5. Chapter 5
N elie pulled up the staffing app and compared this year’s sales by day to last year’s, making sure her gut-feel matched reality. Wednesdays must be the new Thursday, she thought as she moved a server from Thursday’s evening shift to Wednesday’s.
“Are you really going to Florida?” Eric, her assistant manager and her friend Andi’s husband, asked, thumbing his phone.
“Are you really looking up how to make my drink?”
“I don’t get any requests for this, so I need to look it up, boss. And, if you’re really going on this vacation, you should celebrate it. With alcohol.”
“I really am going. My tickets are bought.”
“Nonrefundable?” Eric leveled her with a look.
It was obvious he didn’t believe her, and she didn’t blame him.
Her track record of zero vacations supported his disbelief.
She was excited, but nervous, worried about how to spend her days and who would handle any problems that happened here.
Nelie loved to lounge, but she’d never tested her limits.
She had a few lounge days a year, but she’d never had three-in-a-row, let alone almost a week.
How long would it take her before she was bored with sitting under an umbrella and reading?
Gus didn’t think she’d make it past noon on the third day, and the betting pool in the back showed her staff thought it was even less.
“Nonrefundable.” Nelie nodded her head. “I’m going and you’re in charge.”
“I won’t let you down, Nelie.” She knew by his earnest tone and the sincere look on his face that he would do everything in his power to make sure she had a worry-free vacation.
“I wouldn’t be going if I thought you would. You’re ready for this, Eric, and if you need backup, Parker is around or Gus.”
“Gus, the OG,” Eric chuckled.
“Original great or old goat?” Nelie asked.
Her dad could be a blessing or a thorn in her side, and occasionally both at the same time.
His version of change was her version of improvements, and Gus didn’t like change.
They butted heads, often. It had been a major tussle when she’d upgraded the menu.
Nelie’s takeaway from the frustrating experience was it was better to ask forgiveness than permission.
If she believed the Galley needed an improvement, she did it without running it by him.
Unfortunately, Gus owned the building, so even if she had the budget for it, she couldn’t sneak in a remodel. She’d love to have something open and sunny, like the Hart Lounge. Gus respected her ownership, but he reminded her he’d been the one to build it.
“You tell me?” Eric asked.
“Depends on the issue. Now, stop yabbering at me so I can finish this staffing schedule.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Eric saluted her and grabbed a glass.
Nelie focused on the schedule and reviewed the notes the staff had left or emailed her about their non-availability for February.
The opening and closing of the front door and the increased noise level in the dining room and kitchen behind her were her background music.
She checked the scheduling for the rest of the week and the weather report. A winter ice castle company had set up in Haven near the river and it drew many people to the area. From the pictures she’d seen and the conversations she’d overheard, she bet Chet’s girls would love it. Chet, not so much.
Last weekend, she’d needed to call in two extra servers and, based on the weather forecast, she’d need to again.
Nelie texted a few servers to see if they were interested.
She hated messing with the set schedule, but she reminded herself that these were good problems to have, and her staff always appreciated more hours, especially in the winter months when tourism dwindled in Haven.
She set down her phone, glancing at the front door as it opened.
Piper bounced in, followed by a rosy-cheeked Ava and Chet.
Her traitorous heart hiccupped at the sight of him.
Bad heart, she told herself. Forgive and avoid.
He laughed at something one of the girls said, and it lit his entire face.
His eyes sparkled and laugh lines bracketed his mouth.
Chet unzipped his jacket, revealing a sweatshirt from his alma mater, a sweatshirt he’d once draped over her when she’d shivered as they’d watched a movie.
He’d pulled her closer, and she’d melted against him.
Her shivering hadn’t lasted long as the snuggling turned into kissing and then into…
Nelie shook her head to stop the memory as heat climbed up her face.
The girls hugged her, and she met Chet’s eyes.
His brown eyes looked heated, and they held hers as if he, too, remembered that night.
Nelie wondered if he’d intentionally worn the sweatshirt to remind and torment her.
“Here.” Eric broke the spell and pushed her drink toward her.
“What’s that?” Piper asked.
“An abomination.” Eric scowled and Ava grinned.
“What’s an abomination?” Piper asked.
“Eric’s teasing. He’s grumpy, because I asked him to make me this virgin pina colada,” Nelie said.
