Chapter Six. Derailed
Chapter Six
DERAILED
Orange sunlight seeped through the threadbare curtains, waking Cam up bright and early.
Lured by the beach outside, she went to the window to watch the waves, until she was distracted by familiar figures on the sand.
Danny ran along the water, unmissable in black shorts and a matching ballcap.
An unleashed Reggie ran ahead of him, turning every few feet to make sure his owner hadn’t wandered off.
Between Reggie and the sunrise, Danny looked like an advertisement for Visit Rhode Island.
She watched until they disappeared from view—her cue to get ready.
After going through her morning routine, she went to the kitchen, determined to make breakfast. And while her father’s chilaquiles would’ve been her first choice—since they were Danny’s favorite—she settled on scrambled eggs and toast given the limited options in the fridge.
The front door opened as soon as the coffee finished brewing, and Reggie dashed ahead of Danny, rising on his hind legs to beg at her feet.
“Hey, bud!” She tossed a small piece of crust into his bowl and laughed as he devoured the treat. Once his bowl was empty, she turned to Danny. “How was your—”
But she lost her train of thought at first glimpse of him sweaty and shirtless.
His hat was gone, and damp strands of dark hair fell into his eyes.
She’d seen Danny shirtless before. Plenty of times.
Spring break in Tulum and the intramural soccer team’s car wash fundraiser and the time they all piled into the hot tub at the campus gym—
Had he always looked like … that?
Lean but strong, with creamy skin and perfectly proportioned arms. His stomach was firm, with just a hint of abdominal muscles, the type of body that proved he was in shape without spending hours in the gym.
He looked real, and natural, and he put the chiseled dating app guys taking gym selfies to shame.
Except the real shame was her ogling her friend like a piece of meat. Clearing her throat, she studied the freshly scrambled eggs. “—run,” she finished half-heartedly.
“Amazing.” He leaned against the counter, watching her plate the food. “You didn’t need to cook. You should’ve slept in. You’re on vacation.”
“Actually,” she replied, moving their food to the table, “you said training begins today. Which means I’m not on vacation. I’m starting a new job.”
He followed with their coffee, and the moment he sat down, Reggie climbed Danny’s leg, begging for food. Danny gently shooed the dog and, well-trained, Reggie scampered off to his favorite armchair.
“Only if you wanna. We can wait. But … I thought doing something productive might be good for you.”
“I think so, too.”
Through every bite, she was distracted by his healthy appetite and responsiveness to food. He was always vocal when he ate something he liked. Now, he grinned through every forkful, even groaning after a particularly buttery bite of toast.
She flushed, staring at her half-eaten plate. “I’ve never waited tables or anything like that.”
Danny shrugged, scraping the last bit of egg from his plate. “You’ll be fine. Ever worked retail?”
“No.”
“What was your first job?”
“Not including internships? My coordinator role at FHC.” Her first job after graduation had been on the marketing team for the major tech conglomerate.
She’d lasted eleven months before being laid off amid corporate restructuring.
But she knew what Danny was asking, so she added, “I’ve never worked a day in my life without wearing at least business casual. ”
He choked on his coffee, smacking his chest to settle down. “What? Cam, didn’t you work in high school? I know you didn’t work in college but…”
“My parents didn’t want me to. They thought a job would take away from studying.”
Through her years of schooling, she liked the free pass from work. Even if the rest of her friends had jobs. Morgan at the campus gym, Drew as a campus tour guide, Cory as a tutor for the athletic department, and Danny as a waiter at a local restaurant.
Thinking back, Danny had a storied list of part-time jobs. She recalled him mentioning the times he worked—
“—as an ice cream scooper at Frankie’s, then the local pizza joint until I was sixteen.
There were some babysitting and pet sitting gigs in there, and then I was at Dunkin’ until college started.
Oh, and all the summers working with Mr. Lu’s landscaping company.
” He refilled his coffee mug, sounding more like her grandfather recalling fifty years of professional experience than a twenty-six-year-old with a laundry list of minimum-wage jobs.
