Banana Muffins & Mayhem - Culinary Competition Mystery #5

Chapter 8

(Amy)

"Do you really honestly think it will be pretty?" Amy asked. She looked at the small sample tiles and then at her plate. The pottery glazes changed colors when they were heated in a kiln. It was difficult to believe the muted, muddy-looking swirls would resemble tropical ocean water. But Geri had promised the glazes would be beautiful together when Amy picked them out, so she was trying very, very hard to believe the drab would turn into fab.

"It's going to be gorgeous," Geri said as she bent over to examine the plate closer. "You are a talented artist."

Amy couldn't help but smile at the compliment, even though she knew very well that Carla's mom was just fluffing her ego. Geri had made the perfectly symmetrical, not in the least bit wobbly plate that Amy painted. From a lump of clay. Using only her hands and some simple tools. Swishing around some glaze with a paintbrush was far from being the true artist that Geri was. Amy rolled her eyes. "Thank you. I know it isn't true, but I appreciate your effort to make me feel somewhat competent. I'm always looking for interesting dishes to use in photographs for the food on my blog. I figured I would try my hand at making something unique. Although I suspect it will be uniquely ugly."

"You'll be pleasantly surprised at what it ends up looking like. The colors will be completely different once the plate is fired again." Geri hummed to herself as she set the bottles of glaze on a tray to tidy up the area where Amy had been working. Carla's mother split her time at Make It Unique between making items for customers to paint and helping people accomplish that task. The job was perfect for her personality, and since her boss was also her landlord, she got a great deal on the apartment upstairs. After spending years in New Zealand getting back on her feet after a divorce, Geri had returned to Kellerton a completely different woman. Or at least that's what Carla said. The uptight and sophisticated mother who Carla remembered came back a stylish hippie. Amy suspected the artistic tendencies were always there, just buried under other things that she had made a priority while Carla was growing up.

Amy slipped off the splattered apron she was wearing and hung it on the hook with the others that the studio provided to customers. She returned to the table and gathered up the wads of paper towels she had scattered around her workspace. Geri wiped off the area with a wet cloth. When the task was done, she turned to Amy. "I know I'm giving you zero notice, but do you have a bit of spare time to come up to my apartment right now? I was wondering if you could do a quick hairstyle consultation."

All of Amy's friends knew that she still loved doing hair, even though she no longer worked as a professional hairstylist. "I have nothing going on this evening, so I would love to."

After she had gathered her purse and jacket, Amy took a moment to text Alex to let him know her plans. He was still at his office, a block away, working on some kind of urgent project. So he was fine with her hanging out with the woman she had come to think of as a surrogate mom. Geri was far more motherly than Amy's true mother, who lived in Florida. The separation was actually a relief, but Amy never realized how much she missed having a mother around until she began hanging out with her best friend's mom.

Geri punched out for the day. A door in the backroom led to the stairwell that the upstairs tenants used to reach their apartments. As they began to climb the wooden treads, Amy asked, "So is there a special occasion that you need the new hairstyle for?"

"Don't tell my worrywart daughter." Geri looked over her shoulder and grinned. "But I have a lunch date on Monday."

"How exciting! And don't worry. I know how Carla can be, so I won't say anything unless you want me to." Carla's analytical side tended to put a damper on freestyle thinking and activities. While Amy romped around outside the box, Carla drew the lines again. It wasn't a bad thing, but it did sometimes prevent the no-nonsense nurse from truly going with the flow and enjoying herself. Amy knew as well as Geri did that her daughter would worry more about what could go wrong with the date than be happy that her mother was moving on in her personal life. That's just the way she was. Like shortbread cookies always had a crumbly texture, Carla always coolly analyzed every aspect of every situation. That's what made her a good emergency room nurse.