Winter at Wishington Bay

by Maxine Morrey

  Eloise gave us both a look. ‘That’s not like you to not keep up, Soph. You OK?’

  Great, now it looked like I was bad at my job. Thanks, Corinne. And I hadn’t actually agreed to anything yet, but my fellow waitress was young and pretty and used to getting her way.

  I didn’t answer. Suddenly my pager went off and I headed back towards the kitchen to collect my order. Coming back out, laden with plates, I wound my way through to the table next to Nate’s. Corinne was already at his side, smiling, with her wide, heavily lashed eyes focused entirely on him. I handed out the order, checking that my table had everything they needed and making a note to bring two more glasses of house white before turning away. As I did, Nate looked past Corinne and caught my eye. I returned his smile, gave him a brief wave and headed over to the bar to get the drinks. As I poured the second one, Corinne appeared at my side, snatching a bottle of some locally brewed beer from the fridge.

  ‘What are you doing?’ she hissed at me.

  I turned, her tone surprising me. ‘Sorry?’

  ‘What are you doing?’

  ‘Umm, pouring wine.’

  She gave an exaggerated huff, the kind girls her age excelled in, and then looked at me.

  ‘I saw you. At the table. I told you – he’s mine.’

  I didn’t have time for her petulance today. The restaurant was busy and she’d already made it look like I couldn’t keep up with my job. Also, I’d never actually agreed to her taking Nate’s table despite it being in my section. She’d just assumed. I’d let that go but I was in no mood to put up with her spoilt childishness.

  ‘Actually, you said nothing of the sort and I don’t think you can just go around claiming strangers for your own. I also don’t appreciate you telling Eloise that you were doing it because I couldn’t keep up. That doesn’t exactly make me look good.’

  Corinne inspected her fingernails, either unbothered, or not listening, or possibly both.

  I gave up. Grabbing the glasses, I stood them on a bar tray and made to leave.

  ‘Sophia?’ Her voice was softer now. Maybe there was hope after all.

  ‘Yes?’

  ‘Can you open this beer for me? I don’t want to break my nails.’

  Hope evaporated. I opened the beer, picked up my tray and walked off.

  ‘Hi,’ Nate said as I turned, having handed over the wine to the table next to him.

  ‘Hi,’ I replied. ‘How are you?’

  ‘Good thanks. Busy in here today.’

  ‘Yes. Sunday always pulls the crowds.’

  He nodded. ‘I was sort of hoping you might be serving me.’

  I smiled but said nothing.

  ‘I just… thought that maybe I could ask—’

  ‘Here we are!’ Corinne appeared, placing herself purposefully between me and Nate, and putting his beer down in front of him with a flourish. I noticed she bent a bit lower than she needed to, and an extra button on her blouse was now undone. Nate glanced up to thank her and got an eyeful of pert, twenty-two-year-old cleavage. He sat back a little. Corinne gave me a brief triumphant look, completely missing Nate’s discomfort and positioned herself so that I was out of sight completely. I looked up to see another diner trying to catch my eye and headed over to the table.

  ‘Hi. Can I help?’

  ‘Yes, we’ve been trying to get our waitress’s attention for a while but she seems to have disappeared.’ The table was in Corinne’s section, the other side of the restaurant. This was exactly why we had sections and why we didn’t mess around with them, no matter how gorgeous the clientele.

  ‘I’m ever so sorry about that. What can I get you?’

  They placed an order for four of Ned’s special sticky toffee puddings.

  ‘Great choice. And would you like to follow those up with tea or coffee, which of course will be on the house to apologise for you having to wait?’

  They took up the offer and I headed back to place it with the kitchen. As I came out, Eloise caught me.

  ‘What’s all this with Corinne and Gabe’s brother?’

  ‘She doesn’t know who he is. I didn’t get a chance to say much.’

  ‘Ned won’t be thrilled at her messing about with the sections so she can chat up a customer. Did you see she’s undone her blouse even more than usual? Honestly. I know Ned’s known her for years but I think she’s taking the pee with it all. She always wants to cover tables when there’s a celebrity here and then flirts like mad, and now this.’

  ‘I know. I don’t think Nate quite knew what to do with himself.’

  ‘She’s too young for him anyway. What is she thinking?’

  ‘I guess she clocked the cashmere coat, and expensive watch, added it to the rest of him and that was enough.’

