Hope
One more thing, she needed one more thing. They’d have fish from a charter fishing company on Lake Huron, they’d have first of the season cucumbers as the side dish, and Braylon had come up with a great idea on an elevated strawberry shortcake.
They were all working non-stop, but Hope was having the time of her life. The staff worked hard too, and it felt like they were coming together as a team.
One week before the official opening day, JulyFourth, they were doing to a test run. They’d prepped what they could, the staff all planned to be there for their first full shifts, and the restaurant would be filled with friends and family.
The plan was to iron out kinks in the kitchen and with service, on a friendly audience. Hope planned to do everything that day exactly as she would if they were actually open.
She tried to sleep in a little, not too much, but a little.
Her days would soon be a whirlwind on the four days she was open. She estimated she’d be at the restaurant long after the last dish was washed.
Still, she was too excited to sleep past eight. It was a sunny day in late June. This was a full-on busy season on Lake Manitou. From the sound of outboard motors on the water outside she could here that she was by no means the first one up.
The music of birdsong also filtered through the open windows in the little cottage. She got up and decided to immediately put her bathing suit on. What was the point of living on this lovely lake if not to take a swim first thing?
She wrapped a beach towel around her waist, padded out to the end of the dock, and looked around. Later, there’d be pontoon boats, speed boats, and jet skis motoring by, but at this hour, all she spied were a few fishermen quietly jockeying for spots to find the day’s score.
One fisherman was close enough to trigger the lake wave greeting.
The lake wave: If you know, you know, Hope thought, with a smile on her face.
The fishermen returned their focus to their quarry. Hope braced herself for the water.
“No time to dawdle. Let’s get moving.”
She jumped in. Her body sank down to the sandy bottom, and she was awake! From toes to forehead, she was awake. It was faster than coffee!
She swam to the surface. It took her ten minutes to swim to the dock, two cottages over, and ten minutes back. It was the perfect way to gently move her body and warm her muscles. But it was also her mediation, her focus. She cleared her mind. She knew she’d be making decisions all day, new ones, and familiar ones. But for twenty minutes, there were no decisions, just peace as she focused on each stroke. She reached her arms out long, and she kicked her legs in time with her arms. Over and over, this was her meditation.
She was ready.
Hope returned to her dock, a little winded but alive, awake, and excited to take on her day. As she climbed out, there was her towel, ready and waiting to be wrapped around her body by her neighbor and erstwhile bodyguard.
Greg held open the beach towel, and Hope stepped inside. She grabbed the ends and wrapped herself up. Greg stepped back.
“That’s some high-end concierge service for a tiny cottage rental.”
“I do what I can.”
“Thank you.”
“You’re having a huge day. I wanted to wish you luck.”
Greg had stepped in when Archie was at his most Archie. She wasn’t in any danger, and the entire thing was so embarrassing, but also it made her feel something new about her neighbor. He was a flirt, a little bit of a pain in the neck, but ultimately, he seemed to have interest in her that might go beyond neighborly.
That said, he’d never crossed the line, made her feel rushed or uncomfortable. She was in the midst of a divorce, starting a new business, and in limbo in many ways. Greg was a possible part of her future, but he hadn’t complicated anything. He’d just made it all a bit sweeter.
“I want to show you something,” he said as she toweled off.
“I may be naïve in a lot of ways, but that’s a line I’d tell my girls to pass on.”
“You’ve got the dirty mind, not me.”
“What then?”
“It’s right here, on the other side of my cottage. Check it out.”
