Chapter 30

The decision about Fireplace Grill was difficult. Wendy liked the place and the people she got to know. So many were regulars who hung out. It wouldn’t be easy to tell them.

She met with Jake and his attorney to discuss the closure, but no final decision about the date was made. They would speak again in a few days, more paperwork needed to be finished. Wendy needed to process what was about to happen. To stop her thoughts for a while she headed to the Cove.

Upon her arrival Wendy watched Cindy as she continued to move around to different tables. Wendy didn’t understand how she could have so much time and energy for the Cove, but it was her life and she seemed to love it. Wendy understood the job made her feel important and she needed to feel wanted just as Wendy did. Wendy remembered it had been several years since Cindy felt cared about the way Brad made her feel cared about. Cindy shared many of their private times together and the smiles and comments he made to her while he was on break. Wendy knew many of Cindy’s prior relationships came and went like passing trains, but not Brad.

An empty stool by the piano bar at five thirty was unusual, and Wendy headed straight for it. The waitress, Julie, came right to her as she sat.

“Your usual, Wendy?”

“I thought I’d try something new, like a Pink Squirrel.”

“Coming right up,” Julie announced as she set off to the bar.

Wendy smiled up at Brad.

“Welcome to the five o’clock hour.”

Wendy put a dollar in his tip jar and requested, First Time I Ever Saw Your Face.

As she looked at him, her mind flashed back to the first time she walked into Hoffman’s and saw Brad’s face. She loved his quips, his smile, his gorgeous voice, and his impressive body. Oh, how she wanted to be with him. She did love him, but in a different way than she loved Elliott. She really couldn’t explain it. She worked so hard to make herself look appealing. Elliott found her desirable so why not Brad? She changed so much since those early days at Hoffman’s. She lost a lot of weight, she wore all new clothes styles, very contemporary, and her hair hung long down her back. She liked how she looked. Apparently, it wasn’t enough, but again, she’d never do anything to hurt Cindy, so it was a moot point.

She erased the thought as Julie set her drink down. Wendy took a quick sip and realized how much she liked the taste. She took a longer drink.

On Brad’s break he came around and talked to her. She was totally taken aback. He rarely talked to her on breaks.

“I was thinking of coming by your nursery tomorrow. I want to get a plant for my sister’s birthday.”

“No problem. I’ll be there from ten to five.”

“Good, thanks,” and off he went to mingle.

Wow. She never even knew he had a sister, but again she knew little about him. She never saw him away from a bar, except Palm Springs, of course. She was anxious to see and interact with him in a different setting.