  ‘Are you bothered?’ Eloise asked quietly.

  I shrugged. ‘I don’t like to think he’s uncomfortable but he’s a chap and she’s young and pretty. He looked a bit taken aback to start with, but they all seem to come around soon enough, don’t they?’

  Eloise raised a slim brow. ‘Spoken from experience, it would seem.’

  I busied myself with my notepad and gave a small shrug. ‘Anyway, I’d better go and get these puddings. I’ve already had to give table nine four free coffees as they’d been trying to catch Corinne’s eye while she was busy trying to catch Nate.’

  ‘Oh God, really?’

  ‘Better that than unhappy customers.’

  ‘Absolutely. I’ll have a word with her when I can.’

  I didn’t think it would do much good, but Eloise was welcome to try.

  ‘What are you doing?’ Corinne snapped again as I dropped off the sticky toffee puddings and headed back to the wait station to check on the rest of the bookings. I’d hardly stopped, had been on my feet for hours and had ended up covering half of Corinne’s tables as she spent more and more time loitering beside Nate’s.

  I glanced up briefly from the booking ledger.

  ‘You’ve taken half my tips!’

  I held her furious gaze for a moment while I tried to work out if she was actually serious. Realising she was, I let out a half disbelieving laugh and began walking away. My shift was nearly done and I was quite ready to go home and put my feet up with a bucket sized mug of tea. Corinne caught my arm.

  ‘I want those tips.’

  ‘Corinne. First of all, you can let go of my arm. Secondly, despite the fact that your deal for taking that table was your “entire day’s wages”, I still didn’t take your tips. I covered several of your tables because you were too busy trying to chat up one particular customer to notice that they’d been trying to get your attention for ages. I don’t think the restaurant deserves to get a bad reputation just because you can’t be arsed to do your job properly when a pretty face enters the room.’

  ‘You’re just jealous because he was interested in me and not you!’

  ‘Right. If you say so.’

  ‘He’s taking me out next Friday night.’

  I stopped. I’d said to Eloise that they all came around eventually, but stupidly I’d had the thought that maybe Nate was different. He hadn’t seemed as bowled over by Corinne as some male customers were, but I guess he’d relaxed into it after all.

  ‘Cat got your tongue?’ she asked.

  I dug into my apron, pulled out the money I’d put in the side pocket for Corinne’s tables and placed it on the booking ledger.

  ‘There’s your tips.’ And with that I walked away. I couldn’t wait for this shift to be over.

  As I stacked the chairs, Eloise mopped the floor while Corinne pretended to be stacking chairs on the other side of the restaurant but in reality did very little but keep checking her phone.

  ‘I’ve about had it with her,’ Eloise said, glancing up again from her chore, and waving through the window to Bob who was stood chatting to someone. He raised a hand. ‘She always wriggles out of any clear up.’

  Eloise had a point, but Corinne always had an excuse or was sure to me
ntion how close friends her family was with Ned which meant nothing was ever said to him. And, of course, when he or Carrie were on the floor, she was as hard working as the rest of us.

  ‘Corinne. You know my rules about phones on shift.’ Ned had appeared from nowhere and Corinne flushed beetroot at being caught.

  ‘Oh, sorry, Ned, but my grandmother’s not very well and I just wanted to check how she was.’

  Eloise’s groan was audible. Corinne flashed her a look.

  ‘Is that right?’ Ned asked.

  ‘Yes, she thinks it might be flu and you know how dangerous that can be for the elderly.’ She flashed Eloise a look as she said this, and I could practically hear my friend’s blood boiling in her veins.

  ‘Cheeky cow,’ she muttered at me, under her breath.

  Ned leant on the wall. ‘That’s funny because I just ran into your gran earlier on the beach and she seemed absolutely fine. In fact, she’d just been out for a dip with the sea swimming group.’

  ‘Oh! I… meant my other gran.’

  ‘The one that died four years ago?’ His tone was casual but there was no mistaking that Ned was annoyed at being lied to.

  Corinne opened her mouth and then closed it again.

  ‘Don’t let me see it happening again. And give the girls a hand clearing up. You’re all paid the same to do the same things. No one is above it.’

  ‘We’ve finished now,’ Eloise stated, in return for the dig about her age.

