by Elks, Carrie
“How long are you back for?” she asked him.
“For good. I’m not planning on travelling anymore.”
Ally licked her dry lips. “Do you have somewhere to stay tonight?” she asked him. He’d rented his house out when he’d left town.
“I’ll check myself into a motel. I just wanted to check on you first.”
She shook her head. “No need. You can stay here. That’s if you’re okay with sleeping on the couch.”
“Are you sure?” His brows knitted together. “I don’t want to cause you any trouble.”
She stood, grabbing her crutches to steady herself. “Yeah, I’m sure. I’ll grab you some linens and a towel. I bet you could use a shower right about now.” She made her way to her bedroom, and began to pull some sheets and blankets out from her dresser, making a pile of them on her bed ready to take back out to him.
It had been a hell of a day. Two days, really. Was it really that short of a time since Riley found them laying out on the deck? She shook her head, trying not to dwell on what had happened.
She’d lost one man and gained another. And though her dad wasn’t a replacement for Nate, she was glad he’d come home.
Because she didn’t feel quite as alone anymore.
29
Gossip moved faster than the speed of light in Angel Sands. It was no surprise to Ally when Ember called to tell her Nate was back. Or at least that’s what Frank Megassey had told Deenie Russell, who’d told her son Lucas, who’d passed the message on to his fiancée in case she needed to warn her best friend.
Having social media was pointless around here. By the time you opened your phone up to look all the news was old.
“Has he not called you to tell you he’s home?” Ember asked, her voice full of concern.
“I don’t know,” Ally admitted. “I haven’t checked my voicemail.”
It was over, she knew that much. It was time to take control of her life again, because it was the only way to get through the pain. Maybe she was finally growing up.
“You look pretty,” her dad said as she walked out into her living room. He was piling up the sheets and pillows she’d loaned him, putting them on the arm of the sofa. “Going somewhere?”
“Only if you can give me a ride.” She passed her car key to him. Might as well put him to work. She didn’t want to get herself all messed up before she made it to the boardwalk this time.
“Your wish is my command.”
She was still getting used to having him around. After their heart to heart yesterday, the awkwardness between them had almost disappeared.
“Where are we going?” he asked after he’d helped her into the car. Her small Fiat was so much more difficult to get into than Nate’s Lexus. One more reason to look forward to getting this damn cast off.
“To the coffee shop. I just need to drop this off.” She held up a white envelope with Nate’s name scrawled across it. “After that I want to catch up with everybody. Being unable to drive I feel like I’ve been gone for an eternity.”
The beach was packed by the time they made it to the parking lot. Her dad had to drive around twice before he found a space, managing to squeeze her car in between a beaten up truck and a sports utility vehicle.
Once out of the car, he looked up at the café and blinked, as though some sand had blown into his eyes.
“It looks different,” he said.
“Yeah.”
He took a deep breath in, holding it for a moment before blowing it all out again. “But good. It looks good.”
Ally followed his stare to the freshly painted façade, and the blue and white sign that proclaimed it was a Déjà Brew outlet. It did look good – inviting and professional and everything the Beach Café hadn’t been. It was busier than they’d been in years. The line for coffee was spilled out onto the boardwalk, and from the look of it there wasn’t a spare seat in the house. If anybody had any doubts if a chain could work in a place like Angel Sands, their answer was right here.
A strange feeling of pride washed over her. Because some of that success was down to her.
“How long until you go back to work there?” her dad asked, as they walked across the parking lot.
Ally bit her lip. “I’m not.”
“What?”
The note she’d written out earlier was clutched tightly in her hand. She rubbed her thumb over the thick paper. “I’m not going back. It’s time I took a new direction. I’ve been working there for years after all.”
Yeah, her heart hurt a bit at the thought. But there was no way she could work there after everything that had happened.
She’d been afraid for too long. Of leaving the café, of leaving town, of losing the things she loved the most. But she’d lost so many things already and here she was still standing. It was time to let go of the past and start facing the future.
Whatever it might be.
“Are you coming in?” she asked her dad as they reached the end of the line.
“No, not now.” He shook his head. “I’m not sure I’m ready.”
She understood him completely. The café had been part of his life for much longer than it had been for hers. It must have been hard for him seeing the results of the sale he’d made. Of knowing that this little piece of earth and sand now belonged to somebody else.
“I’m gonna go and say hi to Lorne,” he said. “Come find me when you’re done.”
Her dad made his way down the boardwalk, his gait slow as he took everything in. Then he turned and weaved in between the surfboards that led to Lorne’s shop, giving her a wave when he realized she was still looking at him.
When he was gone, she turned back to the line. “I’m not buying anything,” she told the girl nearest the door. “I just need to talk to someone. Can you let me past?”
“Sure.” The girl stood back and held the door open, letting Ally make her way through on her crutches.
She wasn’t sure he was going to be here. He might still be at home with Riley. But when she looked at the counter she could see him behind it, helping the baristas as they struggled to keep up with the long line of customers. He was at the espresso machine, filling two glass cups with dark liquid, his eyes narrowing as he took in the layers to make sure the coffees were good.
