Page 5 of Saltwater Sweets
“Yep, and Deena’s daughter, Sam, and Chuck’s son, Cole. The two of them are staying at the Beachcomber.”
Maddie’s blue eyes widened. “That should be interesting.” She glanced back over at the table as they all filed out toward the door. “It looks like they're all getting along well. I know Chuck and Deena were worried about making a good impression for each other’s kid.”
“Hopefully, things will work out. Deena and Chuck are so nice, and they are adults who shouldn’t have to have the kids’ approval.” Jules shook her head and turned her attention back to the menu. “Sam and Cole are grown adults. I’m sure that once they meet Chuck and Deena, they’ll approve.”
“And they were flirting in the parking lot of the motel, so maybe they’ll have other things on their mind then breaking up their parents’ happy relationship.” Jules waggled her eyebrows up and down, and they all laughed.
Gina pretended to look at the menu as the conversation turned to small talk about things going on in town and at the Beachcomber, but she was hardly listening or reading the menu. She was busy thinking about what Ellie had just told her. Who would be looking for her, and why? Maybe Hugh had been up to something much worse than she knew about and now it was going to come down on her.
“Earth to Gina.”
Gina glanced up sharply from her menu to see her cousins staring at her. Clearly they were expecting an answer to something, but she had no idea what. “Sorry! I was just thinking about… ummm… pie crust!”
The confused looks on her cousins’ faces brought on a pang of guilt. She had never told them anything about Hugh. As far as she knew, they still thought she’d had an amicable divorce. They didn’t even know he was missing. When she’d first come to Shell Cove, she was barely speaking to Jules and Maddie and intended to leave as soon as she could. But things changed, and now she was afraid that she’d let it go too long and it was too late to tell them.
“I was saying that I'm getting the scallops. Remember how Gram loved those here?” Jules said.
“I’m getting the lobster. What are you getting, Gina?” Maddie asked.
The items on the menu had barely registered in Gina’s mind, so she blurted out the first thing to come to mind. “Clam roll, extra tartar sauce.”
Maddie and Jules gave her a funny look but didn’t say anything. Was that a weird thing to order? Of course it was. This was fancy dining, and even though clam rolls were on the menu, that was better suited to be ordered at the beach clam shack. She should have ordered baked stuffed haddock. Too late now, though, she realized as she repeated the order for the waitress.
Maddie dug a roll out of the basket and slathered it with butter. “So, the digital locks are working out well?”
“So far. I’ve only done two rooms, but I think we should expand that to more rooms as funds allow,” Jules said.
“Sounds good.” Maddie glanced at Gina to get her take, and Gina nodded.
“That will free up some time for all of us.” The three of them split up the work involved with running the motel, and checking people in was a big part of that.
“I love running the motel, but more free time that I can spend away from it can’t hurt,” Maddie said. “I can’t believe you are still in the storage room, Gina. Maybe you should think about spending more time away from the motel. I feel like you are doing the bulk of the work, and I want it to be fair for all of us.”
Jules nodded. “You should be thinking more about the future and less about the motel. Maybe even thinking about getting your own place. Sure, we still need to run the Beachcomber, but we can do other things too. Like your pies. After all, Maddie and I are thinking about our futures, and you should too.”
More guilt surfaced. She hadn't told her cousins that she wanted to open the pie shop in town because that would mean she would have to explain the whole mess with Hugh and the money. The old saying her grandmother used to say about weaving a tangled web when you try to deceive came to mind.
Gina shrugged. “I don't mind staying in the storage room. I have it fixed up pretty nice, and I am available if any of the guests needs me."
“I don't know.” Maddie looked concerned. “I don't like the way you leave that place unlocked at night while you're in there all alone.”
Gina laughed. “Here in Shell Cove? There's never any crime, so there’s nothing to worry about. Anyway, speaking of getting our own places, how are things going in Starfish Cottage?”
Maddie had recently bought her dream cottage on the beach. It was small but actually had its own name, Starfish Cottage. It had been uninhabited for over a decade and needed a lot of work, but Maddie had already worked wonders with it.
Maddie’s eyes lit up. “We’re practically finished. It'll be just a few weeks now. That’s why I haven’t had either of you over.” Maddie’s expression turned apologetic. “I want to wait until you can see it fully done.”
“I did notice that Dex was spending a lot of time over there. The renovation bill must be sky-high,” Jules teased.
Maddie had started dating the local handyman, Dex Wheeler. Despite a rocky start to their relationship, the two seemed to have hit it off.
Maddie blushed. “Very funny. Rumor about town is that you’re spending so much time at Nick Barlowe’s place that you’re hardly ever at the motel. Is that true, Gina?”
Gina laughed at the good-natured ribbing her cousins were giving one another. Nick worked at the bank, and from day one, it had been obvious to everyone, except maybe him and Jules, that they belonged together.
“She’s not in her room that much. Maybe we should rent it out,” Gina joked.
Jules lived in one of the motel rooms, but Gina didn’t think she was ready to move in with Nick right away.
