don’t often have anyone to talk to behind the bar here. Well, there are plentywho come in to chat, but it’s not personal, like. Some days it’s so dull I watch the American shows on the telly.”
“I know what you mean. Listen, I told your father that the first thing I wanted to do was give this place a good cleaning. Maybe he thinks it’s not important, but I refuse to work in a filthy dump. Are you okay with that?”
“Of course. I’d’ve done it myself, but I didn’t know where to start, it’s that bad. What’s your plan?”
“I’m starting with a sandwich. Let me eat my lunch, and then we can dig in. Can you hand me a Coke? And do I have to keep a record of what I eat or drink?” Usually in Boston no one had cared if the bar staff helped themselves, as long as it wasn’t the expensive stuff, but she wanted to start off on the right foot here.
“Sure, go ahead, and don’t worry about it. Just tell me what to do with the cleaning bit,” Rose said cheerfully.
“I’ll take the toilets. I wouldn’t ask anyone else to do something even I hate to do.”
“You’ll hear no complaints from me,” Rose said, smiling.
Chapter 10
T hree hours later Maura declared herself finished. No customer had even poked a head in, and Maura didn’t know if she was worried or relieved. She wouldn’t call the bathrooms clean, exactly, but they were substantially less filthy than they had been when she started. They were also stocked with paper towels and toilet paper, although she’d exhausted the pitiful supply she’d found. She’d have to tell Jimmy to order more. And some more lightbulbs.
She washed her hands one last time, noting the poor water pressure. Was that due to the plumbing? For that matter, how old was the plumbing—or the building? From what she’d seen around here, construction styles in the village hadn’t changed much in a century or so, which made it hard to tell. Rose had scrubbed the top of the bar, and Maura could see the grain of the wood for the first time. A quickglance around the room told her that Rose had been diligent while Maura had been busy in the back; most of the surfaces gleamed, and the windows sparkled.
“Great job, Rose! This place looks a whole lot better,” Maura said sincerely.
“All I did was clean the tops a bit—I saved the floor to tackle later.”
“I’ll bet your father will be impressed.”
Rose waved a hand dismissively. “Ah, he wouldn’t notice. My ma showed me how to clean, and I’ve been keeping our place up since she…passed.”
“I’m sorry—has it been long?”
“Going on two years.” Rose swallowed. “I miss her still. My da tells me you never knew your own mother?”
“No,” Maura said without elaborating. She’d already told that story more often in the last day then she’d done in years. She turned the conversation back to Rose. “So, do you have any brothers and sisters?”
Rose shook her head. “No, there’s only me. And yourself?”
“Same here. I don’t know how Gran would have coped if there’d been more than me.”
The door opened, and Maura was surprised to see two twenty-something men shamble in. One nodded to a table in the back corner and headed in that direction; the other came over to the bar and said, “Two pints,” then turned away to join his friend.
“Friendly sorts,” Maura said in a low voice. Most people she’d served so far had at least greeted her, and they often chatted while waiting for their pints to settle. “Local?”
Rose studied them briefly. “I don’t know them.” Whenthe pints were ready, she took them over to the men, who looked up and nodded without smiling. When she came back to the bar, she changed the subject. She reached under the bar and pulled out a pile of letters, pushing them toward Maura. “I found these under the bar here while I was cleaning up. Should I give them to Da?”
Maura sorted through them. Mostly bills—presumably those should go to Jimmy or
“I know what you mean. Listen, I told your father that the first thing I wanted to do was give this place a good cleaning. Maybe he thinks it’s not important, but I refuse to work in a filthy dump. Are you okay with that?”
“Of course. I’d’ve done it myself, but I didn’t know where to start, it’s that bad. What’s your plan?”
“I’m starting with a sandwich. Let me eat my lunch, and then we can dig in. Can you hand me a Coke? And do I have to keep a record of what I eat or drink?” Usually in Boston no one had cared if the bar staff helped themselves, as long as it wasn’t the expensive stuff, but she wanted to start off on the right foot here.
“Sure, go ahead, and don’t worry about it. Just tell me what to do with the cleaning bit,” Rose said cheerfully.
“I’ll take the toilets. I wouldn’t ask anyone else to do something even I hate to do.”
“You’ll hear no complaints from me,” Rose said, smiling.
Chapter 10
T hree hours later Maura declared herself finished. No customer had even poked a head in, and Maura didn’t know if she was worried or relieved. She wouldn’t call the bathrooms clean, exactly, but they were substantially less filthy than they had been when she started. They were also stocked with paper towels and toilet paper, although she’d exhausted the pitiful supply she’d found. She’d have to tell Jimmy to order more. And some more lightbulbs.
She washed her hands one last time, noting the poor water pressure. Was that due to the plumbing? For that matter, how old was the plumbing—or the building? From what she’d seen around here, construction styles in the village hadn’t changed much in a century or so, which made it hard to tell. Rose had scrubbed the top of the bar, and Maura could see the grain of the wood for the first time. A quickglance around the room told her that Rose had been diligent while Maura had been busy in the back; most of the surfaces gleamed, and the windows sparkled.
“Great job, Rose! This place looks a whole lot better,” Maura said sincerely.
“All I did was clean the tops a bit—I saved the floor to tackle later.”
“I’ll bet your father will be impressed.”
Rose waved a hand dismissively. “Ah, he wouldn’t notice. My ma showed me how to clean, and I’ve been keeping our place up since she…passed.”
“I’m sorry—has it been long?”
“Going on two years.” Rose swallowed. “I miss her still. My da tells me you never knew your own mother?”
“No,” Maura said without elaborating. She’d already told that story more often in the last day then she’d done in years. She turned the conversation back to Rose. “So, do you have any brothers and sisters?”
Rose shook her head. “No, there’s only me. And yourself?”
“Same here. I don’t know how Gran would have coped if there’d been more than me.”
The door opened, and Maura was surprised to see two twenty-something men shamble in. One nodded to a table in the back corner and headed in that direction; the other came over to the bar and said, “Two pints,” then turned away to join his friend.
“Friendly sorts,” Maura said in a low voice. Most people she’d served so far had at least greeted her, and they often chatted while waiting for their pints to settle. “Local?”
Rose studied them briefly. “I don’t know them.” Whenthe pints were ready, she took them over to the men, who looked up and nodded without smiling. When she came back to the bar, she changed the subject. She reached under the bar and pulled out a pile of letters, pushing them toward Maura. “I found these under the bar here while I was cleaning up. Should I give them to Da?”
Maura sorted through them. Mostly bills—presumably those should go to Jimmy or
Similar Books