“Two lattes for Marc,” he called out when he’d made them, passing the paper cups to the tall man waiting at the end of the counter. “What’s next?” he asked Brad who was at the second register.
“A cappuccino and a iced tea for Sarah,” Brad called back.
Ally shifted on her crutches, trying to get the guts to say what she needed to.
Maybe she’d give herself another minute as she watched him work.
But then he went to grab another glass cup from the stack on the machine, and his eyes lifted and looked around the room. Within a moment they’d locked in on Ally, and she felt her whole body heat up.
His hand was still hovering in front of the cups. Ally swallowed and attempted a smile. “Hi.”
Nate blinked. “Hi. Are you okay?” He licked his lips. “I tried to call you… a few times. I sent some messages, too.”
“I’m fine.” Her voice was as strong as she could make it. “I can see you’re busy but I just wanted to talk to you for a moment.” She looked around at all the people crowding into the room. “This won’t take long.”
Nate glanced at the rest of the baristas, but none of them were paying any attention. They were way too busy for that. “Yeah, we can talk.” There was a warmth to his voice that made her heart skip.
“Is it ready yet?” a woman asked from the end of the counter. “I ordered a latte and an iced tea.”
Sarah, Ally guessed.
“It’ll be with you in a moment.” Then he looked at Ally. “Don’t go anywhere, I just need to make these drinks.”
“I can wait.”
It was a couple of minutes before he lifted the countertop and came out to see her. He looked as awkward as she felt. Ally to
ok a deep breath, feeling the air expand her lungs, and tried to straighten her spine. She needed to get through this. She’d been through worse, after all.
“I need to give you this,” she said, holding out the white envelope.
Nate’s brows pulled together as he looked at it. “What is it?” he asked.
She took a deep breath. “It’s my letter of resignation.”
“What?”
A torrent of emotion washed over her. Exultation at finally taking control, sadness that this was how things ended up. But more than anything she felt strong and brave – and that thought bolstered her when she needed it the most.
She had to push the envelope toward him again before he got the message and took it from her. Still frowning, he slid his thumb beneath the seal and tore it open, pulling out the letter and skimming her words.
“You’re serious?” he asked her.
She nodded.
“But what about us?” As soon as he said it his face dropped, as though he was remembering their last conversation. “Ally, we need to talk.”
“No.” She had to stay strong, she knew that much. She couldn’t let him talk about them or anything else. It would hurt too much. “I just need you to accept my resignation and them I’m going.”
“What are you going to do for money?” he asked, shock still moulding his expression. “Have you got another job? You can’t leave just because of what happened. You’re a part of this place.”
“That’s my business.”
He looked taken aback at the shortness of her words.
“I’m sorry,” she said, hating every second of this. “I’m going to be working with Lorne for a while. He’s getting old and needs a break. And while I’m working there I’ll think about what I want to do next. I might see if they’re recruiting at the new resort. I heard they were working on getting it back up and running.”
“You could do that while you’re working here.”
She shook her head. “I really couldn’t.” Her voice was soft. “I hope I haven’t left you too high and dry. I’d work my notice but I know you wouldn’t have me with this thing.” She glanced down at her cast.
“So that’s it? We’re done?”
Was he talking about her job or about them? She wasn’t sure. But either way the answer was the same. “Yeah, I think we are.”
Nate said nothing. His jaw so tightly clenched she could see the joint flexing in and out.
“Nate, the steamer’s blocked,” Brad called from behind the counter. “Can you take a look at it?”
“I’ll be there in a minute.”
“You should go,” Ally said. “Before you upset the customers.” She shifted her weight again, leaning back on her crutches. “I’ll see you around.”
“Ally, wait…”
“Nate, we’re out of skim milk.”
His eyes darted from Ally to the counter and back again. “I’ll call you later. To talk about this some more…”
She shook her head. “I’d prefer it if you didn’t.” There were only so many times she could put herself through this pain. She needed it to end. “Goodbye, Nate.”
Those words could have meant anything. A cheerful taking of leave. An easy way to close a conversation. But as they formed on her tongue and her lips before they made their way into the universe she realized that they were so much more. The end of something that had meant so much to her and losing it was supremely painful. She’d take a dozen broken ankles over this.
Without waiting to hear his response, she moved her crutches forward and walked toward the exit, making up in speed what she lacked in grace. And somehow she managed to stop the tears from forming until she made it outside into the warm summer air, lifting her hand up to wipe them impatiently away.
She’d done what she came here to do, no more and no less. So why was it that her heart was hurting more than ever?
* * *
Lorne looked up from the counter as soon as Nate stepped inside the store. He kept his watery eyes on him as Nate passed the racks of surf clothes and sandals, then wound his way through the aisles stacked with sunscreen and board wax. By the time he reached the counter Lorne had closed whatever magazine he was reading and had his hands clasped together, curving his mouth into a half smile.
“I was wondering when you’d be in,” he told the younger man.
