Chapter 9 #2
She sat on one of the bar stools and propped her chin in her hands.
Sam poured her a lemonade, trying not to notice how adorably elfin she looked.
She had a sadness in her eyes that stirred his compassion.
There was definitely something that was making her unhappy, and since she hadn’t said she should be getting back for her husband, and the husband wasn’t with her, he’d hazard a guess that her sadness was caused by said man. Probably they’d had a row.
He saw it a lot. Couples fell out and one of them came to The North Star to sulk or drown their sorrows. Usually, though, it was the man.
Of course, that was making huge assumptions. For one thing, she could be married to another woman. Either way, there was no point in him wondering what her story was. Married to a man or a woman, she was married. End of story.
‘Excuse me,’ said a cross-sounding woman with bright pink lipstick and clumpy mascara, ‘we’ve been waiting hours for our steak and chips.’
It had hardly been hours, Sam thought irritably. Although, he had to admit, it had been a while since he’d taken the couple’s order through to Kenny.
‘I’m terribly sorry. We’re very busy tonight, as you can see, and we’re short-staffed.’
The woman shrugged. ‘Why is that my problem?’
‘Well… It’s not, obviously. I was just explaining why your steak and chips is taking a bit longer than it normally would.’
‘A bit longer? What’s the chef doing? Has he gone out to rustle the cow or what?’
‘I’ll go and check for you,’ Sam said, forcing a polite smile.
Pink Lipstick shook her head and glanced at the fragile woman sitting beside her.
‘I don’t even know why we came here,’ she confided.
‘I wanted to go to The Shoulder of Lamb in Heronsea, but we thought we’d give it a try.
Somewhere new. Different. Well, it’s bloody different all right.
You have to order your grub hours in advance.
I could have gone to the supermarket, bought the ingredients and cooked it all myself quicker. ’
Sam and the woman exchanged glances. He caught a look of sympathy in her grey eyes and felt a bit better.
As he rushed into the kitchen he almost collided with Callum, who was on his way out with two plates of food in his hands.
‘Please tell me that’s two lots of steak and chips,’ Sam said.
‘It is. Don’t tell me they’re complaining? She was rude as anything when she gave me the order, for absolutely no reason.’
‘Well, hurry up and deliver it before she finds something else to complain about,’ Sam urged.
He returned to the bar and informed the sulky-looking woman that her food was en route to her table right there and then.
‘Some bar managers would offer free drinks as compensation,’ she informed him, and gave him a hopeful look.
Sam didn’t respond, and she tutted angrily and strode back to her table, no doubt to give poor Callum another earful.
‘People are so impatient,’ Sam said to the quiet elfin woman with a sigh. ‘I wish they’d realise we’re doing what we can. It’s not always like this. Then again, if this is her first visit I suppose we haven’t given a very good impression.’
‘I’ve only ever been in here when it’s fairly quiet,’ she admitted. ‘But I haven’t been here in high season, so…’
‘You’ve been here before?’ Sam asked, surprised. ‘I don’t remember seeing you.’
‘Well,’ she said with a laugh that transformed her face, ‘why would you? I expect you see hundreds of people every week. I was last here in May with my family. My grandparents live at Sanderlings, and my mum’s at Watersmeet now, with a man called Mac.’
‘Of course! The Wainwrights and the MacMillans. You’re Alison’s girl?’
‘I am.’ She looked a bit embarrassed. ‘I’m Jenna.’
Sam frowned. Jenna! That was it. He remembered Alison telling him all about her. A teacher. She had twins, too. Busy woman. No wonder she looked so worn out and delicate.
And yes, she was married to a man. Sam couldn’t remember his name or anything about him, but he did distinctly recall that Alison hadn’t seemed to like him. It wasn’t anything she’d specifically said that had given him that impression. More what she hadn’t said.
‘I’m Sam,’ he told her, smiling.
‘I know. Seb’s lad Sam,’ she said, a sudden twinkle of amusement in her eyes.
He groaned. ‘You know, that will probably be engraved on my tombstone. You’re here on holiday then?’
She shrugged. ‘Sort of. The girls needed a break, and their dad’s busy working, and they love being at Watersmeet. All the animals, you understand, nothing to do with their grandma or Mac.’
He grinned. ‘Naturally.’
‘So I thought, why not? And Mum and Mac were kind enough to invite the three of us to stay at theirs, so we’re here for the duration of the summer holidays.’
‘The three of us’? Hmm.