“What’s a virgin?” Piper asked. Chet’s eyes widened.
“I’ll tell you later,” Ava said through gritted teeth as she tugged Piper toward her.
Chet scrubbed his hand over his face before squeezing Ava’s shoulder. “Let’s wait a few years, okay?” Ava nodded. Piper looked disappointed. Ava and Chet looked like they wanted the floor to swallow them up, but Eric laughed like this was the funniest thing he’d seen in days.
“It’s a coconut pineapple drink without the alcohol,” Nelie said, hoping to get them out of this mess.
Poor Chet , she thought, biting her cheek so she wouldn’t laugh.
Was she a bad person for enjoying his discomfort?
His daughters were so different. It was obvious Ava took her role as big sister seriously, and Piper was a force of her own, keeping everyone on their toes with her endless curiosity and energy. “Are you staying for lunch?”
“That was the plan,” Chet said. “Girls, go find us a table and I’ll be right there.”
“Ava, you look half frozen. Would you like a hot chocolate?” Nelie asked.
“Yes, please,” Ava said over her shoulder as she walked toward a table.
“You, too, Piper?” Nelie asked loudly, since the girls were halfway to their destination.
“I want a virgin,” Piper shouted. Eric snorted and several patrons chuckled.
“Do you want a virgin, too, Chet?” Eric asked, clearly enjoying himself more than he should at work.
“I’ve never had one and at the ripe old age of forty-eight, that thought makes me queasy. Coffee, please.”
“Anything in it?”
“No, I think I’ll need my wits about me this afternoon.
Any chance you can deliver our drinks to the table and keep an eye on the girls?
I need to talk to Nelie. Privately.” Eric agreed too easily for Nelie’s liking.
Chet hadn’t asked, but had ordered in his usual take command and be in charge way.
It was annoying when he directed it at her, in her restaurant, but she found it thrilling at other times.
He was a bit like a duke or a pirate in those historical romances piled by her bedside.
But she wasn’t a damsel in distress. She was a modern woman with agency. Forgiving and avoiding.
“I need to—”
“Please?” Chet’s brown eyes bore into hers.
“Fine.” Nelie closed her laptop and walked toward her office, feeling Chet hot on her heels. Nothing good ever happens when they say please .
“W as this a closet?” Chet shut the door as Nelie maneuvered between the desk and a table covered with paperwork, a printer, and a copier. This was the smallest office he’d seen.
“No. It was Gus’s storage room for all his tools.
He moved the ones we don’t use back to his garage and the others are in the cleaning closet.
” Chet held up his hands at her defensive tone.
Pissing her off before he’d asked for her help wouldn’t help him.
“Someone suggested that I needed to clear off my kitchen table and separate my business life from my personal one.”
“Sounds like a smart guy.”
“More like another thorn in my side.” Nelie shoved a few errant pens into the BEST BOSS EVER mug on her desk.
“A thorn who has your best interests at heart.” Chet’s smile broke free, and she rolled her eyes.
He couldn’t help it. He was amazed and touched.
She’d listened to him and had acted on his comment.
Well, not so much commenting as badgering, since he must have nagged her about it every time they’d shared a meal at her apartment upstairs.
He missed her, and seeing her pocket-sized office gave him hope. She’d listened to him once before, and maybe if he kept pleading his case, she’d forgive him and give them another chance.
She was a human Energizer bunny, constantly in motion, but he found Nelie’s presence soothing, like anchoring in a calm inlet during a storm or sitting in front of a toasty fire after being out in the snow all day.
Comfortable and warm, but with enough flaming sparks to keep him on his toes.
It wasn’t the crazy lust-filled haze he’d had with Heather almost two decades ago.
What he’d had with Nelie was better, and he wanted her back.
Everything was better when she was around.
“What did you need to speak with me about?” Nelie asked, fidgeting with the papers on her desk. He wondered if she was nervous, because he’d asked to speak with her or because of their forced proximity. Regardless, he didn’t want her to be uncomfortable. That wouldn’t help his cause.
He opened the door a few inches, saying, “The girls hate aftercare.” Nelie’s fingers stilled, and she cocked her head toward the kitchen noises.
“Hate’s a strong word, and they’ve only gone for a little more than a week. You’re not exactly the poster boy for patience. You need to give it time.”