It was just before six that evening, the first chance Nate had to leave the shop. Business had been steady all day – something he’d usually be happy about.
But not today.
“I hear you’ve been poaching my staff,” Nate said. There was no malice in his voice. How could there be? This was Lorne. He’d never shown Nate anything but kindness.
“Just one of ‘em.”
“The best one.”
Lorne grinned, revealing a row of perfectly white teeth. Nate found himself wondering if they were real. “I only take on the best,” he told Nate. “And anyway, I didn’t poach her. She came to me.”
The door opened again, and Nate heard footsteps behind him. Lorne lifted his hand in a greeting to whoever it was. Nate turned to see a guy looking at a pair of flowered shorts, lifting them up to his waist to see if they were a good fit.
“Why’d you take her on?” Nate asked him. “I thought you were fully staffed.”
“Because she’s good at what she does. Plus she needed a job.” Lorne shrugged. “Friends help friends.”
“She has a job. Well she had one.” Nate shook his head. “And maybe I need her there, too.”
“Not what I heard.” Lorne shrugged. “The way it was told to me you didn’t want her at all.”
Nate dropped his face into his hands and leaned his elbows on the counter. “I messed up,” he admitted. “I said some things I shouldn’t have, and now I’ve no idea what to do to make it right.” He glanced up at the older man. “What should I do?”
Lorne shrugged. “Don’t ask me, ask him.”
“Who?” Nate looked up, his brows pulled down in confusion. Then he saw the man who’d been looking at the rack of shorts. He had to be in his early fifties, though it was hard to tell. His hair was dark with a smattering of grey running through it, his skin smooth and tanned.
“Grant Sutton,” the man said, holding his hand out. “I believe you know my daughter.”
Nate immediately grabbed his hand and shook it. “Nate Crawford. I didn’t realize you were back.”
Lorne gave a huff.
“Why would you know? It was a snap decision.”
Because it’s something Ally would have told him only a few days before. Nate pulled his hand back from Grant’s and he remembered all the things Ally had said about her father. Part of him wanted to berate the man, tell him how much he’d hurt her.
But then Nate had done exactly the same thing.
“I’m going to start pulling in the racks,” Lorne said, grabbing his magazine and rolling it into a tube. “Can I trust you two not to resort to violence?”
Grant laughed. “You’re as subtle as a ten ton truck, old man.”
“Less of the old talk, thank you.” He ambled out of the shop, pulling the door closed behind him, leaving the two of them standing next to each other at the counter.
Grant inclined his head at the two upholstered chairs in the shoe section of the shop. “You wanna sit down for a minute?” Grant asked. “I need to take the weight off these bones.”
“Sure.” Intrigued, Nate followed him over, settling down into the overstuffed armchair. Grant crossed one leg over the other, keeping his eye on Nate.
“I like what you’ve done with the café,” Grant said to him. “Is business going well?”
“It’s good.” Nate looked at the man in front of him. From Ally’s description of him he’d expected him to be old and haggard – worn down by the years of keeping the café open and dealing with a teenage daughter. Instead, he looked relaxed and sun-kissed.
“Does Ally know you’re here?” Nate asked. He hadn’t been ab
le to keep the words from spilling out, no matter how hard he’d tried.
“Of course. I’ve been staying with her.”
It hurt more than Nate had expected to not know what was happening in Ally’s life. He wanted to ask so many more questions – how was she really doing? Was she going to be okay? Did she miss him as much as he missed her? He sat back in his chair, tapping his fingers on the edge of his seat. “It’s nice that you’ve reconnected.”
“I hear you have a daughter, too,” Grant said.
“That’s right. Her name’s Riley.”
The older man’s expression softened. “It’s tough bringing up a teenager on your own. Especially when you’ve got a business to run. I remember those days very well.”
“It is tough,” Nate agreed, “but it’s what I signed up for when I became a father. And she has it a lot worse than me. Riley’s the one who lost a mother.”
Grant slowly nodded. “Yeah,” he said, his voice gentle. “You spend all your time being mom and dad to them, and very little on anything else. I remember how draining it is. How are you holding up?”
Nate’s spine stiffened at his unexpected question. “I’m fine. Just doing what I need to do.”
“You shouldn’t neglect yourself though.”
“I’m not. And I’m sorry if it sounds insensitive, but the last thing I need is any advice from a guy who ran away and left his daughter to fend for herself. Did you know how hard things have been for Ally since you went away? How hard she tried to keep this place afloat.” Nate shook his head. “It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Sutton, but I have a lot to do.” He stood up. “Have a nice day.”
Grant didn’t look surprised at Nate’s outburst. “I deserved that. But it doesn’t mean I’m not speaking the truth.” He gave him a half smile. “I never wanted to hurt Ally. And I’ve made a lot of mistakes. Maybe you could learn a thing or two from them.” He cleared his throat, covering his mouth with his palm. “I hear you and she had something going on.”
Nate was still hovering by the chair. “Did Ally tell you that?”
“She didn’t need to.”