She got up and stretched. She would have loved to have gone to the pool to hang out with the other Queen Bees, but running a business like hers meant dealing with client emergencies. It was the kind of service they paid for, and she was honestly happy to deliver it.
But sometimes it would be nice to be truly retired and able to do what she wanted. She glanced at her phone, wondering if there was any chance they were still at the pool. It had been nearly two hours. Probably not. But worth a text.
You guys still at the pool?
Maybe she’d head to the beach for a bit now that she’d put out all the fires. She stood in the open slider, looking out at the water. Might as well, since she didn’t— Her phone vibrated.
She checked the screen.
Essie had responded.Still here! Come join us if you can! Cabana 12
A cabana? That was so cool. With a big grin, Maude answered.On my way!
She threw on a bikini with a tank top and cut-off denim shorts, grabbed her beach bag, her hat, phone, and sunglasses, then locked up. She drove faster than usual, but golf carts weren’t exactly speedy to begin with.
For some reason, she was super excited to hang out with everyone. Maybe it was the thrill of being included. Didn’t hurt that Essie, or someone, had hooked them up with a cabana. That wasn’t in Maude’s budget, but she’d eyed them up longingly more than a few times.
It was nice having friends with money, but it made her think about the equality of it. She couldn’t exactly reciprocate, but there had to be something she could do. She’d think about it. Something was bound to come to her.
She walked through the pool complex, reading the numbers on the cabanas. She heard Essie’s laugh before she found the right number. She followed the sound to Cabana 12. “Hi, guys!”
“Maude!” All three waved as they shouted to her in greeting.
A handsome, stocky man with salt-and-pepper hair and a phone pressed to his ear stepped out of the cabana. That had to be Essie’s husband, Frank. He gave a little wave, too, then stood with one hand on his hip as he went back to his conversation. The big watch on his wrist caught the sun.
“This is so fancy,” Maude said as she joined them, pulling another lounge chair over from the next grouping. She positioned it next to Essie and sat down to lean in. “I’m assuming the man in the cabana is your husband?”
Essie laughed. “Yep, that’s him.”
“He’s cute.”
Essie laughed harder. “He’ll be thrilled to hear that. Speaking of cute, have you seen Dr. Ollie lately?”
“Maybe tonight,” Maude answered. Ollie’s job as a cardiologist at the local hospital kept him pretty busy. As much as Maude loved spending time with him, she didn’t want to come off as needy, so she was letting him set the pace.
“Tell him we said hi,” Blaise said.
“Will do. I didn’t think you guys would still be here.” Maude pushed her sunglasses onto the top of her head. “I would havecome sooner but…” She shrugged. “Never install a plugin on your website unless you’re sure it doesn’t contain malware. Just saying.”
Paige let out a little snort. “Can anyone translate that into English?”
Frank ended his phone call and joined them. He stuck his hand out and smiled. “You must be Maude.”
She stood up again to shake his hand. “I am. You must be Frank. It’s really nice to meet you.”
“You, too. Essie was telling me you do something with computers?”
Maude nodded. “Website design and maintenance.”
“Outstanding. You have a card on you?”
“Um, no, sorry.” It had never even occurred to her to bring a business card. “But I’ll give one to Essie next time I see her.”
“Great.” His phone buzzed. He glanced at it. “I’ve got to take this, sorry.” He answered the call as he walked back into the shade of the cabana. “Luigi, good to hear from you.”
Essie shook her head. “They just opened a branch in Italy and there’s a lot going on.”
“I can imagine.” Actually, Maude couldn’t. She didn’t have a clue what that would entail.
