by Geonn Cannon
Robin nodded. “And that would be a shame. She was a wonderful person.”
“Well, she was with you, wasn’t she? April must have been all right.”
“That sounded almost like a compliment.” Robin smiled.
Molly shrugged. “I’m trying.”
Robin glanced at the kitchen door. “I promised Mrs. Appleton I’d try her eggs today because I’ve skipped breakfast every day since I came to the island.”
“Most important meal of the day.”
“That’s what she keeps telling me. It’s what April says...” She caught herself and looked down at her feet. She scuffed the heel of her sandal against the concrete and softly said, “You do understand how unbearable this is for me, right? Just looking at you?”
Molly nodded.
“The other night–”
“Wait, Robin, no. I think we should talk about it, but not here. And not now. I have to get to work to make up for being late yesterday.”
“Oh, God, I’m sorry.”
“No, it wasn’t your fault. But I should go soon, and we don’t have time for the...the conversation we need to have.”
Robin nodded. “Tonight?”
God, another midnight heart-to-heart, Molly thought. “I’ll see if I can get off earlier. My boss is going to love me.” She sighed and said, “You still have my number?” Robin nodded. “Call me this afternoon around two. I’ll be taking my break then, and I’ll tell you what my boss said, let you know when I’m free to have our talk.”
“Okay.”
“I should go,” Molly said. “Enjoy your breakfast.”
Robin nodded and waited until Molly had her door open to speak. “Molly? I know you’ve been mourning your sister the entire time we’ve known each other, and I understand that can make people seem...cold. But this morning I’m seeing a whole lot of April in you.”
Molly smiled. “That almost sounded like a compliment.”
“I’m trying, too,” Robin said.
Molly got into her car and backed out of the driveway. Robin watched her go and then turned to go back into the kitchen. The smell of cooking bacon wrapped around her like a hug, and she said, “All right, Mrs. Appleton, I think the smells alone have convinced me that breakfast is more important than sleeping. Now bring me those eggs, please.”
##
Sandy’s Dee-Lights wasn’t a standard business. Instead of a storefront, the shop operated out of a carnival cart on the boardwalk. It was within eyesight of Gail and Joe Lack’s front doors, catering to the customer who wanted something sweet after dinner but didn’t want to pay ten bucks for a chocolate banana cream pie. Molly detoured from the front door of Gail’s and headed for the stand. She had to wait for some early-bird tourists to get their orders -- seriously, it was barely eight in the morning...where did these people come from? -- before she could step up to the counter.
The blonde woman behind the counter looked to be about twenty-six. Her hair was tied back in a ponytail, and she wore a black-and-white striped visor. A duck-shaped pin on her apron said, “Hi! I’m Sandy!” Sandy herself held an ice-cream scoop in her left hand and beamed brightly. “Good morning. What can I get for you?”
“Um, nothing, actually. I’m Molly Page. I work for your boyfriend, Clifton?”
Her eyes flashed with recognition. “Oh, you’re his cook, right?” Molly bridled at the word, but didn’t bother to correct her. “You know, you got him his first glowing review in the Register. I mean, the reviewers always liked him before, but you got him his first A-plus. He was really proud of that.”
“I did?” She was genuinely perplexed until she remembered the review. “Oh. Uh, thank you. If it’s the same review I’m thinking of, then I really didn’t have much to do with it. But thank you anyway. I actually...wanted to apologize. I kind of came on to Clifton yesterday when we were closing up shop.”
To her surprise, Sandy smiled. “Uh-oh. He didn’t embarrass you or anything, did he?”
Molly shook her head. “No. You’re not mad?”
“I’d only be mad if he’d kissed you back, which I know for a fact he didn’t because he told me when he got home last night. And now, here you are confessing as well.” She shrugged. “I really doubt anything would happen if you guys are so guilty over a silly little kiss, and I can’t even really blame you, you know, on account of how Clifton is a handsome man.”
