Chapter 8
JACK
The lunch rush was just dying down when they walked in.
I didn’t pay them any attention at first, busy as I was behind the bar, wiping up spills, stacking empty glasses in a tray ready to be washed.
They were just a couple of people in my peripheral vision, entering and taking a seat in a booth near the far wall.
‘You can take your break now if you like,’ I called to Fiona, one of the waitresses.
A single mom to a seven-year-old boy named Oscar, she was struggling to make ends meet, so I tried to help out by giving her as many shifts as possible, but even that was a balancing act because of childcare.
Most nights, she’d bring Oscar to the restaurant with her and he’d sit at a corner table or in the staffroom and do his homework.
We had a deal. Homework first, then I’d let him watch shows on my tablet.
Under my instructions, the chefs slipped him meals, and Fiona pretended not to notice. ‘Lucy and I will be fine for a while.’
‘OK, thanks,’ she replied wearily, passing the iPad we used for ordering over the bar to me before heading out the back. The summer heat made everyone tired, but add the heat of the kitchen we had to go in and out of throughout a shift, and it was ten times worse.
‘You want me to get that new table, Jack?’ Lucy asked, gesturing towards the couple who had just sat down.
I flicked a glance at them. The woman had her back to me, but the man was facing in my direction and looked vaguely familiar.
We had a lot of repeat local customers though, so that meant nothing.
‘Nah it’s OK, I’ll get them,’ I told her. ‘If you don’t mind clearing those last couple of tables.’
‘Sure.’
Tucking some menus underneath my arm and grabbing the iPad, I headed to the table.
‘Good afternoon, folks.’ I smiled. ‘Welcome to The Cozy Catch.’
‘What’s so good about it?’ the old man grumbled.
The woman looked up at me. ‘Ignore him,’ she said. ‘He’s sulking because the doctor refused to indulge his latest hypochondriac symptom.’
‘That man wouldn’t recognize if someone was dying right in front of him,’ the man said. ‘Probably got his degree online.’
She rolled her eyes. ‘“That man” has been a doctor since before I was born. I’m pretty sure he knows what he’s talking about.’
‘Exactly,’ Ray said, as if she’d just proven his point. ‘He’s out of touch.’
As I stood there watching them bicker back and forth, the penny dropped.
‘You’re Ray,’ I said. ‘I met you in the driveway once.’
He looked at me suspiciously. ‘What driveway? What are you on about?’
But my attention was already off him and onto the woman sitting opposite him. ‘Taylor?’
She had been beautiful enough in the moonlight, but she was breath-taking in the light of day.
It wasn’t like me to get tongue-tied around anyone, but I felt tongue-tied in front of her.
Her long, dark hair was loose, falling in waves that hung halfway down her back.
She was wearing a black tank top, and her shoulders and arms were tanned and toned.
One shoulder was covered with an intricate half-sleeve tattoo.
Without staring too hard, I could see waves and stars and other intertwined designs. It suited her.
Her piercing brown eyes narrowed slightly. ‘Maybe,’ she said. ‘Depends who’s asking?’
I pointed at my chest. ‘I’m Jack. We met last night.’
‘Jack.’ Her frown cleared as she looked me up and down. ‘I didn’t recognize you with your clothes on.’
‘Well that didn’t take you long,’ Ray commented. ‘You’d only been in town for, what, two hours?’
‘Get your mind out of the gutter,’ she told him. ‘Jack is our neighbor. He’s staying in the cabin. Something you and my mother neglected to mention. We met down on the beach last night when we both went for a swim.’
‘Oh, you’re that guy,’ Ray replied. ‘You cut the lawn too short last time. Almost killed it.’
‘Sorry,’ I said, even though I knew full well the lawn was perfectly fine. There was clearly no point in arguing with him. ‘I’ll make sure I lift the lawnmower a notch next time.’
‘Good.’ Then, clearly bored with that conversation, he changed the subject. ‘I don’t need a menu. Just bring me the chowder and some cheesy garlic bread. And don’t be stingy with the cheese either. Last time I could barely see it, let alone taste it.’
