“Yes, I agree with you on that. Which reminds me, we have to stop for school supplies. Remember, my son has school tomorrow.”
“Oh yes, right! Okay, we got this.” Luna knew better than to let herself get caught up in her friend Nicky’s drama, but it couldn’t be helped. By the time they'd finished shopping, she had way too much stuff for Jonah, and she’d spent more than expected.
Nicky dropped her off after it was getting late. “Well, give me a hug. I have to go for a few days, but that big lump of a man we call bestie is coming tomorrow, and he’s bringing a posse of helpers. This house will be whipped into shape fast, and I won’t have to do a thing to get it there. That’s my kind of work, the kind I don’t have to do.”
“Thank you.” Luna leaned over and gave her a big hug, thankful for the friends she had. “I’m so tired. My son is going to think I robbed an office supply store and that I’m some kind of supermodel or influencer like you when he sees these nails.”
She admired them one more time, wishing she’d gone with Claire’s suggestion of a French manicure for her fingers.
“Good night.” She had to practically drag the bag of school supplies to the door of the house. “Here you go, Jonah. Remind me to never ask Nicky to do this again. She bought almost everything they had in the store.”
“Cool, I love these. Thanks, Mom, and thank Nicky for me, too.” Grinning, he picked up his supplies and began to leave.
“You're welcome.”
After shutting the door to her childhood bedroom while Jonah slept in the spare, she collapsed on the bed. “Ugh. That was too tiring for words. Who would have thought rekindling memories with old friends would be so tiring? I think I need a vacation already.”
Her phone rang. “Hey, Luna, you're not sleeping, are you?” Shaun's chipper voice didn’t sound the least bit tired as he spoke.
“I was thinking about it. Why?”
“Well, just wondering. I really need your help tomorrow, so I figured you could get an early start here with Emma and Bonnie while I take Donnie to your place. After school, I can pick up Jonah and have him help. If we tag team everything, we can have this done in days.”
Luna wanted to refuse, her body exhausted from head to toe. “Fine.” She betrayed her own common sense. “But I’m not showing up early, not before 9 a.m.”
“Banker’s hours, I see. Fine, do as you please, but in a few days, I want you to be on the morning shift. It’s our busiest time of day, and the young waitress I hired, Darla, isn't good enough for it. She needs to be on the lunch shift, but not dinner or breakfast.”
He hung up after a laugh. “Good night, Luna.”
She felt like she’d been caught red-handed with her fingers in the cookie jar as if she had no right to rest. Groaning, she closed her eyes and let sleep take over.
Morning came fast with a rush of sunshine. The sun’s rays blazed through the window, and its warmth beat down on her cheeks. “Oh, already.”
“I’m off to school, Mom.” Jonah’s voice called through the small crack between the open bedroom door and the frame.
“Goodbye.” She missed him already. Then a reality check clicked in, and she realized she had to get up and hurry, too. Shaun was expecting her at the restaurant for breakfast, and she had a lot to learn.
Shaun picked Luna up a while later. “Good morning. I hope you're ready for a fun-filled day. Emma has a lot she wants to show you.” His early-bird attitude didn’t surprise Luna.
On the way over, her apprehension got the better of her. “How am I supposed to wait tables when I’ve never done it once? At my age, if you haven’t done something already, it’s like you're banned from attempting it at this point.”
“Oh really. Well then, I guess I’m banned from more than a few things. I haven't tried skydiving yet.”
“Well, I’m not even sure what to say about that. It doesn't matter what age, you should be banned from doing that. Do you want to get yourself killed and leave your lovely wife and daughter all alone?”
“Not likely. Besides, they both want to come with me, especially Emma.”
Narrowing her eyes at her dear friend, Luna could barely formulate a thought on that family outing. “Well then, the three of you should also be held at gunpoint for stupidity.”
She said no more on that, leaving him to his thoughts. She had far better things to worry about, like learning how to wait tables. “It can’t be that hard. It’s just like when I would bring a tray of food to grandma when she came to Sunday dinner years ago.”
“Pretty much, except these are paying customers and not a forgiving family.”
His words sunk like bricks in her stomach as they pulled up to the Bluff Cove Restaurant. “You never told me why you called it that. We don’t have any bluffs or high cliffs in Connecticut.”
“It reminds me of Scotland, where I met Emma. I’d been on vacation. I think I told you this. She ran into me with a coffee and spilled it all down my new shirt after I’d just done the same. I thought I would be polite and let it slide until she started shouting that I was the one in the wrong. I spent that entire vacation chasing her around Scotland trying to get her phone number and ask her on a date. She got so out of sorts that I wouldn’t leave her alone that she threatened to throw herself off one of the craggy cliffs. When I got back to the States, I’d all but given up, until I saw her in New York. I’d gone to visit some friends and talk about fate. There she was, at the same party I was at, and not at all happy to see me. It was love at first sight for us both.”
Shaun’s story put a temporary smile on Luna’s face. The lightness in her heart from listening to his unbelievable tales eased her worry for all of two minutes until she got in the door of the restaurant and saw the breakfast crowd.
