Page 9 of Wishes at Water's Edge
Vivian patted her shoulder. “One has to be forgiving with family, even when they’re your employees.” She chuckled.
Sally smiled as she watched the interaction between mother and daughter. “Having family to run a business with must be a beautiful thing. Even if they’re late sometimes.” She laughed.
“It really is wonderful,” Vivian agreed warmly. “You really bond with the people you work with, because of all the teamwork. And our family already has a strong bond, which the pub has served to make even stronger. It’s wonderful to get to support each other during the workday and problem-solve together. Julia’s been an absolute wizard with the pub’s finances. She brought us out of a pretty tricky bad patch.”
Sally nodded, and Julia wondered if Vivian had confided the details of her father’s gambling debts to Sally. Sally and Vivian had been friends for many years, but not particularly good friends. Julia guessed that was due to the fact that both womenwere often very busy more than anything else, since it was clear they both liked each other very much. She could see a definite affection between the two of them.
“It does sound wonderful.” Sally smiled, but Julia could see a sad look in her eyes. “I’ve always had to do everything on my own, really. I mean, I like being independent, and I have stellar employees, but there have been times when I’ve wished I had someone to bounce ideas off of.”
“Well.” Julia patted Sally’s shoulder encouragingly. “It seems as though Rosewood Beach’s two most formidable businesswomen have been joining forces lately, so now you’ve got someone in your corner. I heard how you and my mom got the food distributor schedule back on track with just a few phone calls. That’s teamwork if I’ve ever seen it.”
“Well, I just followed in Vivian’s footsteps and called my distributors like she did.” Sally smiled. “She made the magic happen.”
“Oh no.” Vivian shook her head. “They were slipping up with the meat deliveries again. Your phone call to the higher-ups fixed things on my end too.”
“Well.” Sally grinned, looking pleased. “I guess you must be right then, Julia. Vivian and I make an excellent team.” She and Vivian shared a smile.
Julia grinned at both of them before making her way into the kitchen to grab a spare waitressing apron. She didn’t mind waitressing, although she preferred to be away from chaotic and messy things like dirty plates and hyper customers.
It’s going to be extra hard for me to focus today,she thought with a chuckle as she stepped back out into the dining room.I may be here physically, but my mind is still on all of the unfinished wedding tasks lingering on my to-do list.
She pictured her planner, lying open on the kitchen table at home, with a cup of coffee beside it. She wished she was backthere working on arranging her and Cooper’s big day instead of shuffling around the dining room, but there was no help for it. Her wedding day would come, and in the meantime, she needed to do her best to focus on the task at hand.
CHAPTER SIX
Dean checked his hair in the mirror of his bathroom. It was a little messy, as it usually was, but after combing it down a little he decided he looked presentable enough. He knew Noelle liked the way his hair always looked slightly tousled, so it didn’t matter that it looked a little messy now.
He’d spent the morning working at Main Street Auto, but at lunchtime he’d left the shop in the hands of his capable employees and gone home to take the rest of the day off. Because of his early-onset osteoarthritis, he needed to rest frequently. Now that he had so many great mechanics working for him, he was able to do that more often and it had greatly improved his energy levels and overall wellness.
Now that it was later in the afternoon, he was planning on taking a short walk over to the physical therapy clinic where his girlfriend, Noelle, worked. He wanted to surprise her at work with flowers and a beverage that she liked.
He smiled to himself as he stepped outside and began to walk down the sidewalk. The leaves on the trees were just beginning to turn vibrant shades of red and yellow, as if the natural world was beginning to blush. There was a crisp scent in the air, and the wind was cool enough to make him shiver a little even in thewarmth of the sunlight. Dean decided that he should put on a warmer jacket before walking all the way to the physical therapy clinic.
He popped back inside his house and put on his favorite black leather jacket, which Noelle had bought him for Christmas. She said he looked like the main character in an eighties movie whenever he put it on, and he liked wearing it for her. Besides, it did an excellent job of cutting out the wind and keeping him warm.
He set off again, enjoying the sights and smells around him. It was a beautiful day, and he saw several flocks of birds beginning to fly south as he walked. His spirits were light, since he always loved going to see his girlfriend. She could make even the dreariest of days seem as though they were full of sunshine.
He stopped at the local general store and picked up a beautiful bouquet of pink and yellow roses. They reminded him of Noelle, who loved bright colors, especially pink. Then he set off in search of a beverage to bring to her. She loved all kinds of drinks—kombuchas, teas, coffee, boba tea, and artisan sodas. He finally decided on a lavender elderberry kombucha for her, although he refrained from buying one for himself. He’d never really understood why other people liked kombuchas so much, although he knew they were supposed to be good for you.
Bearing his gifts in hand, he made his way to Noelle’s office. He knew that she had a break in between clients starting in the next five minutes, and he was determined to arrive on time so that he could surprise her as soon as her break started.
He stepped inside the physical therapy clinic, which had a lobby that had been charmingly decorated for fall and which smells spicily of essential oils. He knew that Noelle was responsible for all of that, and he felt proud of the beautiful job his girlfriend had done. The lobby always looked tidy andcharming, but Dean thought to himself that it looked best during autumn—that and of course Christmastime.
He was very familiar with the physical therapy clinic because he was still a patient there himself because of his osteoarthritis. He’d switched to the other P.T., Chip, before asking Noelle out on their first date. Chip was fun and just as qualified as Noelle was, and Dean liked to go to physical therapy not only because it made him feel better, but because he was usually able to swing by Noelle’s office and say hello to her quickly before her next client arrived.
He made his way to her office door and knocked softly.
“Come in!” she called cheerfully.
He grinned to himself, knowing that Noelle probably thought he was Chip or the receptionist stopping by to ask her a question. He stepped to the side of the door and pushed it open slowly before ducking fully out of sight.
There was a short pause, and Noelle called out, “Um, hello?”
“Surprise!” Dean jumped into the doorway, holding up the bouquet of flowers. “I came to visit you.”
Noelle shrieked with surprise and delight and stood up to hug him. “Dean!” she cried eagerly. “I had no idea you were going to show up today.”
“That’s why I said surprise,” he said gleefully, nuzzling her nose. “Look, I bought these for you.”
