More Than a Mission - Caridad Pineiro [8]
From the shore just past her cottage, she could see the mile or more to where fisherman harvested mussels from the pilings of an ancient stone bridge. The Romans had built the bridge centuries earlier to join Leonia to the smaller seaside town of Tiberia across the narrowest part of the harbor. She served those fresh mussels every day in a garlic-and-white-wine-infused broth. Her parents used to sell them in the fish shop they had owned at the time of their deaths.
She could understand why her sister, Dani, found it so hard to be in Leonia. Everywhere she went there were reminders of their parents.
Elizabeth continued walking along the shore, the bag filled with her purchases dragging at her arm. Memories dragging at her heart as she recalled her mother, father and Dani strolling together along the beach. At times, she felt totally alone with all of them gone. Forcing such thoughts away on what had started out as a delightful day, she trudged onward, trying to enjoy the warmth of the sun and the caress of an ocean breeze sweeping along the coast.
At the beach behind her cottage, she detoured up a rocky path until she was at the edge of the back patio to the restaurant. She paused but a moment to appreciate all that she had built with her hard work. Then she was striding across the yard and to a side door by the vegetable garden. As she neared the entrance, the sounds of activity welcomed her. Walking into the kitchen, she greeted Natalie, her friend and sous chef, who inclined her head in the direction of the front of the restaurant. “Someone’s up there for you. Says he’s the new bartender.”
Elizabeth placed her bag on a prep table and shook a cramp out of one arm. “If you could unpack, I’ll see what he needs.”
Elizabeth walked to the bar tucked into a far corner at the front of the restaurant. The driving rhythm of the B-52s’ “Love Shack” greeted her—Aidan had a boombox on the polished surface of the mahogany bar and was rocking along, his arms and hips moving to the beat. She couldn’t help admiring his grace and the sexy shift of his body to the music. It reminded her of her earlier observation that exotic dancer might well have been his previous employment.
When he realized he had been caught in mid–hip grind, he stopped dead. “In honor of the day you hired me,” he explained, but quickly added, “It’s not too loud, is it?” Hot color rode on his defined cheeks as he crammed his fingertips into those tight jeans’ pockets and shot her an embarrassed grin.
“Not at all. It’s just a little different from our usual musical fare,” she said and motioned to the sound system tucked onto a low shelf behind the bar.
With a quick look at the stereo, Aidan shrugged. “Didn’t want to mess with anything until I was familiar with things. It’s okay that I came early to get acquainted, right?”
Getting acquainted, huh? Elizabeth told herself not to read too much into his choice of words. He was, after all, someone who would eventually leave, and getting acquainted with him could cause nothing but problems. “Feel free to familiarize yourself with the liquor stock and other supplies. The music selection is generally a bit more sedate. When you’re ready, I’ll show you the wine cellar.”
Great, Aidan thought. A wine cellar meant another list with which he would have to deal. In his ear, Lucia advised, “I’m on it. Make sure to bring home copies of the wine list and menu.”
“I’ll let you know when I’m ready for the wines,” he said to Elizabeth, and then continued. “In the meantime, I’ll see if we’re low on anything.” After he finished, he examined Elizabeth’s face, trying to gauge whether she had overheard Lucia. There was nothing there but interest of a different kind.
Or at least that’s what his guy radar was telling him. He hoped it wasn’t wrong because it might make the task of getting close to the Sparrow that much easier, although he was a little disconcerted about how someone supposedly