  Corinne flashed her a look of daggers, which Eloise shrugged off. Having put away the cleaning gear, we walked over to where our coats hung, and got ready to leave.

  ‘Thanks for that,’ Corinne snapped.

  ‘No one to blame but yourself, love,’ Eloise said, holding the door open for me. Corinne followed behind.

  ‘Hello, love. Good shift?’ Bob asked, kissing his wife. ‘Hi Soph, Corinne.’

  ‘Hello, Bob. You’re looking well,’ I replied. Corinne gave him a thin smile before looking back at her phone.

  The man he was talking to turned round. Nate.

  14

  ‘Hi,’ he said. ‘I thought as I was already here, I could maybe walk you home?’

  ‘Oh, that would be lovely!’ Corinne gushed, a sharp elbow hastening me to the side.

  Nate fiddled with his hat for a moment. ‘I… er… sorry. I meant…’

  ‘He meant Sophia, Corinne. They already know each other,’ Eloise explained, a tad too joyfully.

  Corinne looked from me to Nate, and then back again. ‘Really?’

  Again with surprise? Wow. Thanks.

  ‘Well, I guess I’ll just see you next Friday then, Nate,’ she said, looking up at him from under her thick, false lashes, before turning and strutting off up the harbour.

  We all watched her go for a moment then turned back to face Nate.

  ‘I literally don’t know what she’s on about.’ He looked genuinely confused.

  ‘She made a point of saying earlier that you had asked her out.’

  He shook his head. ‘I didn’t. I don’t know…’ He let out a sigh and dragged one large hand across a freshly shaven jaw. ‘She said something about there being a ceremony for the Christmas lights being turned on in the village next Friday. She was going on about it and I just wanted to get on with my dinner. I couldn’t get her to leave so I said something inane about maybe seeing her there, hoping she would get the hint and go. I guess she’s got the wrong idea.’

  ‘No, she’s just trying to make sure other people get the wrong idea, I think, love,’ Eloise said, glancing at me.

  ‘Do I need to say something?’ he asked, frown lines creasing his already serious face.

  ‘Not at all. You’re grand. And I’m Eloise by the way.’ She held out her hand and Nate shook it.

  ‘Nate McKinley.’

  ‘The lovely Gabe’s brother.’

  ‘Yes. He seems pretty popular in these parts.’

  ‘You’re pretty popular yourself, by the looks of it,’ Bob chuckled. Nate didn’t answer, instead busying himself pulling up his collar.

  ‘Go on then, take this girl home. That’s the least you can do after she’s been run ragged covering tables while Corinne was busy lusting over you.’ Eloise winked to soften the tease.

  Nate shook Bob’s hand and I gave them both a hug before we parted ways and headed home.

  ‘I’m sorry if I caused a problem,’ he said as soon as they were out of hearing.

  ‘Oh, don’t be daft,’ I said, ‘Eloise is just teasing you. And you can’t help looking like you do.’

  He glanced away towards the sea.

  ‘You really don’t like compliments, do you?’

  He gave me a quick glance. ‘It’s not that.’

  ‘What is it, then?’

  He shrugged. ‘I don’t know. Just feels odd.’

  ‘Why?’

  ‘Was she really trying to chat me up?’

  I grinned. ‘Uh-huh.’

  ‘I’m about twenty odd years her senior.’

  ‘True, but you’re kind of nice looking.’

  He slid me a glance.

  ‘You know. If you like the obvious drop-dead gorgeous, body of a god thing.’

  And then he laughed. Really laughed, and I watched the stress fall away from his face.

  I smiled, happy to see this change. ‘Laugh all you want, but you can’t argue with facts.’

  He gave me a look. ‘The fact that my wife ran off with her tennis coach would suggest otherwise.’

  ‘No,’ I said truthfully, hating the flash of pain in his eyes, however much he tried to cover it. ‘Some people don’t realise what they’ve got. But that’s their loss.’

  ‘I don’t think she sees it as a loss.’

  ‘I would.’

  Whoops!

  The blue gaze locked onto mine. ‘I mean, anyone with any sense would. You’ve got a mirror. And you’re decent, solvent and when you let yourself, have a good sense of humour. Who wouldn’t see that as a loss?’ I added, aiming desperately for casual.

  The flicker of a smile crossed that very tempting mouth before he looked back the way we were going.

