Page 16 of The Hampton Beach Café 5
“No, not like a chore,” he said. “More like taking any opportunity that comes up.” He took her hand. “Come on, let's have some fun.”
His hand was warm and rough in hers, and she felt her pulse race as she realized he worked too hard. She could feel the little scar on the corner of his little finger where he had burned it the first time he baked in the new oven, and the spot where he probably should have had stitched but didn't want the bother.
She should hire a kitchen hand. He shouldn't have to work his own business and basically work for her for free...
“So, where are we going?” he asked.
“How am I supposed to know!?” she said, laughing. “You asked me!”
“True, how's about we just walk, like we used to? We can tag it, 'free things to do in Hampton Beach’.”
She smiled. It was weird to see him so excited about something like social media––it really wasn't his realm.
As they walked, the conversation turned to their dreams and goals for the future and how differently they thought their lives would be by now, reminiscing about old jokes and laughing at their teenage ideas. Frances noticed how well Alex listened to her and how easy it was to talk to him about all of this... about anything, really. They walked around the wharf and visited the small shops and tourist stalls selling souvenirs. They snapped pictures of the beach, the cute displays people put up in their windows, and even a few selfies as the day wound down.
Eventually, as the sun began to set, they found themselves outside of a quaint little Italian restaurant pop-up with a romantic ambiance, there were only three small tables set up in the over-decorated space, and luckily one of them was free.
The guy who had taken their order at the door arrived with the wine they had agreed to, it was kind of a weird setup, but these tourist season pop-ups were often a bit odd in the pursuit of being edgy.
“Guess we can't call it a free walking tour anymore,” Frances said, gesturing at the bill which had already been set down in front of them.
“True,” Alex said, “but it's still a good walking tour, even without the dinner tacked on.”
“It was a good tour, huh,” she said. “I mean, I had fun.”
She had withdrawn her phone to flip through the photos, but Alex reached out and grasped her hand, which stopped her in her tracks.
“Me too,” he said quietly. “Probably more than I should have.”
Frances looked into Alex's eyes which were dark with an intense emotion she couldn't quite place and as his gaze flicked up from their clasped hands to her face, she felt a sudden urge to lean across the table and kiss him. The candle, wine bottle, and glasses between them weren't exactly conducive to it, she realized, thankful for the obstacle––what had she been thinking!? It was the cliché, cute atmosphere of the place...
More sharply than she meant to, she withdrew her hand from his and picked up her wine glass, drinking deeply, the heavy red wine a little more acidic than she would normally like.
Alex cleared his throat and sipped from his glass, the tension broken finally.
I must be losing it by believing our own lie,she thought, feeling entirely ridiculous.Poor Alex,he must be so uncomfortable.
He did look uncomfortable, glancing down at his phone and tapping away madly.
Their starters arrived and Frances breathed a sigh of relief––something to occupy her thoughts and hands.
Alex obviously felt the same way as he dug into it with the same gusto she had.
“Are you having fun, at least?” she asked, hesitantly.
Alex looked across at her like she was crazy.
“We always have fun,” he said, raising an eyebrow.
“Yeah, but this... it's a bit weird... right?” she said, “I mean.. all this...”
The way he was looking at her was making her squirm. She hated that she had put him in this position. She'd drunk her wine too quickly, making her head fuzzy.
“I'm sorry,” she said suddenly. “I don't want you to feel... obligated.”
“I don't,” he said, confused.
She felt ill. It seemed like she was always feeling ill these days.
