Page 53 of Changing Tides
They stood, feeling they’d shared enough for one evening, even though Marianne had been compassionate and understanding, and hadn’t asked any of the insensitive or intrusive questions Joey was used to. “Didn’t you say you needed to pick up Denny?”
She glanced at her watch and jumped up. “Jesus, how did that happen? Aoife will think I’m taking advantage.” She turned to Joey. “You make me lose track of time, Joey O’Hara. I could spend all night talking to you.”
“Well, Denny needs his bed, so you’d better get going.” Joey led the way to the door and then turned, worried they were dismissing Marianne in their embarrassment. “I’ve enjoyed our evening, too. It felt good to talk.”
Marianne reached up and pecked their cheek. “Thanks for the company. You can talk to me anytime, Joey. You know where to find me.”
They watched her head out to the truck. Mari might as well make the most of driving it before Donal and Liam arrived. They’d expect to have use of the vehicle for their stay. Not that there was anywhere to go on the island you couldn’t walk to.
Joey dropped back into the chair and let out a long breath. Perhaps Marianne was spot on in her subtle suggestion that Joey’s insistence on staying in their own tiny corner of the world was key to why they would never have the chance of a family.
They looked around at their compact home, the crash of the surf audible even inside the closed room. They tried to imagine being in a world where they couldn’t hear the waves or the wind. Where the noise of people and traffic was the constant backdrop to everything. They stood up and grabbed a blanket to wrap around them before they went out onto the deck. The wind had got up and had a chilly bite to it. A wall of darkness hit them and their eyes struggled to adapt to the lack of light. Out in the little bay, the white anchor light shone from the bow of Queen Maedbh bobbing slightly on the waves.
Joey looked up into the moonless sky and as their eyes adapted, a few pinpricks of light turned into a carpet of stars in every direction. Over to the south, the band of the Milky Way rose from the horizon and Joey was filled with a sense of awe that never went away, no matter how many times they looked upon it. Could they ever give this up for the glare of streetlamps and headlights? They knew the answer.
Wrapping the blanket tightly around them, they swung into the hammock, and gazed up at the heavens until their eyes grew heavy. The last waking thought they had was Marianne would enjoy stargazing again one evening before she left Inishderry.
TWENTY-ONE
As Marianne lefther office for lunch service, her phone buzzed, and she pulled it out irritably. She’d ignored several calls from Imelda Hogan, her agent, when Batiya closed, and then the calls had stopped. Imelda calling now must be a good sign, mustn’t it? She sent a quick text to say she was working, but she’d call back as soon as she could. She couldn’t afford to play hard to get. She pushed open the door into the kitchen and a wave of heat and activity hit her.
“How are we going, Connor?” Her sous chef was running the pass today and the first orders were about to come through.
“All good, chef.” The first chits began to print out and he read them. “We’ve got two chowder, three soup, three mussels all day.” His voice lifted to carry to the kitchen staff who all bustled into action.
Kasia bustled through the door from the restaurant. “Hey, Marianne.”
“Hi, how’s things front of house?”
“We’ve not got many bookings today, but the morning ferry was busy, and Aoife says the lunchtime boat is fully booked. So be prepared for plenty of walk-ins.”
“We’re ready here, aren’t we, team?”
“Oui, Chef.”
“Ready, Chef.”
The responses rang out. The team was really starting to pull together and she was proud of how they’d come on. They were all seasonal workers and Marianne wondered how many of them would be back next year. Not that she’d be here to see them.
“We do appreciate how much you’ve skilled everyone up, Marianne.” Kasia’s voice at her side made her start. She’d almost forgotten where she was.
She led Kasia toward her office. “They’re doing well. I think my standards might have been a shock to some of them. It’s probably overkill for a kitchen like…” She stopped before she said something that might annoy Kasia, who was inordinately proud of the Waterside and its growing reputation for good food. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean?—”
“It’s okay.” Kasia smiled to back up her words. “We’ve done wonders here but I’m not under any illusions about us getting a Michelin star anytime soon. A Snappy Crab would do us just fine.” She pulled out her phone with a flourish and waved the screen at Marianne. “Speaking of which!”
She crowded in to read the email. “We’ve won the regional heat. Amazing.” She was pleased for Kasia and Tierney. They’d put so much into transforming the Waterside from a dated hotel into a modern restaurant, they deserved the recognition.
Kasia’s face broke into the widest smile Marianne had ever seen her wear. “The best in the West. In our category, anyway. I thought you might want to tell your team yourself. When service is finished, the champagne is on us.”
“Thanks, Kasia, they’ll be delighted. But it’s a team effort. The Snappy Crabs are about the overall experience.”
“But we could give the best customer service front of house, and it would mean nothing if the food didn’t wow them. Take the praise, Marianne. It’s well deserved. I’ll leave you to get on now.”
When Kasia had left, Marianne headed back to break the good news to her kitchen team, raising her voice so no one had to stop working to hear the announcement. The cheers were the loudest when she told them about the celebratory drink at the end of the night.
As she worked, Marianne reflected on what the award meant to her. It wouldn’t hurt to have the recognition at this point. It would be even more useful if they won the national finals. Was that a little optimistic? She didn’t really need the award to prop up her reputation, but it would help to show she was back in the game, even if it was a slightly less high-end game.
Marianne stopped her internal monologue with a slight sense of shame. She looked around at her new team and felt a pang of regret that they wouldn’t be together in the long-term. There was so much she loved about her life on Inishderry. Denny was having the time of his life, and his vocabulary was expanding the more time he spent with the older children. And she knew a certain shaggy-haired fisher had a lot to do with her happiness. It was getting harder and harder to keep her hands off Joey, and she didn’t know what to do about it.