“Working ice cream was brutal, but there’s nothing worse than laying mulch in humidity. ”
“I’m familiar. How do you think I earned my allowance in my teens?”
He laughed. “Then you’ve been through the wringer. You’ll be fine. Once you’re trained, it’ll be fun.”
“Fun. Sure. Work is always fun.”
“Don’t go into this jaded, Milly. It’ll only make things more difficult.”
She sighed. “You’re right. Sorry.” She returned to the kitchen with their dishes, ready to wash up. “What can I expect?”
“We’ll start with a full tour, followed by a menu overview, and a tutorial on the POS system. Esme will go over the bar, and then we’ll do some basic customer- and food-serving prep before shadowing.”
He joined her in the kitchen, leaning over her shoulder as she washed. At the first hint of his woodsy scent, she tensed. Maybe she should’ve slept later. Why else was she so on edge?
“And if you decide to continue, you’ll have to get your alcohol serving training certificate, but you’ve got sixty days.
” He started drying the dishes for her, humming like he had no cares in the world.
“Dress comfortably. Sneakers. Esme always shows up in boots, and I can’t imagine standing all day in those. ”
With the blisters still healing on her feet from the fiasco on Friday, she didn’t need to be told twice. Danny finished putting the dishes away, and when he stretched, she forced herself to focus on Reggie, gnawing away on a well-loved tennis ball.
“We’ve got some time,” he continued. “We’ll leave around nine, okay?”
“Thanks, Danny.”
Smiling, he mentioned a shower and disappeared into the bathroom. When the door shut, she leaned against the wall and closed her eyes. Her peace lasted for all of ten seconds. Because the moment the sound of running water echoed into the hallway, her thoughts were hijacked.
White tile. Steamy breath. Reddened skin. Muscled back.
Cam pushed off the wall, blinking until the image disappeared. Maybe she needed a shower too.
A cold one.
Esme sat on one of the tabletops, legs swinging and arms crossed. She stared at Cam through long lashes, chewing on a wad of pink gum.
“The blonde really does wash you out,” Esme said, blowing a bubble. “You went honey and you need richer. Darker.”
Ignoring the urge to fiddle with the long blonde braid down her back, Cam straightened in her seat. “Thanks. But I don’t recall asking for your opinion on my hair.”
Esme shrugged. “I used to work at a salon. I know what I’m talking about.”
“Fine. I’ll bite. What do you suggest for my hair since you feel so strongly about it?”
“You could go darker blonde, but I think you’d be a better brunette. What’s your natural color? Chestnut? Dark chocolate?” Esme moved to a chair beside Cam, studying the loose strands escaping from her braid. “Color would be nice, too. Ever thought about cobalt? Lilac? Violet?”
“No. Unnatural color was a no-no at most jobs I’ve had.” It wasn’t a written rule, but the looks she’d received wearing heeled sandals in the summer told her office culture hadn’t changed that much.
“Well, now you work food service like the rest of us, so no more bullshit rules.” Esme blew another bubble. “Let me know when you want me to do your hair. As a favor to Danny, I won’t charge a dime.”
Cam forced a smile, unsure how to treat the solicitation. “Right. Thanks.”
“Hey, you’ve got nice hair. It’s long. Healthy. You take good care of it considering the dye job.”
“Okay!” Cam stood, finished with the conversation. “Can we focus?”
Ninety minutes into training, Cam had already finished a full tour and menu review with Danny and Xavier.
But when they disappeared to deal with a late delivery, she was relegated to Esme for further instruction.
Except Beau’s opened for the Sunday brunch crowd in thirty minutes, and she wasn’t feeling all that prepared for a day of shadowing.
Initially, she’d dreaded the introduction to the POS system, worried about learning how to use the tech.
But now, her biggest concern was losing crucial teaching time to Esme’s snark.
“What do you want to be trained on?”
“I don’t know! I’ve never done this before. Shouldn’t you know how to onboard someone?”
