Nicole paid the cab driver with a $100 bill and picked up her Versace suitcase and vanity. - « You can keep the change... Thanks for your help.» - « Oh Wow, that's very generous of you...Have a nice day, Madame! » -« You too...Good bye. » She looked inside her mail box which was full of bills and random ads for fast-food places in the area. She threw the junk mail directly in the garbage and looked for her keys in her purse. When she opened the door she automatically knew that her favorite niece had slept elsewhere. She smiled seeing Carla's sleepers right in the middle of the entrance. She swept them away with her right foot and managed to get everything inside. - « Oh, it feels so good to be home! » She sighed out loud. The house was quiet, she only heard her neighbors caged peach-faced lovebirds sing. She opened the living room curtains, blinds and let the bow window opened to let the fresh air in. She kicked her shoes off and put her favorite 1969 Aretha Franklin' s Gold Album.
She shook her jacket off, hooked it over the coat rack and headed to the bathroom. She undressed slowly rolling her head back and forth to release the tension from her last 13 hours flight from Paris to Miami and a last leg back to her little haven. The water felt so good and the lavender foaming shower gel so relaxing. She was now relieved to finally be home from two months of traveling everywhere. She was tired and needed a break from Dior's summer campaign. Nicole closed her eyes for a few minutes and just enjoyed listening to the music. She washed her hair and smiled at the thought of Clara's face when they would see each other. She had planned it to be a surprise. The last time they talked on the phone Carla awkwardly interrupted their conversation and she was very curious to know the reason why. She dried off, wrapped herself in her bath robe, found her sleepers in the closet and opened her suitcase to unpack everything. She took the two bottles of French Wine and Champagne carefully out of the duty bag she had folded in her Mont Blanc bath towel. She placed them in her liquor cabinet for the next special occasions.
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She opened the bottom drawers in her bedroom and put her folded clothes inside. Carla had the two top drawers to herself already full. She didn't bother at all because she knew how to make herself as discreet as possible even in her own house. She was the one who offered her place to Carla last spring but did not want to invade her new space. She hung her dresses and 3 piece suits in the left hand side of the wardrobe. She noticed Carla's night gown was still hanging on the bathroom door knob. She took it off and put it on the wicker rocking chair. She pulled the blinds up and opened the window. The clock radio was showing 4:30 pm. She knew she didn't want to go to sleep immediately, even though she could feel the flight fatigue kicking in. It was going to be so difficult to fall back asleep in a few hours if she did. Nicole went to the kitchen and brewed some coffee. She put away all the clean dishes and chose her favorite mug from the cupboard with what was left of brown sugar. The answering machine was blinking so while she waited for the coffee to be ready she listened to the messages.