‘Good for you. Well, I’d like to say that future visits to The North Star won’t be quite as frazzled as this one, but I’m afraid I can’t promise.’
‘You do look very busy,’ she agreed.
‘We always are at this time of year,’ he told her. ‘The trouble right now is, we’re short-staffed. Two of the bar staff are on holiday – one at very short notice – and one of the kitchen staff got another job and walked out without warning. So you can imagine what it’s like.’
Jenna winced. ‘Ouch! Bad luck.’
‘Yeah.’ Sam sighed. ‘Oh well.’ He nodded at her empty glass. ‘Another one?’
‘No thanks. Like I said, I need to get back. The twins will be in bed but even so. Thank you. I hope things are a bit more manageable for you tomorrow.’
He rolled his eyes. ‘I highly doubt it but thank you.’
She slipped off the stool and, giving him a little wave, headed towards the door. Sam gave another sigh and picked up her glass.
‘Actually…’
He glanced up, surprised to see her standing in front of him, looking a little flushed and a bit nervous.
She hesitated and he prompted, ‘Actually?’
‘Look, feel free to say no, but would you like some help? I used to work in a bar in my student days, and I’m pretty handy in the kitchen. I’m sure I could be of some use, anyway.’
Sam stared at her. She wanted to work here?
‘I couldn’t do days,’ she added hastily.
‘Not really. It would have to be evenings because I can’t expect my mum to babysit the twins all day, and anyway they need me, and I must spend some time with them.
But I don’t think it would be too much for Mum to sit with them in the evenings and put them to bed.
After all,’ she added, as if still working it out in her own head, ‘they go to bed at half past eight at the latest, so Mum and Mac would still have a good few hours to themselves.’
‘Yes please,’ Sam heard himself say, and then prayed he hadn’t sounded too pathetically grateful.
She blinked, as if she’d forgotten she was talking to him.
‘Oh,’ she said. ‘Really? I should warn you that it’s years since I’ve done any bar work.
Like I said, I was a student. I’m probably very rusty.
And it’s only until the end of the summer holidays.
I have to go back to my real job in September. ’
‘It doesn’t matter,’ he told her, all too aware that there might not be any pub in September. ‘Any hours you can do will be a huge help to me. If you’re sure?’
She bit her lip as if she was suddenly far from sure. Then, to his relief, she nodded. ‘Absolutely. When do you want me to start?’
He looked at her standing there in front of him, all fragile beauty with her shoulder-length light brown hair, slightly pointed chin, high cheekbones and those eyes… Bloody hell!
She couldn’t have been more than five foot three or four, and she was so slight he felt he could pick her up without even noticing.
His stomach lurched and he swallowed. He’d never had such a visceral reaction to a woman before – not even Layla. Definitely not Layla.
‘Sam? I mean, Mr Hughes. I should call you that really, shouldn’t I? If you’re going to be my boss.’
He blinked, as dazed as she’d looked a few moments ago. ‘What?’ he asked stupidly.
‘When do you want me to start?’ she said, frowning.
Sam pulled himself together. ‘Tomorrow evening. Sunday. Would that be okay?’
She considered the matter a moment then nodded. ‘Yes,’ she said determinedly. ‘That will be fine. Shall we say six?’
‘Six. Yes, why not?’ He was acutely aware that he wasn’t being very professional about all this. ‘Six o’clock,’ he said firmly. ‘I’ll see you then.’
‘You will,’ she promised. ‘Thank you. Bye, Mr Hughes.’
‘Sam,’ he called, as she headed towards the door. ‘Call me Sam!’
She smiled and nodded, then left the room and Sam slumped against the counter, feeling completely wrung out and yet, somehow, wildly exhilarated.
‘I must say,’ came a grumpy voice in his ear, ‘that I wouldn’t give a dog what you call steak. And as a matter of fact, I ordered medium rare, not practically mooing. I do think that if this was The Shoulder of Lamb in Heronsea they’d be giving us free drinks by way of an apology.’
Sam gave Pink Lipstick a beaming smile. ‘Sadly, you’re not at The Shoulder of Lamb. But please, feel free to go there in future, and do give the landlord my regards. He’s one of my dad’s closest friends.’
Even Pink Lipstick’s scowl and sarcastic ‘Huh!’ couldn’t dim his spirits. Suddenly, the evening looked a whole lot brighter, and there was an unexpected lightness in his heart.
Until he remembered that Jenna was Alison’s daughter. And she was married. And she had twin daughters.
It couldn’t go anywhere.
Nothing much ever did.