Esme smirked and jumped to her feet, disappearing behind the bar. Cam followed, immediately overwhelmed by the collection of bottles and drinks on tap.
“This is the bar,” Esme deadpanned. “I’m here most nights, and if not, you’ve met Hank. There’s a couple of part-timers that cycle in when needed, but I’m usually on the schedule. Some days, some nights.”
If only Hank were here to train her.
“I won’t have to make drinks, right?”
“Not alcohol.” Esme waved to the soda gun and stacks of glasses.
“Some soda is only available here, like ginger ale. Sometimes, on busy days, it’s easier to refill at the bar.
” She pointed to bins of sliced lemon, lime, orange, and maraschino cherries.
“Then, the garnishes. Some for soda, mainly for the liquor.”
As Esme ran through the drink menu and the most popular offerings, Cam grew distracted by Danny, Xavier, and the delivery men lugging boxes into the kitchen. For each trip, Danny’s booming voice gave polite but direct orders.
It was unusual to see him so … focused. His patience continued to impress her, too.
This order was late, after being delivered to the wrong business.
He mentioned it was the third time in two months the mistake happened, and while Cam would’ve ended the relationship on the spot, Danny smooth-talked his way into a generous discount.
“I know he’s more entertaining than our signature cocktails,” Esme said, “but you’re the one who wanted to be trained.”
“Sorry. I’m not used to seeing him so on top of his shit. The Danny I know is a gold medal procrastinator.”
“I guess you don’t know this Danny.” Unbothered, Esme blew a bubble, eyeing her nails. “You two are supposed to be BFFs, right?”
“Yeah—”
“Weird you haven’t visited then.” Another bubble popped. “Your friend from Boston is here all the time. Used to hit on me, but I didn’t mind. Really got Axel going if you know what I mean.”
Cam winced. “It’s … hard getting up here. I don’t have a car.”
A flash of taunting pink. “Uh-huh. Except Amtrak has direct lines from DC to Providence. That’s where you lived, right? DC?” Snap. “Even on a bad day, it doesn’t take an hour to get from Elswick to Providence. Danny would’ve picked you up in a heartbeat.”
“It’s not—”
“This place has been his everything for almost three and a half years and you haven’t shown up once,” Esme continued. “I know he’s visited you. I know he dropped everything to get to you because of a fucking selfie. Seems shitty you haven’t done the same.”
Cam swallowed, watching Danny and Xavier maneuver a ladder to the far side of the dining room. Why hadn’t she visited? The minute he took over Beau’s, she should’ve been on the first train. Rented a car. Hopped on a plane.
Esme was right. She was a shitty friend.
“No need to respond,” Esme said. “I know why you didn’t visit.”
This woman gave her unsolicited opinion on everything. “I’m not interested—”
“Beau’s doesn’t really fit the business grad to McMansion pipeline, does it? You didn’t approve and you didn’t think he could do it.” Snap. “Danny breaks the mold and that doesn’t fly with Corporate Camille. But look at you now. If it wasn’t for him, you’d be back with Mommy and Daddy, am I right?”
Cam stumbled into the bar, her jean shorts feeling a size too small. “What’s your problem?”
Esme shrugged. “I don’t have a problem. I just care a lot about Danny.”
“I see. And does this Axel you mentioned know?”
Esme threw her head back, laughing. “Danny? Please. He’s like my brother. Irritating, but funny. Annoying, but dependable. I’m just worried about him.”
“Worried? Why?”
“Because you’re here.”
Fighting her dry mouth, Cam asked, “What does that have to do with anything? He invited me.”
“Because you’ll leave eventually. And when you do,” Esme warned, gaze lethal, “it’ll crush his selfless little heart.”
“Danny knows I’m going back to the real world eventually.”
“You know, for some of us, this is the real world.”
Cam had nothing to say to that. Instead, she grabbed the laminated drink menu from behind the bar and did her best to learn. It’s what she was used to.
Studying.
Climbing.
She’d push, even if the words blended together.