I tapped at the iPad. ‘Extra cheese. I’ll make a note for the chef. And for you, Taylor?’
She reached out and plucked one of the menus out from underneath my arm. ‘Give me a minute. It’s been a while since I’ve been here; the menu might have changed.’
Ray sighed. ‘Make our orders separate so I don’t have to wait for her.’
‘That’s not very gentlemanly,’ she commented idly, scanning the menu.
‘You’re no lady.’
She tilted her head up at me. ‘I’ll have the tuna poke bowl. And a Coke, please.’
Ray snorted. ‘And you lectured me about sugar.’
‘So I’m a hypocrite. If you’ve got a problem with it, you can walk home.’
Ray jabbed me in the hip with a finger to get my attention. ‘Are you listening to this? Do you see what I have to put up with? It’s elder abuse. Help me, please.’
Taylor snorted. ‘It’s not even close. I can try harder though, if you like.’
‘Don’t just stand there,’ Ray said to me, his voice raised and agitated. ‘You heard her, she threatened me. Call the authorities. I want her arrested.’
‘Oh, uh.’ I froze, unsure what to do, looking back and forth between them. They both stared at me expectantly. ‘I… maybe we should all just, take a moment, to—’
‘Relax. He’s having you on,’ Taylor said calmly. ‘If he had me arrested, he’d have no one to boss around any more.’
Ray chuckled. ‘Worth it. Look at his face; he’s like a moose in headlights.’
I sagged with relief. ‘You two are quite the comedy act.’
‘He’s been trying to get me arrested since I was eleven years old,’ she said. ‘No luck so far.’
His face darkened. ‘I know it was you who stole my letterbox and tied it to the flagpole in town.’
‘You couldn’t prove it then, and you still can’t,’ she retorted.
‘Why are you still standing there?’ he said to me. ‘The food isn’t going to order itself.’
‘It’s already ordered,’ I assured him. ‘As soon as I enter it on here,’ I tapped the screen of the iPad. ‘The kitchen receives the order and gets to work on it.’
‘It’s called technology, Ray,’ Taylor said loudly. Nearby tables turned to look. ‘TECHNOLOGY.’
‘I’m not deaf. Just hungry.’
‘I’m sure your food won’t take too long,’ I promised him. ‘You’ve come in at a good time. The lunch rush is over.’
‘Don’t hurry on our behalf,’ Taylor said, passing the menu back to me. ‘The food will take as long as it takes, Ray. You’re the one who wanted to eat out.’
‘We were already in town,’ he replied. ‘I couldn’t pass up the opportunity. Who knows when I’ll have a decent meal again.’
Taylor tilted her head towards me. ‘He doesn’t like my cooking. It’s not as good as my mother’s, apparently.’
‘Not even close,’ Ray said morosely. ‘I’m probably going to starve to death.’
‘Considering the amount of food we just bought that you chose, I highly doubt that.’ She looked at me again. ‘Have you eaten yet, Jack?’
‘Sorry?’
‘Food. Have you partaken in your own midday meal yet?’
‘No, not yet.’ I checked my watch. ‘I usually grab something about now from the kitchen and eat it in my office.’
‘Why don’t you join us?’ she suggested.
‘Really?’
‘Sure. Save me having to listen to this one complain the whole time.’
‘This one has a name,’ Ray said.
‘See what I mean?’
I hovered. ‘I guess I could. If you’re sure?’
‘I’m having serious déjà vu,’ Taylor said. ‘It’s like last night all over again. Remember when you asked if you could get in the water about five hundred times and I kept saying yes but you still kept asking? Fun times.’
I stared at her.
‘Snarky little thing, isn’t she?’ Ray commented.
She glared at him. ‘I’m just saying, I wouldn’t have invited him if I didn’t want him to join us.’
‘In that case,’ I told her. ‘I’ll just let Fiona know and then I’ll be right back.’
She shrugged. ‘Fine. Only if you want to.’
‘I do want to.’
‘Fine.’
‘Fine.’
‘Good.’
‘It is good.’
Ray sighed. ‘This is going to be a long lunch, isn’t it.’