The pub doors opened, and Julia walked inside.
Maggie’s heart stuttered before kicking into its normal beat. She forced her smile back to her lips. “Hello. What can I get you to drink?”
“Maggie, I didn’t realize you worked here,” Julia said. “We thought we’d try a new pub. This one hasn’t been open for that long.”
“I needed the money.” Wasn’t that obvious? Why else would she work every possible hour management offered her?
Christina offered a quiet smile. “I was sorry about you losing your job.”
“Ancient history,” Maggie said. “If you haven’t decided on what to drink do you mind if I serve those guys?” She turned away without waiting for their reply. Why did they have to pick this bar?
When she turned back, the three women lined up at the bar like birds sitting on power lines and looked as if they’d roosted for the night.
“We’ll take a bottle of the house Sauvignon Blanc,” Susan said.
“And some peanuts,” Julia added. “I missed lunch.”
Maggie nodded. “We have a bar menu. The snacks are tasty if you’d like something more substantial.” Her voice emerged stiff and robot-like. She drew a sharp breath and told herself to calm down. This job was important. Her new boss had emphasized customer service. She couldn’t afford to lose the job for scaring off customers.
“How long have you been working here?” Christina asked.
“I started yesterday. I have another job at a theme restaurant. You know the medieval one?”
Julia chuckled, although it wasn’t with her normal gusto. Maggie thought she looked sad. “That’s the one with the wenches with big boobs.”
“Yep.” Maggie handed over the opened bottle of wine, then gestured at her breasts. “I was perfectly qualified.”
“Oh,” Susan said, wrinkling her nose. “Isn’t that degrading?”
“I needed a job.” Nothing less than the truth. Jobs were in short supply if a person lacked references. “It’s not so bad if you keep your wits about you. I have a good reason to keep going to the gym.”
Christina nodded, her eyes holding sympathy. “You look great. Have you lost weight?”
“A bit.” Money shortages had a way of making a person focus on the important things in life. She realized she’d let go of her anger toward the three women. Secrets. They weren’t necessarily a good thing between friends. And lying. That was where she’d gone wrong. “I’m sorry I lied to you about Connor. It was wrong of me to break my promise.”
Maggie walked away to serve more customers.
The head barman returned from his break. “I want you to stay working this bar tonight,” he said. “You’re efficient and doing a great job.”
“Thanks,” Maggie said, appreciating the kind words. It would keep her busy so she had an excuse to steer clear of the women. She’d missed them so much. Heck, she missed Connor. But things were different now. She couldn’t go back in time. All she could do was go forward. She’d apologized and meant it. She was sorry for lying to her friends, but it didn’t make things right.
Susan waved her over. “We’ll take an order of fries, some spring rolls and—”
“We need something healthy,” Christina interrupted.
“And the vegetable crudités and hot spinach dip,” Susan finished. “Is that healthy enough for you?”
“Gotta have the five plus vegetables a day,” Julia quipped. “They tell us all the time on television.”
“Since when did you follow the rules?” Susan asked.
Julia’s smile faded. “People change. Things don’t stay the same.”
Maggie felt her pain and wondered at the secrets emblazoned across Julia’s face. Losing the baby had hurt her. It was funny because Julia was the last one out of all of them she’d expect to get pregnant or embrace motherhood. “I’ll take the order through to the kitchen. It won’t take long.”
When she returned a group of young guys had joined them. Rugby players she discovered when she overheard them talking.
Julia gestured for another bottle of wine, and Maggie hustled to serve both her and the new arrivals.
