I’ve given the menu a bit of an overhaul, and as a result business is booming. It’s not booming in a way that means my pay is equal to what I was earning before, but at least it’s not minimum wage. And at least I’m still doing what I love. Together, Hazel and I are making ends meet while we plan for our wedding. Life is good. Different…but good. I don’t have any regrets.
“Cillian,” Bran says, slapping his hand against the counter to get my attention. “You’ve got a visitor coming through.”
“Thanks,” I say, looking up just in time to see the door open and Rosalee, the head waitress from Hunt and Gather, entering. “Speak of the devil and she appears.” I smile and she walks up to me, pressing a kiss to my cheek.
“I’m the devil now, am I?” she asks with a laugh.
“Not you. Bran just mentioned Hunt and Gather and then you walk in. Pure coincidence.”
“Not really,” she says, folding her arms across her chest as she leans against the counter beside me. “I actually came here to talk to you about that place. We’re all a bit hurt that you left without saying goodbye.”
“I was understandably pissed on the day I left,” I say, meeting her eyes as I put the next order together. She moves out of the way to give me space.
“Still, six years working together and there’s no phone call, no message, no email.”
“I’m sorry. I know I should’ve made contact by now. I’ve just been run off my feet, busy. Running damage control.”
“So, I’ve heard. Word is, George hasn’t been saying very kind things about you in the industry.”
“Hence, why I’m working here.”
“Well, if it makes you feel any better, Hunt and Gather’s patronage is diminishing whilst yours is rising. The food isn’t as good without the true genius behind it all in the kitchen.”
A smile ticks at the side of my mouth as I slide the plates through the window and hit the bell. “I can’t say I’m unhappy to hear that.”
“Serves him right after what he did to you. For what it’s worth, me and all the staff are on your side. You and Hazel are cute together. We could all see it. He’s just too much of a control freak to break his own rules. But I’ll be sure to make a comment about how busy Kelly’s is within his earshot the next time I’m at work. Let him know his plans to crush you aren’t working.”
Moving onto the next order, I laugh and shake my head. “I don’t want you to do that, Rosalee. He was an ass, sure. But I don’t want to rub anything in. Just… tell him she’s happy, OK? I think he needs to know that.”
“OK,” she says, studying me carefully. “And what about you? Are you happy?”
I pause for a moment and meet her eyes, taking a deep breath before I respond. “I miss work, and I miss you guys. But aye, I’m happy. I have my girl, and as long as I have a kitchen to cook in, I’m a satisfied man.”
“I’m glad.” She smiles. “You deserve happiness, Cillian. And Hazel does, too. Make sure you tell her I said hi. And keep me in mind if you ever decide to fancy this place up and need a head waitress. Not sure how long my job is going to last if things keep declining the way they are.”
“Is it really that bad?” I ask, hating to think that George is letting this feud between him and me affect his business.
She shrugs. “We’ll see. It was good to see you, Cillian.”
“You too,” I say, glancing up as she leaves through the way she came.
The moment she’s gone, a wave of sadness, or maybe disappointment, washes over me. Hunt and Gather was supposed to be about family. It’s supposed to support and represent Boston and all it has to offer in a culinary capacity. It pains me to think of it struggling. And it hurts even more to know that struggle is directly related to my departure. I will never regret choosing Hazel over my job. But that doesn’t mean I want the place to go out of business.
As I move about the kitchen, prepping and plating dish after dish, I come to a decision. At the end of this shift, I’m going to pay a visit to George. Maybe now that he’s had some time to cool down, he might listen to me. For Hazel’s sake, and for his, I hope he does.
Hazel
“Oh, my god. You are just the most amazing man,” I say, smiling as I walk out of the bathroom, twisting my hair into a messy bun on top of my head as I survey the neatly dressed table. Cillian is standing beside it after placing two plates of freshly made waffles and cut strawberries at our seats. There are even fresh flowers in the lager bottle we use as a makeshift vase. I have quite the collection now, Moira keeps finding beers from different locales and giving them to me. Whether I wanted an international beer collection or not, I certainly have one now. Mind you, I think it’s pretty damn adorable. To me it signifies the official start of mine and Cillian’s relationship, and my acceptance into his family.
He holds out my chair. “Only the best for my girl,” he says, pulling me against him and kissing me good morning. And it’s not just a simple peck. It’s a slow, deep, all-consuming kiss that has me wanting to drag him back into the bedroom and skip out on work altogether. But alas, that isn’t a luxury either of us have when we have jobs to get to and bills to pay.
My father made it clear that I needed to grow up for him to treat me like an adult, and now I think I’m about as grown-up as it gets. We’ve even put aside our desire to get married and have a family right away so we can get some money behind us first. It’s not ideal, Cillian and I had some big dreams at the start of this. But, with the way my father has made it difficult for him to get a decent job, all of those dreams need to go on hold. But we are resilient, and we love each other, so there’s nothing we can’t figure out when we put our heads together.
“It smells amazing,” I say, as I inhale the sweet scent and pour some syrup on top. Cillian even pours me a mug of freshly pressed coffee. “You spoil me.”
He smiles before he drops a kiss on the top of my head, then takes the seat across from me. As we eat, we talk about our upcoming day, work, and all the usual things couples talk about. It’s my favorite part of the day. Actually, any time I get to spend with Cillian is my favorite part of the day. He is quite literally my favorite human in the whole world. And I’m so glad I met him.
Quiet falls between us for a moment too long, and intuitively I know something is up. When you’re as connected to someone as Cillian and I are, it’s hard to hide when something is on your mind.
“What aren’t you telling me?” I ask, studying him closely.
He places his fork on the table as he swallows the food in his mouth, taking a sip of orange juice before he brings his gaze back to mine. “I went and spoke to your father yesterday.”
My eyes instantly go wide. “Why? Why would you do that? After everything he’s done, what good would that do?”
“He’s your father, Hazel. And he’s in trouble. Rosalee came to Kelly’s, and she told me Hunt and Gather is struggling.”
“Well, that’s his own fault,” I say, feeling indignant and slightly alarmed. I don’t like that Cillian went to him behind my back when he knows that isn’t something I wanted. The way I see it, my dad blew this up, it’s on him to approach us and make things right. I won’t grovel. “He fired you. He made it so he snatched your livelihood from underneath your feet. My father or not, that kind of behavior deserves a bit of karmic retribution.”