Page 21 of Changing Tides
She stared at Joey, unsure if her irritation stemmed from being told what to do, or her frustration with herself for being unable to act.
“I’m sorry, it’s none of my business.” Joey looked away. Her most frosty look had terrified many young chefs over the years, but she hadn’t meant to turn it on poor Joey, who was just trying to help.
She jumped up from her chair. “No, you’re absolutely right. I can’t just sit and wait to be rescued. I need to put some feelers out.”
In truth, she’d been hoping some of her old acquaintances might have reached out to her with offers. But she wasn’t helping herself by hiding away and avoiding social media. “Tomorrow, I’ll get my laptop out and start making some calls.”
“Hi, Denny.” Joey was looking beyond her, and she turned to see him standing in the doorway, rubbing his eyes. He’d probably be up all night, but at least they’d get through dinner.
“Hey, sweetpea.” She picked him up and he wrapped his arms around her neck. “Did you have a good sleep?” She turnedto Joey. “If we’re going out to eat, can we go now, while he’s awake?”
“Of course. I need to get my dad in the truck, too. Monday nights we have dinner together.”
“I’m interfering with your routine. I don’t want to be a nuisance.”
“You’re not. My dad’s a little grumpy, but he loves Tierney and Kasia, so he’ll probably bore them with stories of island life and leave us be.” They reached out. “Here, let me take Denny while you get ready.”
Marianne hesitated. Denny’s clingy tendency, and refusal to settle with anyone else had been a constant source of friction between her and Amira. But he held his little arms out to Joey, and they took him and stood him on the rail of the deck, holding him firmly. He pointed to Queen Maedbh. “Boat.”
Joey laughed. “My boat. Can you say Queen Maedbh?”
“Mave?”
Marianne turned back in surprise. “Good boy, that’s right. Queen Maedbh.”
“Boat,” said Denny.
They laughed and Marianne ruffled his curls. “Slow progress, but better than nothing.”
She left them on the deck, happy Denny was in good hands. She wondered again about Joey’s history. When she thought about all the terrible parents she’d known, it seemed a shame Joey would never be the wonderful parent they had the potential to be.
TEN
Before they even reached theWaterside, Joey was having second thoughts about their plan to feed everyone together.
“Whose is that baby?” Their dad was craning around in the front seat. They couldn’t see Denny in the borrowed car seat directly behind them, but Marianne was frowning.
“I told you, Dad, this is my friend Marianne and her little boy, Denny. They’re staying for a few days.”
“Is that why you’re getting under my feet?”
Joey rolled their eyes in the rear-view mirror, getting a quick smile from Marianne. “It’s only been a couple of hours, Dad, but yes, you said I could stay, remember?”
“Don’t they have a home?”
Joey flicked another glance to Marianne, who leaned forward and poked her head around the seat.
“We’re between places at the moment, Michael. Joey’s been very kind to put us up. We’ll be out of your hair soon.”
“Children need a home. You can’t drag them around, staying all over the place.”
When did their dad develop such strong opinions about parenting,anddecide to share them? They preferred when he was being silently sullen.
“Marianne’s working on that, Dad, but thanks for your input.”
Marianne gave a quiet chuckle and they felt a pressure on their shoulder. They glanced toward her hand. The squeeze was reassuring, then it was gone. But Joey retained a perfect picture of Marianne’s hand. The long, delicate fingers and neatly cut nails.
They shook their head and focused on the winding lane. They could fantasize about Marianne’s fingers later, but for now maybe they should focus on getting everyone safely to dinner.
