Stubborn Hearts

CHAPTER FOUR

“Looks like someone had a good night’s sleep,” Marge teased Marcus as soon as he entered the café. She was putting up the centerpieces and condiments on the table. She was in her late 40’s though she did not look like one, and it was hard to tell that she had two grown up kids already.

“Morning Marge,” he greeted, then went to the back room to put his jacket. He passed by the kitchen where he found Danny on the grill while his assistant cooks Greg and Lo were cleaning pans and chopping spices and veggies.

Danny grinned upon seeing him. “You’re early. Why?” He joked while he continued with his work. Danny was in charge with the menus daily and made sure the townspeople would always leave satisfied and go back in hungry and craving. That had kept the business going for almost 7 years now.

“I dreamed of you crying because we were out of cilantro,” he answered, and Danny laughed. He went to the counter to get the list of supplies they had to restock.

“Yeah, you better keep sacks of it in stock as it’s a key to my integrity,” Danny called out, still laughing.

It had always been easy and cool everyday, like this. Danny and Marge started out small but eventually, the business picked up after two to three years. They used to have a room out back with their kids, but when they expanded the place, which now could accommodate 15 tables from five, they settled in a simple yet comfortable apartment just across the street.

When he arrived in town, he had been a regular in the diner. Besides the food, the place had a soft vibe in it and the crowd was just friendly – in fact, almost everyone he met. That was when he knew this was the place for him. He needed a fresh start, where nobody cared who he was.

After a few months, he got to mingle with quite a lot of people. As he needed some investment, he offered some capital when he heard that they were planning to renovate the kitchen and upscale the equipment. Danny and Marge, the kind and trusting people they were, accepted his offer and they became partners.

The place opened at eight thirty in the morning but the people would start coming in around nine. They operated until 7pm to still cater for diners who were just out from work or for those regulars who would drop by for take outs.

On weekdays, he would normally man the counter and would take orders from their two hired servers. Sometimes, he would go behind the cash register if Marge had some paperwork to finish – pretty much about accounting and stuff that he and Danny would rather not trouble themselves with.

On Saturdays like this, he would be the official truck boy to pick up supplies from the market to restock for the following week.

Taking out the list, he was ready to start his task for the day.

“I see fruit jam and tarts in the list. Hmmm, weird.” He noted, talking out loud to intentionally get Marge’s attention.

“Ah, yes!” Marge seemed pleased that she wrote those down. “Make sure you drop by at Nancy’s bakeshop. She asked me if I was okay to display her honey-strawberry jam and carrot tarts here for advertising. They’re her new products and she wants to do some sampling, see if it sells well.”

He knew what she was up to. “Okay, sure. I’ll pick them up on my way back.”

“Great. She’s looking forward to it I bet.” She threw him a knowing look and winked.

Shaking his head, he got out of the diner and headed for his truck. Marge had been playing cupid between him and Nancy for quite a while now. Nancy’s bakeshop was situated a few blocks from the market and she had always known Danny and Marge. It was a small town, and everybody knew everybody.

Nancy would usually pop up in the café once or twice a week for dinner. And Marge would take that opportunity to get them together.

Nancy was a beautiful woman and she was fun to be around with. They would talk about her business while she asked for his gigs. They had gone out for some strolls and drives around town, but she never had struck him as more than a good friend.

He was just not interested or, for that matter, not ready to be attached to anybody on an intimate level, especially now that he was anticipating a slight shake in his supposed normal life.

KASSIE WAS BACK IN THE cottage after two hours. Though the wind still has a spike of the last hints of winter, the sun was already a bit high up, with its warmth slowly mixing with the breeze. Besides, she still had to call Mrs. Arving.

The woman’s voice came up on the other line after two rings.

“Oh, Kassie, hi! I’m glad you called up,” greeted Mrs. Arving, still as cheerful as always. “I hope you settled okay?”

She smiled before answering. “Hi, Mrs. Arving! Yes, it’s been great, thank you.” She recalled the very first day she arrived and the moose guy. She decided to drop it for now as it was way too early for that conversation. “How have you been? I heard there was an emergency. Is everything okay?” She asked, sincerely concerned.

“Oh dear, nothing that should make you worry,” she assured. “My daughter and son-in-law need to be in Boston for a week-long business trip and the nanny’s not available, so they called me up. Really sorry for the sudden change of plans. I read your message late and forgot to call since I got pretty occupied with the grandkids,” she added and chuckled.

“That’s totally okay. Family’s first,” she answered. “And I’m already here anyway, so that’s cool. I just love your place. It’s so gorgeous!” She blurted out with the same intensity of admiration she had the first time she laid eyes on it.

“I’m truly happy that you love it,” she said. “And you met Marcus? I asked him to wait for you and give you a quick look on things inside and around the cabin.”

All right. Moose guy has a name now.

Marcus. Seemed quite fitting.

Trying to dismiss the memory of their unpleasant meeting, she would just pretend it all went fine so as not to further escalate the situation.

“Yes, I met him. I arrived quite late, so we never got the chance for the tour.”

“Oh, I see. Maybe one of these days when you’d like to check out some spots in the area, just let him know. He lives in the other cottage, if I had not mentioned.”

“Goodne---,” she was about to say but managed to recover. “Good thing, that’s uhmm…great to know. I’ll take note of that.” She was still processing the idea – they were basically neighbors! Not that she despised him…well okay, sort of…quite. Maybe she just caught him in a bad mood.

“Alright. I’ll make sure he sees to it. He’s a good man and he knows quite a lot of people in town. And since you are staying for quite a while, it’s best if you make some new friends.” Mrs. Arving was so encouraging, and she knew that she meant it.

Maybe she would give it a try. “Okay. I guess that’s going to be motivational somehow. I hope?” she answered, now smiling.

She could imagine her smiling too on the other line. “I bet it is.”

“Uhm, by the way, is it true that sometimes moose visits houses, like the cottages around specifically?” She asked before she could forget. Some sort of assurance or confirmation? Nevertheless, it had to be brought up.

She heard a hearty laugh. “Oh my, I suppose Marcus told you that?”

“Yes, he did. He kind of put it as a reminder,” she confirmed.

“Well, moose rarely goes to that area. They are normally roaming the other side of the forest where people are prohibited to enter. It was their sanctuary and the town made sure they are kept away safe from people’s harm.”

Kassie felt relief after hearing this. Now, she could explore the other areas of the woods without worrying of any wild animal just showing up out of nowhere.

And most importantly, Marcus was just fooling around with her. For what? Because he had to stay and wait for him, which happened to spoil his date?

That was a bit ridiculous but she’d let it pass. No harm done.

“Well, that’s comforting, thanks. I really like it here and I plan to explore the woods a bit longer if I have time.” She planned just that.

“Oh, you should. I’m sure Marcus was just making fun of you. He is like that sometimes. I’m sorry if that bothered your head,” Mrs. Arving was just taking it lightly though she sounded sincere in her apology.

“Not really. Well, just a little bit,” she confessed and chuckled.

“Alright then, I leave you to what you should be doing by now. I had to check on what these kids might be up to. They seem to be awfully quiet. Call me anytime if you need anything, okay?” She was in her grandmotherly tone which made her miss her parents.

“Okay, sure. Thanks for the time. Bye.”

“Bye.”

Phone call done. She decided to make a list of things to do and places to visit this week. Maybe check downtown first? Maybe today she could pay a visit?

She liked the idea. Time to make new friends.