all light and music. Love can be frightening, if you’re not ready for it.”
“No thanks. I’ll pass.” Maxie took another bite. “Besides, who’s in love? Not Sarah and Dr. Defective, please.”
“Max!” Sarah shouted and threw a dirty wet dishtowel at her sister’s head while Grace choked back laughter unsuccessfully. Max seemed to inspire a lot of thrown objects. Sarah gave her a dirty look for laughing, and struck back below the belt. “Tyler’s in love with Grace.”
“Holy—” Max cut herself off with a glance at her mother, whose face clearly forbade cursing in the kitchen “—cow. Really?”
“No, not really,” Grace answered firmly. “He just thought he might be. But now he isn’t.”
“What?”
“Don’t look at me like you’re the one who’s confused.” She was finished with the cocktail straws and slammed the box back onto the shelf. “You’re not the one he’s saying all this nonsense to.”
Max scrunched her face up and was silent for a moment. A moment that didn’t last.
“So you’re not in love with him?”
“I can’t be.” The answer was automatic. She could feel the other women in the room watching her speculatively. She didn’t notice when she repeated her answer.
“Can, can’t. Should, shouldn’t. That isn’t the question.” Susannah had come out from behind the prep counter to stand by Grace. Now she laid a hand on Grace’s arm, as if to hold her in place. “My son, whatever he says, cares about you. The question is, how much do you care about him?”
Her vision blurred as the tears rose and she pressed her lips together. If she didn’t answer, then none of it was true. She could retain some small hold on her sanity if she simply didn’t answer the question. She felt Susannah’s hand grip her arm tightly for a moment, comforting her.
“Such a sad girl.” The older woman’s hand brushed softly against her hair before dropping to her shoulder and patting gently. “I’m afraid you’ll hurt my boy very badly.”
Grace shook her head. I don’t want to hurt anybody, she wanted to cry out. I’m just trying to find my way out of all these disasters. She tilted her head back and blinked rapidly until the tears dried. She wouldn’t break down in front of these women, no matter how kind they were. When she stood straight again, Max and Sarah had moved off to another part of the kitchen. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Smiled like brittle glass and said to Susannah, “Everything will be fine.”
A moment. Then Susannah nodded in understanding and sighed herself, before physically shaking off the mood with her whole body. “So, maybe it’s better this way. You won’t fall in love with him. He will not fall in love with you. There are still limes that need to be squeezed for pie. Come help me, and you can have the first piece.”
“Hey!” Maxie’s shout from the dish room was outraged.
And with that, the Saturday night shift at Tyler’s began, all the women working smoothly together as if in agreement that nothing more need be said about preshift matters. When Grace wiped down the menus in preparation for the dinner rush and noticed that at some time during the day, Tyler had reprinted the paper inserts to include the two vegetarian dishes she’d suggested earlier, she managed to feel only an employee’s pride at making a contribution.
When she called out her first drink order of the night at the bar and Tyler smiled and teased her like a sister, she told herself she was glad he could move on. They both could.
She was even able to laugh with everyone else at the bar when a heavily made-up blonde performed impromptu karaoke, singing along with Ella Fitzgerald on “Let’s Do It” and gesturing boldly at Tyler.
Birds do it, bees do it,
Even educated fleas do it,
Let’s do it, let’s fall in love.
“I need a Heineken, two Lites and a diet, please,” Grace called from the wait station at the end of the song. She shoved
“No thanks. I’ll pass.” Maxie took another bite. “Besides, who’s in love? Not Sarah and Dr. Defective, please.”
“Max!” Sarah shouted and threw a dirty wet dishtowel at her sister’s head while Grace choked back laughter unsuccessfully. Max seemed to inspire a lot of thrown objects. Sarah gave her a dirty look for laughing, and struck back below the belt. “Tyler’s in love with Grace.”
“Holy—” Max cut herself off with a glance at her mother, whose face clearly forbade cursing in the kitchen “—cow. Really?”
“No, not really,” Grace answered firmly. “He just thought he might be. But now he isn’t.”
“What?”
“Don’t look at me like you’re the one who’s confused.” She was finished with the cocktail straws and slammed the box back onto the shelf. “You’re not the one he’s saying all this nonsense to.”
Max scrunched her face up and was silent for a moment. A moment that didn’t last.
“So you’re not in love with him?”
“I can’t be.” The answer was automatic. She could feel the other women in the room watching her speculatively. She didn’t notice when she repeated her answer.
“Can, can’t. Should, shouldn’t. That isn’t the question.” Susannah had come out from behind the prep counter to stand by Grace. Now she laid a hand on Grace’s arm, as if to hold her in place. “My son, whatever he says, cares about you. The question is, how much do you care about him?”
Her vision blurred as the tears rose and she pressed her lips together. If she didn’t answer, then none of it was true. She could retain some small hold on her sanity if she simply didn’t answer the question. She felt Susannah’s hand grip her arm tightly for a moment, comforting her.
“Such a sad girl.” The older woman’s hand brushed softly against her hair before dropping to her shoulder and patting gently. “I’m afraid you’ll hurt my boy very badly.”
Grace shook her head. I don’t want to hurt anybody, she wanted to cry out. I’m just trying to find my way out of all these disasters. She tilted her head back and blinked rapidly until the tears dried. She wouldn’t break down in front of these women, no matter how kind they were. When she stood straight again, Max and Sarah had moved off to another part of the kitchen. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Smiled like brittle glass and said to Susannah, “Everything will be fine.”
A moment. Then Susannah nodded in understanding and sighed herself, before physically shaking off the mood with her whole body. “So, maybe it’s better this way. You won’t fall in love with him. He will not fall in love with you. There are still limes that need to be squeezed for pie. Come help me, and you can have the first piece.”
“Hey!” Maxie’s shout from the dish room was outraged.
And with that, the Saturday night shift at Tyler’s began, all the women working smoothly together as if in agreement that nothing more need be said about preshift matters. When Grace wiped down the menus in preparation for the dinner rush and noticed that at some time during the day, Tyler had reprinted the paper inserts to include the two vegetarian dishes she’d suggested earlier, she managed to feel only an employee’s pride at making a contribution.
When she called out her first drink order of the night at the bar and Tyler smiled and teased her like a sister, she told herself she was glad he could move on. They both could.
She was even able to laugh with everyone else at the bar when a heavily made-up blonde performed impromptu karaoke, singing along with Ella Fitzgerald on “Let’s Do It” and gesturing boldly at Tyler.
Birds do it, bees do it,
Even educated fleas do it,
Let’s do it, let’s fall in love.
“I need a Heineken, two Lites and a diet, please,” Grace called from the wait station at the end of the song. She shoved
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