Page 46 of Saltwater Memories
Chapter 17
Sunday morning was hectic for Margie. First, she met with two clients who wanted to tour the barn; then she dropped off a donation for the library bake sale, and finally, she had to pick up a few more ingredients for the Sunday dinner that evening.
When the girls arrived, Margie was rushing around. The stuffed peppers still needed fifteen minutes in the oven, and the potatoes were nowhere near soft enough to be mashed; she cursed herself for not cutting them into smaller cubes.
Perhaps she’d tried to fit too much into one day?
“Hi Mom!” Jade said brightly, giving her a kiss on the cheek. “I made a blueberry cobbler for dessert – is there room for it in the fridge?”
“Of course – whatever space you can find is yours.”
“Anything for me to carry in?” asked Morgan.
Margie sighed. “Unfortunately, no. I’m a bit behind schedule today.”
“Oh sorry, can I help?” Morgan asked, stepping up to the sink to wash her hands.
Though itwouldbe a help if they set the table, Margie preferred that they sit down and relax. “No, it’s okay. Everything’s fine. Hank should be home soon, and hopefully he’ll bring Matthew with him.”
Morgan frowned, peeked out into the dining room, and announced, “You know what, I’ll just set the table.”
There was no point in protesting – Morgan had seen right through her.
“Thank you dear.”
Margie realized that she had let the sauce sit for too long and it burned a bit. Darn it! She gingerly stirred it and turned down the heat. She’d wanted to make extra sauce for Hank – he liked the peppers to be swimming in it, and then he’d dunk bread in there, too. Hopefully she hadn’t ruined it.
Once the stuffed peppers were done, Margie turned off the oven and covered them with foil so they wouldn’t dry out. It was another ten minutes before the potatoes were ready to be mashed, and that was when Hank walked in the door, armed with flowers and an apology for being late. At least her timing meshed with something!
When she finally got everything onto the table, Margie sat and stared at the food. It looked fine, but she’d completely lost her appetite.
“What have I missed?” she asked, passing around the stuffed peppers.
“I was just saying that I don’t know that Luke willevercome back,” Morgan said glumly. “He’s having too much fun in Vancouver.”
“You say that like it’s a bad thing,” Hank said, a smile on his face.
“Itisa bad thing!” Morgan said with a laugh. “He does that to you. He annoys you so much that when he’s gone, you feel his absence.”
“Don’t worry,” said Jade. “He’ll be back in a few weeks.”
“Where’s Matthew?” Margie asked.
“He just texted me,” Jade replied. “He’s on his way. He got a little held up on a call.”
“Oh okay.”
Morgan let out a dramatic sigh. “I guess I’ll just keep playing third wheel to Jade and Matthew forever.”
“You’re not a third wheel.” Jade made a face. “I thought we had fun together?”
“Wedo,” Morgan said. “But you know what it’s like. Or maybe you don’t. Three’s a crowd.”
Only three? Margie frowned. Why wasn’t Amanda spending time with them, too? She hoped they weren’t leaving her out. She made a mental note to ask Jade about it later.
She realized that Amanda hadn’t said anything since she’d arrived. “What about you, Amanda? How is everything going at work?”
“Everything’s…fine. Good, I guess.”
