They tumbled in through the doors and came to a standstill in the reception area, dripping water.
Tierney Walsh, co-owner of the Waterside and Joey’s oldest friend, jumped up from where she was working at a laptop, her dark curls bouncing as she grabbed a pile of towels. “Hey, that was bad timing. Use these.”
Joey took a proffered towel and rubbed it on Denny’s hair. He let out a shriek and tried to launch himself from their arms.
“Sorry. Here, let me take him.” Marianne had removed her coat and hung it to drip on the coat rack. Between them, they got Denny’s coat off and dried his hair as best they could.
“Are you back for lunch?” Tierney addressed Marianne but threw Joey a sideways glance.
“Yes, please, a table for two and a high security kid’s chair.” When Marianne put Denny on the floor, he made a beeline for the stairs.
Joey wondered where Marianne found the energy to parent a challenging toddler alongside her all-consuming career.
“Hey, come back here.” They scooped him up and followed Marianne into the restaurant.
Once seated, Marianne looked around. “They really did a good job of this place, didn’t they?”
“Yeah, and their investment has paid off. People come to Inishderry just to eat at the Waterside.”
Marianne turned. “That must be good news for you, too?”
“It’s not enough to keep my business going, but I’m not sure what I’d do without their custom now.” They grinned. “Other restaurants are also very important to me.”
“Only if they pay their way.” She put her hand on Joey’s, and they felt a tingle they tried to ignore. “I truly am sorry about the mix up.”
“It’s fine. All sorted now.” They really wanted to ask for cash payments on delivery from now on, but looking at Marianne and her drawn face, they couldn’t bring themself to say anything. Hopefully, whatever cash flow problems Batiya had were now sorted.
Their server came to take the order. “I’ll have the Caesar salad, please.” Marianne turned to Joey. “No offense, but I’m a little tired of seafood.”
“None taken. Even I have moments when I just want a juicy steak.”
When they’d ordered, Joey saw Kasia poke her head through the kitchen door, before retreating quickly.
“Excuse me a moment. I need to speak to Kasia.” Joey headed for the kitchen.
They pushed open the door as Kasia was saying, “I don’t care what it looks like. Marianne’s married. She came with her wife to the launch, remember?”
“Well, they look like a happy family to me.” Tierney noticed Joey in the doorway and grimaced. “Sorry, we weren’t gossiping.” She grinned. “That kid does seem to like you.”
Joey struggled for something to say. It felt like a joke they weren’t party to. “Marianne’s a friend. And a customer.”
Kasia nudged Tierney before she crossed to Joey and wrapped her arms around them. “Ignore Tierney. It’s lovely that you enjoy spending time with them.”
Joey felt the need to explain further. “I didn’t even know she was coming to Inishderry. I just saw them on the beach earlier.”
“Yes, Marianne said it was a spur of the moment decision. She rang me yesterday and asked if we had a room. I’ve put them in one of the cottages, so they’ve got some space.” She pushed Joey toward the door. “Go and eat your lunch. If we can’t convince Tom to stay, it might be your last chance to enjoy his food.”
Joey turned back to Tierney. “Don’t say stuff like that, okay?”
Tierney shrugged. “I’m sorry, it was just a joke.”
Joey went back to Marianne, wondering why they were so annoyed at Tierney’s assumption. They wouldn’t want anyone to think they would mess around with someone who was married. Although, it did feel good, and natural, to be with Marianne and Denny. But it wasn’t right. They would eat lunch, go back to work, and leave Marianne to her weekend.
FIVE
Marianne managedto get a sleeping Denny out of the car without waking him. He’d worn himself out running around on the beach all day, so she was hopeful she’d get him settled quickly. If she could get him to bed, it would give her more time to check the menus and reassure herself Colette had done the necessary preparations for the week ahead.
She felt refreshed by her time away, although it did seem odd to be taking time off at the weekend. But Amira had insisted. She would like to have seen Joey again before she left, but Kasia had relayed their farewell as they were out all day collecting and grading oysters. She hoped she hadn’t made it difficult by pushing them to go for lunch the previous day when they’d clearly been in the middle of work. Marianne took her work very seriously; she shouldn’t expect other people to drop everything to spend time with her. But Joey got on so well with Denny, and it was good to build relationships with people who could supply her with such top-class ingredients.
