Chapter Thirty-Two: Catalyst
NICOLETTE stood behind the podium at Harry’s, idly waiting for customers. Wednesdays were often slower, but this Wednesday there had been an unexpected rush of business just after she’d arrived. Chris had insisted that it was summer bringing a slight uptick in tourist traffic coupled with longer daylight hours.
Seems like a reasonable explanation, she thought with a mental shrug. She didn’t mind the extra business; she found shifts with long periods of idle waiting to be tortuous, forcing her to keep busy with odd jobs or risk going insane with boredom. She sighed as she briefly scanned the restaurant, checking to see if anything was amiss. Seeing nothing, she leaned on her elbows, her mind drifting back over the long, busy day while she waited. Wednesday was the busiest day of her week, starting at 4am so she could arrive on time for the opening shift at Coffee Beach. It wasn’t the busiest shift, but after several weeks she was starting to get regulars -- ‘Erica’ to most of them, ‘Angel’ to a small knowing handful.
Almost immediately after her shift at Coffee Beach, she hustled over to the shelter, spending her afternoon with animals until it was time to hustle back, so she could shower and change for Harry’s. It would be nice to drop one of her jobs, but she was determined to save as much money as she could for the next step in her plan…and having just finished three and a half years at the CIW, she wasn’t ready to give up her privacy and look for roommates to move in with. Besides, she thought with another sigh, holding down all three jobs filled her time, leaving her little time or energy to think about (Daniel) everything else that was going on. The weekend had been a whirlwind -- maybe more like a tornado, she thought ruefully -- and she felt as though she was still picking up the pieces.
She flexed her hands unconsciously, wondering if she needed the bandages at this point. She had expected to feel her injuries -- the antenna and Racer’s bite -- for several days to come, but they both seemed to be healing much more quickly than she’d expected. At least the white lace gauntlets she was wearing as an accent to her dress partially concealed the bandages on her hands.
She straightened quickly as the door opened, admitting Mr. Genaro and Mrs. Shah -- regulars that worked a small law practice nearby. Pooja smiled warmly as they greeted her. Nicolette was surprised when Mr. Genaro grudgingly smiled as well. Their upbeat mood cleared her gloom enough to pique her interest, “You guys seem really happy! Did something good happen?”
Mr. Genaro grinned as he scooted into the booth, “We received news from one the affairs that we’ve been working on.”
Pooja laughed, “It’ll bring a little more money into the business, that’s for sure. We can’t really talk about it yet, but...” She shrugged apologetically, but nevertheless Nicolette felt her spirits lift. Nicolette suspected they’d started eating there more frequently after Nicolette took the job as hostess -- she knew they were sometimes prickly, and she went out of her way to make sure they were happy. She led them to a booth in Dana's section -- Dana never seemed to get rattled, even when Mr. Genaro was in an especially difficult mood.
She turned, heading back to the bar to put in their drink orders, simultaneously flagging down one of the servers so they’d know she’d seated “The Lawyers”.
She rounded the podium on her way to the bar and froze.
Tommy sat with his back to the bar, arms stretched out to either side, his red ball cap standing out with its white embroidered eagle. He was the epitome of indolent nonchalance, relaxing on a barstool with his legs stretched out in front of him, crossed at the ankles. He was expressionless, but the moment they made eye contact, a small smile touched his lips. Without breaking eye-contact, he casually leaned to one side and picked up the drink sitting on the bar behind him, his hand unerringly finding the glass of amber colored liquid.
Nicolette frowned in puzzlement as he raised his glass to her before taking a sip. Her heart gave a little skip as she glanced up and down the bar, instinctively looking for Dane or Daniel. When it became clear that neither of them had joined Tommy, her heart sank with disappointment. She struggled against the sudden hope that maybe Tommy was there to deliver a message from Daniel.
As though he wouldn’t just text it himself!, she thought, annoyed.
“Tommy. How are you?” She tried to sound welcoming and enthusiastic, but could only summon a wan smile.
Tommy was unfazed by her lack of enthusiasm, his smile widening, “Nicolette.” He nodded at her solemnly, then lapsed into silence.
Feeling distinctly uncomfortable, Nicolette resisted the urge to start filing the silence. After a long moment, she finally broke down, asking, “Soo. What brings you here? I don’t see Dane or...”
She couldn’t bring herself to finish the sentence.
His grin widened as he nodded at her, “Speak with you, actually.”
She took an involuntary step backward, surprised, “Me? What for?”
His smile became more pronounced as he nodded toward the front of the restaurant where a group of locals had entered, “Customers.”
She shot him an irritated glare, then headed to the podium, pausing just long enough to give The Lawyers’ drink order to Chris.