“Lucky for you, I need another worker here at Coastal Coffee. Bonus if you don’t repeatedly drop trays of food.” Beverly grinned.
“Are you sure? You’re not just saying that to help me out?”
“Nope, I need the help. And why don’t you move in with me while you get your feet under you? No use spending that money at Darlene’s.”
“I don’t want to put you out.”
“Nonsense. I have a three-bedroom cottage. I have plenty of room. I’ll meet you there later this afternoon and we’ll get you set up. It’s number seven, Seaside Avenue.”
“I really appreciate all this.” A tiny bit of hope sprang up inside her. Maybe coming back here wasn’t such a bad idea after all.
“Don’t mention it. It’s what friends are for.” Beverly gave her a warm smile. One that held no judgment. And for that, she was very grateful.
CHAPTER3
Maxine checked out of Darlene’s and loaded up her car with her things. Darlene had wished her luck with her new job and seemed genuinely happy that Maxine was staying in Magnolia.
She had time until she was supposed to meet Beverly, so she drove around town a bit. The old school looked the same. A one-story building that held kindergarten through high school. Not very large since there weren’t a lot of kids on the island. Back when she and Beverly were in school, they’d had two grades combined in one classroom. She wondered if they still did that. Some families had sent their kids over on the ferry to the high school on the mainland. Would things change when the bridge was finished? Would more parents opt to send their kids to school on the mainland?
So much might change. She imagined the boardwalk would be filled with people coming over for the day to enjoy the beach. But the shops along the boardwalk would benefit from more customers. There were a few motels scattered along the beach. They would probably all be filled if it got easier to get to the island.
Right now it still looked amazingly like it had when she was a girl. A sleepy little beach town. Almost picture-postcard perfect.
She glanced at the time and drove down Seaside, looking for number seven. She pulled into the drive beside an old station wagon. Beverly was never going to give that vehicle up until she absolutely had to. It had to be twenty years old by now.
She grabbed her suitcase from the back seat and went up to the front door. Beverly opened it before she even had time to knock. “Come in, come in.” Beverly reached for the suitcase. “Let me show you your room, and then we can bring in anything else you have in your car that you want in.”
Beverly’s cottage was bright and airy. She’d decorated it with understated coastal decor and comfortable-looking furniture. The main room had a wall of windows offering a view of the gulf.
“This is lovely.”
“Thanks. It was mostly a labor of love. It was kind of rundown when I bought it. But I loved working on it.”
She followed Beverly down the hall and into a nice-sized bedroom on the front side of the house. “The bathroom’s just down the hall.” Beverly pointed.
“I really appreciate this. Once I get my feet under me, I promise I’ll look for a place of my own.”
“There’s no hurry. I’ll enjoy the company.”
Beverly helped her bring in a few boxes of her things, then left her to get settled. She hung up her clothes and finished unpacking. Afterward she found Beverly in the kitchen, making iced tea.
“I thought we could go sit outside on the deck. I could use some time off my feet.”
They headed outside with large glasses of tea, the ice tinkling in the glasses, and settled onto two Adirondack chairs facing the water. She slowly relaxed as they sat and sipped their tea. The stress of the last few months—few years—slowly started to fade away.
“So I know I said I took tomorrow off, but it looks like Janine needs the day off. Taking her mother to the doctor on the mainland.”
“That’s okay. I could start working tomorrow. You could show me what to do. I haven’t waited tables since that summer we worked at Sharky’s.” She frowned. “Is Sharky’s still here?”
“Still here. Still has the same menu filled with fried food.” Beverly grinned. “And it’s still really good.”
“We should go there.”
Beverly nodded. “We will.”
“How early do you go into work?”
“I pick up the bakery order at six a.m., then head into the coffee shop after that. Sal is usually already there getting things going.”