Molly shrugged. If you say so. She’d never really considered Clifton handsome or ugly. He was just...her boss. And last night, he’d been a man in position to be a nice dose of denial. She cleared her throat. “Well, as long as you’re not mad.”
“Not at all,” Sandy said. She reached under the counter and brought out a slip of paper. “Here. This is for a free two-scoop cone.”
“Why are you giving me this?” Molly asked.
Sandy shrugged. “The way I see it, you felt guilty about the kiss before you knew me. Imagine how much harder it will be to do it again now that I’m the person who gave you free ice-cream.”
Molly took the coupon and smiled. “Thank you, Sandy.”
“No problem, Molly. Sure you don’t want anything right now?”
“No, thank you.” She gestured at the restaurant. “No, I have to get to work.”
“Okay. See you.”
Molly headed for the stairs that led to the front door of Gail’s and thought about the review Sandy had mentioned. She remembered that review; she’d been working at Gail’s for a year at that time and it was the first time during her reign that the local paper had reviewed the restaurant.
##
Lloyd leaned into the pass-through after handing over the latest order. “Molly.” She looked up from filleting a trout. He motioned her to lean forward and lowered his voice. “Who is doing the food reviews for the Register this month?”
Molly shook her head. The local newspaper rotated their food and theatre critics every month so no one could be certain when they were being reviewed and when a newspaper employee was just trying to have a night out. It led to any newspaper employee being treated like royalty just in case they were flying the food desk that month. “I don’t know,” Molly said. “It was Roger Dugan last month, wasn’t it?”
Lloyd scratched his forehead. “Think so.”
“Why? Who’s out there?”
“Kate Price.”
Molly considered that. “Price hasn’t done the food column since I’ve been here. If she’s ever been the food critic, it’s been a long time. Damn it, she might be the one. What did she order?”
“Baked salmon with leeks, shallots, and tarragon.”
“Salmon,” Molly said. She stepped back from the prep station and said, “Shane.”
Shane Sanborn, the new sous-chef, looked up. Molly gestured at the stove with her chin. “Baked salmon. Get to it.”
“This is for the reviewer?” Shane said. “Molly, you should–”
“Salmon is your best dish,” Molly interrupted. “I’ll finish the scampi, you get to work on the salmon. And relax. Clifton won’t blame you if Price doesn’t like it.”
“Exactly,” Shane said. “He’ll blame you. Molly, this is your kitchen. Whether you do the meal or not, you’re the one who's going to get roasted.”
Molly shook her head. “Not roasted. Baked. And I’ll bet Price takes into consideration how long her meal takes, so get cracking. Get Tatum to help you with the side dish if you want. Get cracking.”
Shane took Molly’s position and shook her head as she arranged leeks and shallots in the baking pan. Molly handed her a bottle of white wine, and Shane said, “If this gets a bad review, I’m quitting.”
“No one likes a quitter,” she said. She squeezed Shane’s shoulder and said, “I believe in you. I have trust. Now get cooking and get Clifton that good review.”
Shane took a deep breath and started cooking.
The cooking part went off without a hitch. Shane passed Kate Price’s meal to Lloyd, checked her watch, and sagged against the pr
ep counter. “Now what?”
“Now we wait for the review to come out.”
Shane groaned.
“Hey, nothing else we can do. But for right now, go on break.” Shane frowned, but Molly didn’t give her a chance to argue. “Break. Out there. You can sit at the bar and talk to Clifton if you’d like. Watch people eat.” She raised her eyebrows.
Shane caught her meaning and her face brightened. “Really?”
Molly lifted a shoulder. “I did it the first time I cooked for a reviewer. Go on. I won’t tell anyone where you are.”
Shane took off her hat and hurried through the swinging door to the dining room. Molly chuckled as she watched Shane leave. Tatum moved up to the front lines and said, “When are you gonna let me cook for a reviewer?”
“Tell you what, Jim. The next time the paper is doing a review of Harbor Lights Restaurant, I’ll loan you to them for the night. Let you cook the dinner over there. That way, we’d get all the customers they’d lose after your review came out.”
