Chapter 4 : New Home

The next day after a good night's sleep and a hearty breakfast, Rachel set off to find an apartment. When she mentioned that she was going apartment hunting, the owner of the bed and breakfast suggested finding where she would like to live first and looking for lawn signs advertising to renters. It was a pretty informal process.

She walked the cobbled streets until she found two points of interest: a bakery/cafe with heavenly smells emanating from it and a lovely cottage with a "room for rent" sign on the lawn. She reminded herself that her first priority was to find long-term lodging, not a tasty pastry and a cup of joe. That would be her celebration treat for finding a place to live.

She knocked on the door, not even sure if anyone was at home in the middle of a weekday. At the same moment she was about to turn around and walk away, the door opened and a kind-faced, earth mother-looking woman wearing gardening gloves and a wide-brimmed hat appeared.

"Hello," Rachel said. "I saw your sign on the lawn for a room to rent. I'm interested and I..."

"You are American," were the woman's first words to Rachel.

"Yes, I am." She wasn't quite sure if that was a good or a bad thing in the prospective landlady's eyes.

"And altogether lovely. Please come in. Excuse my appearance and my manners. My name is Beatrice," she said, taking off a gardening glove and extending her right hand to Rachel.

"Thanks, Ms. Beatrice. I'm Rachel."

Once inside the two ladies had bottomless cups of tea and numerous slices of fresh, warm zucchini bread while talking endlessly about everything except for the room. They got along well and Rachel believed that she could share a living space with this kind woman, if she offered.

"Is the room still available?" she prompted Ms. Beatrice with a change of subject.

"Would you really like to see the room? It's upstairs and very sparsely decorated: bed, bureau, desk, chair, lamp and closet, plus a private full bathroom and separate back entrance. You don't seem like you'd come with too much baggage, but you can never tell with some. Shall we take a look?"

It was everything she needed and wanted. True, she had been used to much more at her father's mansion, but billionaire mansions and English country cottages needed not have a lot in common for her to be comfortable. As long as she had the basics, she knew she would be fine.

When Rachel saw it, she instantly knew that she had found the perfect place. She instantly understood why her mother thought this was such a special village. A sweet place in the world. The people and the environment so far were winning her over.

"What were you thinking of paying, in terms of rent?"

"What do you think is fair? It is a very nice house. Hmmm...how about 2500 pounds sterling a month?" Rachel did not know if that was a good amount for rent or not. Offering an amount at least would get the discussion going. It would also demonstrate that she was seriously interested in the room.

"Well, I think we can work something out that will be agreeable to both of us. Come, Dear, you still had some tea in your cup."

Either this lady was super nice or a figment of her imagination and she was about to wake up profoundly disappointed.

"I have some savings, but I really need a job to make ends meet," Rachel confided in Ms. Beatrice. "I'm looking to make a long-term commitment."

"That's wonderful. Why, that's a positive step in the right direction. Are you seeing anyone now that would agree to that....the commitment?"

"Oh no, I didn't mean a romantic relationship. I was referring to how long I would stay in the room. But, in answer to your question, no, I am not currently seeing anyone."

"Ah. I must have misunderstood. I have a grandson about your age and I think you two would be good for each other. But first things first. I'll rent you the room."

"Really? That's great."

"I have a friend who runs the local bakery in town. Her name's Faye. She's been looking for an extra pair of hands to take on a more committed role. That way she can spend more time running and marketing the business. Whatever she pays you, if she hires you, you can pay me 30% for lodging. Does that sound okay?"

"Yes. It sounds more than okay. It sounds amazing. Thank you, Ms. Beatrice." Rachel leaned over and hugged her new landlady.

"It is just Beatrice or Grandma. No 'Ms.' or any other titles are necessary."

"Okay...Beatrice."

"Great, Dear. We'll work on getting you from Beatrice to Grandma." She winked at Rachel.

Beatrice wrapped the rest of the zucchini bread for her new tenant to take with her in case she needed a late night snack.

"I'll have a month to month lease ready for you to sign when you move in. When would you like to move in, Dear?"

"After the job offer."

"Good, good, good. That's fine. I'll call Faye and let her know to expect you sometime tomorrow. I'll tell her that we talked and, in my humble opinion, you are a good egg."

"Thanks Ms....Just Beatrice."

"I'm so pleased that you'll be in the house. Youthful companionship is my antidote for growing older with grace. I've found that to be true in my 75 years of living. I try to surround myself with young people and grow and eat lots of vegetables, of course. Ha!"

After embracing Beatrice and saying good night, Rachel walked back to the bed and breakfast thinking about everything that had happened in such a short time and how one significant relationship could make an extraordinary difference. She felt like she had grown wiser and understood her mother's love for this village a little better after today. She was too excited to eat a proper dinner. She would feast on zucchini bread if she got hungry later.

Her problems were at the bottom of the sea. Her destiny was all around her and she felt peace and promise, hope and help. She had everything she needed from the universe and she was deeply grateful, falling asleep wondering what new blessings the next day would bring.