  ‘Thanks.’

  ‘No problem.’

  ‘Have you eaten?’

  ‘No, I didn’t get a chance. I don’t always feel like it when I’m busy anyway.’

  ‘You need to eat,’ Nate said before stopping suddenly.

  ‘What’s up?’

  ‘Come to mine. I’ve got more food in there than I need and it would make me feel better for you missing out on eating because you were covering that other waitress’s tables.’

  I laughed. ‘Ooh, don’t let her hear that you’ve forgotten her name. She always aims to be unforgettable when it comes to men like you.’

  ‘Men like me?’

  I waved a hand up and down briefly. Nate shook his head.

  ‘Well, then I’ve failed in her eyes already so I guess those are the breaks. Will you come? Bryan would love to see you.’

  I laughed. ‘Ha! No using cute dogs as bribery.’

  ‘Well, the whole body of a god thing is apparently lost on you so I’ve had to pull out bigger guns.’

  I looked up, laughing, and felt my heart lighten as I saw Nate’s eyes sparkle with the joke, and the sound of his laugh carry on the crisp air. It was a wonderful sound and I only hoped I would hear it more.

  ‘You know my weakness.’

  His smile widened and we put out heads down as a sharp wind blew in off the sea, stinging our faces and making our lips taste salty as we headed for the beach house.

  15

  The following morning, I’d just locked my front door and turned to the street as the postie strolled by with his letter trolley, handing me one with a smile as he passed.

  ‘Thanks, Paddy.’ I took the envelope and stuffed it in my basket to look at later. From the heft of it and the expensive feel to the paper, I assumed it was from my ex’s solicitors. Who were also very expensive. I’d taken a chunk
of money when I left. Half of everything was mine, after all, but I knew now I should have taken more. I’d been rather naïve about how long this amount would last me and also in thinking that my ex would play fair. He’d quickly disavowed me of that belief. Hence the need for the job at Ned’s and being grateful for Holly’s offer of the cleaning job. I wasn’t sure what would happen once Nate went back to Australia, whether Holly would still want me to keep up the cleaning, but I would cross that bridge when I came to it. It might also depend on what was in that envelope. In theory, if I could get access to it, I had enough money not to work if I didn’t want to. Or to take the time to find something I actually wanted to do. The investments my father had made for me before he died had been wise ones. Unfortunately, I hadn’t been so wise in agreeing to put everything of mine into joint names. Looking back on it now, I could see how stupid that was. Unfortunately, my father had passed away several years earlier. Had he not, I knew things would have been a lot different. But I’d been a dutiful daughter to my mother and followed her advice in regards to both money and marriage. A huge error in hindsight. But then marriage as a whole had been a revelation for me, and not in a good way.

  Still, what was done was done. I just had to move forward now. Leaving had filled me with a mixture of terror and a sense of release. I knew I’d been lucky to end up here in Wishington Bay, and to have met the people I had. Initially I’d thought a faceless city where no one really knew anyone would be better for me to blend away into, but fate had other ideas. As I’d said to Nate, I really had run out of petrol here. It was late and I’d been exhausted so it had seemed as good a time as any to take a break. Waking up in the bed and breakfast the next day, I’d had every intention of moving on and finding that city, but it had been such a lovely day, and the view from the window had been so enticing, I’d decided that a walk round the village might do me good after the hours of driving the previous day. It hadn’t taken long to fall in love with the place. By lunchtime I was already looking for property. My husband hadn’t realised I’d left for good by then and so the account was still accessible. I viewed the empty flat above Flora’s shop, which had just come on the market that day, and took it immediately, paying the asking price in full so as not to get outbid, advising I wanted to move in as soon as possible. With no chain, and me able to use my name to ensure I could withdraw enough cash almost immediately to seal the deal, I was at least reassured I’d have a roof over my head. After that, I’d gone for lunch at Ned’s where I overheard him mentioning to Eloise that he needed to advertise for another waitress. Everything had fallen into place almost as though it was meant to be. Ned had been great about the fact I had no experience and Eloise was so kind in showing me the ropes. Corinne had been aloof and full of herself even then but I’d just got on with my job and taken her in my stride as much as I could. Admittedly, her behaviour the other day was a step up but then it wasn’t every day we had someone who looked as good as Nate decorating the window seat.