Tatum sneered at her and brushed his mahi-mahi fillets with a marinade.
Molly chuckled. She looked out into the restaurant and saw Shane at the bar with Clifton, surreptitiously looking over her shoulder every few seconds. Tatum flipped the fillets on the grill and looked with her. “You know Gail is going to blame you even if Shane was the one who did the actual cooking. It could mean your job.”
“It could. If the review is bad. And the review will only be bad if Shane’s food isn’t great,” Molly said. “So there’s nothing to worry about.”
“You got that much confidence in her?”
“Yeah. I really do.” She looked through the window and chuckled as Shane lifted her hand to her brow and tried to sneak another look at Kate Price’s table. She looked down at the grill and nudged Tatum with her elbow. “Pay attention. Your fillets are flaking.”
##
Molly put the ice-cream coupon in her locker along with the rest of her things. When she pulled her toque out, she caught a glimpse of the newspaper clipping taped to the back wall.
Long-Time Town (and Tourist) Favorite Still Makes the Grade!
By Kathryn Price, staff writer
“Gail’s Seafood Shack, long a staple of fine-dining on this island, has undergone quite a few changes since its last review in these pages; Clifton Gail took over managerial duties from his father and Molly Page was hired as the new chef de cuisine. It was with these changes in mind that I went to the restaurant to write this review. I expected to have to grade on a curve for the two newbies.
Clifton Gail and Molly Page need not worry, however. They’ve rightfully earned their grade with succulent meals, efficient service, and a wonderfully understated ambience. As for the view...well, it would have been hard for them to screw that up.”
##
Molly smiled as she read the rest of the review. She knew it by heart. The day it had come out in the paper, Clifton had kept the kitchen and wait staff after closing and opened a bottle of champagne. Molly had revealed that Shane was responsible for the “succulent meal,” and Clifton had given her a raise right then and there. Not much, fifty cents an hour more, but Shane had thanked him profusely.
That night, Molly and Shane had gone out together. It was that night Shane revealed she was gay. And since then, their friendship had somehow become the longest, easiest relationship in Molly’s life. Shane was the person she trusted most in the world now. When did that happen? she wondered.
Accidental or not, Shane was now Molly’s best friend. And after spending the past couple of nights being confronted by the past, time and again, Molly had to wonder if there was a possibility of more between them.
She settled the tall white toque over her bun, made sure it was secure, and then slammed her locker door on the review.
The final line of Kate Price’s review read: “Whatever team Clifton has managed to pull together in his kitchen, he should do whatever it takes to keep them around. Chemistry like that doesn’t happen often enough to let it slip away.”
Chapter Twelve
It was the middle of the night.
Fifteen years old and only one year into her own bedroom, Molly threw back her covers and fell out of bed, not bothering with the bedroom light as she stumbled out into the hall. She put her hand to the wall, skimming her palm against the wainscoting on her way to the bathroom.
She turned on the lights, pushed her pajamas to the floor, and sat down, feeling the urge to pee but knowing nothing was happening. She rested her elbow on her knee, covered her face with her hand and nearly fell asleep waiting to begin. Finally, she decided that that “shit or get off the pot” thing was right; she was about to fall asleep, and they had five extra guests in the house. She got up and closed the lid even though she hadn’t used it. The toilet shared a wall with her parents’ bedroom, and flushing in the middle of the night tended to wake Daddy.
She yawned and, as she passed April’s room, felt something flutter in her chest. She looked at the closed door of April’s room and blinked. April was having a sleepover with a couple of girls from their class. Molly had been invited, but most of the girls were April’s friends. She didn’t want to intrude, so she’d stuck to studying in her own bedroom with the door closed and her headphones on.
April’s bedroom door was open a crack, so Molly had pushed it open further and peered in.
