

‘Easy enough to get a basic costing. Or we could go double laminate glass instead of the standard. I'll look into it,' he said, making a note. ‘Now, lights. I'm thinking down lights.'

‘As in, those little disks set into the ceiling?'

‘Yes. What do you think?'

‘They're very modern looking.'

‘And perfect for an art gallery. You want nice clean lines and unobtrusive views for art. If you go with pendants, they'll have to be really plain so they don't distract from the art, anyway. And with down lights you can change the direction to highlight pieces better and avoid shadows.'

‘Hmm, fair enough, I guess.'

‘Honestly, it's what all the galleries do.'

‘Well, if I'm not allowed to have a central light in each room, I'm going to have a dirty great crystal chandelier inside the front door,' she said with a harrumph, and folded her arms in mock defiance.

Jake laughed. ‘That was actually going to be my next suggestion,' he said. Emily felt a new burst of warmth flood through her at the thought that they weren't too far out of synch with their ideas. And if they ever were, he'd steer her right. She just had to have more faith.

They chose a classic look, with a neutral colour scheme for the bathrooms, powder room, and kitchen. They both agreed that it was best to limit the use of bold colour to accents and objects that could be changed easily and relatively inexpensively.

It had all yet to be costed, so they ran two lists: Must Have and Wish List items. For instance, Emily wanted floor-to-ceiling tiles
right throughout the bathrooms and toilet, but not if it meant she had to have an ordinary vanity and basin.

She was very impressed at how much Jake knew about pricing and what was out there. She said she thought architects just did the design and plans, but he explained that he was a lot more hands-on than most architects. He also had some great contacts that would help to keep costs down and give good advice.

‘But we'll try to source as much as we can locally,' he said. ‘I don't want to go upsetting the local businesses.'

‘Good idea. But we'll have to allow plenty in the budget for freight.'

It wasn't that she thought Jake would forget anything, but she wanted to make sure they had as many costs factored in as possible, so as to avoid getting bitten down the track. Country people were at a considerable disadvantage compared to those living in the city with freight adding significantly to the cost of almost everything.

They had now finalised the hand-drawn plan and were ready to get the big, proper plans drawn up. They also had enough of an idea about the quality of the fit-out and a comprehensive list of what they would need in order to get a quantity surveyor involved. Emily had never heard of such a person, but Jake assured her it was the best way to go. Apparently the woman he worked with would be able to come up with a pretty accurate costing, even at this early stage. Emily didn't see how someone in Melbourne could cost something for Wattle Creek, given the extra freight involved and not knowing what was stocked locally, but, again, she had to trust Jake. She knew diddly-squat about any of this stuff.

Once the plans were done, Emily could put in a building application with council. They didn't anticipate any problems. Being out on a farm there were no neighbours to be concerned about overshadowing. Development approvals on farms tended to be
just exercises in rubber-stamping, if there was an application put in at all.

‘God, in Melbourne, planning and building approval can take years, depending on which council you're dealing with,' Jake said.

With such a huge area, geographically, to police, there was no way the council would have the resources to check that all the sheds and outbuildings that popped up on farms had building approval. And no farmer would ever dob in another farmer. It just wasn't done; the whole place worked on a what-goes-around-comes-around philosophy.

Emily had asked David about council regulations when they had first discussed moving the hayshed and had been told they should just let sleeping dogs lie. He was pretty sure John wouldn't have bothered with the mere formality of gaining approval in the first place. Oh well, if it came back to haunt her, she'd worry about it then.

After an hour or so of discussion, they sat back in their chairs, satisfied with their progress. They'd now go and do the shopping and then Emily would cook while Jake hunkered down in the office to start the ball rolling on the next phase. Emily was feeling very excited and positive about it all. What a great day!

Suddenly they were startled by a brief knock followed by the hiss of the glass door sliding open. Emily and Jake exchanged quizzical expressions.

‘I'll get it,' Jake said, getting up.

Emily hoped it might be Barbara, despite her friend making no mention of a visit. In all her excitement, she'd forgotten to tell her about the cottage – she'd got sidetracked by the food. She looked forward to getting her friend's input. But she was going to have to stop referring to it as a cottage – the place was really quite big.

Emily's smile faded when she heard her mother's voice. Part of her started emotionally searching for somewhere to hide. Fight-or-flight response. The feeling Jake had been living with almost constantly, thanks to his adrenal fatigue.

‘Hello Enid. Hello there Des,' Jake said.

Enid entered the kitchen, followed by a sheepish-looking Des. Both were dressed smartly in crisp, neatly ironed shirts – Des: navy and white check; Enid: plain white – and navy slacks. Des's wiry grey hair was standing up a little, as if he had been running his hands through it, but not a hair was out of place in Enid's grey bob. Jake came in after them.
Must remember to keep the door locked
, Emily thought grimly.

‘Oh, there you are,' Enid said. ‘Happy Australia Day.'

‘Hi Mum, hi Dad, come in,' she said, getting up from the table. Her sarcasm was clearly lost on Enid, but not Des, who mouthed, ‘Sorry.'

Emily performed the air-kiss ritual with Enid and then wrapped her arms around her father.

‘So what brings you by, Mum?'

‘We're on our way home from the ceremony. We went to Wattle Creek this year at the invitation of the Greens. We thought you might have been there.'

‘I didn't feel like it this year.'

‘Well, Jake might have enjoyed getting out and meeting some people. Not everything is about you, Emily.'

‘We did discuss it, Enid, but I didn't actually feel up to it,' Jake said. Emily's heart surged with gratitude. She really hadn't known what to say.

‘Oh. Are you unwell? What brings you so far from home, anyway, Jake? Surely not just to visit our Emily.'

Why
wouldn't
he come especially to visit me? Thanks a bloody lot, Mum!

‘Oh. Just a bit of a break in the fresh country air,' he said, starting to look a little flustered.

‘So, you haven't said what brings
you
by,' Emily said.

‘You haven't been to visit, so we thought we'd come to you,' Enid replied haughtily. ‘Do I have to make an appointment now to see my daughter, my only child?'

That would be preferable, yes.

‘So, are you going to offer your parents a seat and a cuppa, or just have us stand here like statues?'

Emily shrugged and waved a hand as an invitation to sit down.

‘You sit, Em. I'll get the coffees.'

‘Thanks, Jake. I'll have tea, please.' As Emily sat down, she realised that her mother was peering at the plans they had been working on.
Shit!
She wished she'd thought to gather up the papers and stuff them in a drawer. Not that she'd had time.

‘Tea for me too – white with one, thanks Jake,' Des said, taking a chair.

‘Coffee for me, thank you. Milk, no sugar,' Enid said.

‘Coming right up.'

Emily watched as Enid dragged the plans towards her and began scrutinising them.