Four sleeping bags were sprawled across the floor. Since there wasn’t room for any more, April had arranged for her best friend Megan to sleep in the bed with her. Usually when Molly felt that flutter in her chest, it meant that April was having a nightmare. Any other night, she would crawl into bed with her, hold her until she fell back to sleep, and talk about what the dream had been. But tonight, the bed was a little too crowded for that.
She started to pull the door closed when she heard a giggle coming from under the covers. “No, it’s your turn now,” April whispered. The blankets tented, and the two shapes underneath it rolled together. “Here, take off your pajamas.”
Molly closed the door as quietly as she could, her eyes wide and her heart thundering in her ears. She hurried back to her bedroom and climbed under the covers, pulling them up to her chin and staring at the wall.
The next morning at breakfast, after their parents had left to drive the other girls home, Molly cornered April in the kitchen. “Hey. What were you doing last night?”
“Sleepover.” She frowned and said, “Wait, what do you mean?”
“In...bed?” she whispered the last word, even though they were alone in the house.
April’s eyes widened. “Oh! You didn’t hear us, did you?”
“No. I was walking by and I felt...something.”
“Something good?” Molly blushed, and April laughed. “I had a dream. Kind of...there was sex in it. And when I woke up, I put my hand down my pants. Megan was awake and...” She blushed and shrugged. “I don’t know. We did stuff.”
Molly gasped.
“Not S-E-X,” April said. She rolled her eyes and said, “We just did stuff to ourselves. It was really fun.” She giggled and hooked her arm through Molly’s and pulled her close. “You’ve got to try it sometime.”
“With someone else watching? No thank you. I can barely...you know...by myself.”
April said, “What? Masturbate?”
“Shh!” Molly looked around and pulled her arm free. “Don’t say that word.”
“Which word? Ma-asturbate?”
Molly pushed her hair out of her face and hurried out of the kitchen. “Just stop talking about it, okay? And next time you do that...just...I don’t know. Just don’t, okay?”
April chuckled and said, “Fat chance of that. But I’ll try to be a little more considerate of you. Next time I’ll send Megan into your room when we’re done.”
Molly glared over her shoulder, which only made April laugh harder.
Two weeks later, Molly came home from school to find a box on her pillow. The card read: For Ne
xt Time. Molly frowned and lifted the lid. Inside was a brand-new, batteries-included, slightly bigger than real-life, or so Molly assumed, vibrator.
Molly scoffed and tossed it onto the bed. She started to go out, find her sister, and chew her out for such a tasteless gift, but she stopped at the door. She looked back at the box, the pale pink vibrator just barely visible inside. She chewed her bottom lip and turned, pushing her bedroom door shut with her back. It probably doesn’t even work, she thought as she walked back to the bed.
She sat down and pulled the box closer, peering inside at the toy. She pulled at the catch of her jeans and reached into the box.
##
“She totally has it out for you,” April said, closing her lips around her soda straw. She was sitting at a picnic table in the town park surrounded by Jill, Amy, Julia, Eve, and Gina. Kristin was bemoaning her latest below-average grade in Mrs. Yates’ class, and the rest of them were trying to console her. But April kept sneaking glances at Megan, seeing her smiling at her from across the table. “In fact, I’ll bet you...oh!”
Everyone looked at her. She shuddered and flipped her hair over her shoulder in what she hoped was a nonchalant way. “Ahem...”
“What? You okay?” Julia asked.
April smiled and said, “Oh, yeah. I just realized someone must have found a present I left them.” She scratched her neck, rearranged herself on the bench and crossed her legs.
##
“Order up,” Lloyd called from the pass-through. “Fish and chips, salmon subbing for cod.”
Molly didn’t even have to pause in her reverie as she passed the plate through the window to Lloyd. She had just enough time to wipe her hands on her apron before the next order came through. “Filet of flounder,” she muttered, reading from the green slip. She turned, bumping her hip against Shane’s as she moved to the grill. “Sorry, hon,” she said. Shane didn’t acknowledge her; working in close quarters like this, they were bound to rub butts every now and then. The only difference now was Molly’s newly-heightened awareness of her sous-chef.