Page 49
“You sound stressed,” Nuala commented as she carried a bowl of soup over to the table and set it down. I was starving after my sea swim and immediately dug in. She carried another bowl over for herself and sat. “Is everything going okay at the new hotel?”
“The usual hiccups, but we’re still on track to reopen next month. There’s a little trouble with the head chef. We’re going to have to let him go, and I’m not looking forward to breaking the news.”
Nuala’s expression turned sympathetic. “Oh, no. Why are you letting him go?”
“Moira says he’s not up to standard and might never be. It happens. The sort of food he’s used to making is nothing like what we serve. The trouble is, he’s a popular character with the rest of the staff. Oh, and the manager is his sister-in-law. Letting him go could cause a rift, and merging our people with the legacy staff has already been a bit of a struggle.”
“The manager is his sister-in-law?” Nuala asked, her delicate shoulders stiffening slightly. “Is that the pretty one with the great hair?”
She was more than pretty, in my opinion, but I didn’t correct my sister. “Yes, Rinnie is her name.”
Nuala stared at her soup, moving the spoon around in the bowl but not eating any. “Have you spoken to her much?”
“A little, why?”
“Did she ever mention me?”
“You? No, why would she mention you?”
“Oh, no reason. We just talked a little at Derek’s wedding.”
That was right. Rinnie had mentioned she’d spoken with Nuala. Something in my sister’s tone caught my attention as I asked, “What did you two talk about?”
She shrugged. “Just this and that.”
Okay, why was my sister acting so weird and evasive? Did she know something I didn’t? I’d still been unable to shake the feeling of familiarity that I got from Rinnie. “Do you know her from somewhere? Like, did you ever meet her before the wedding?”
Nuala frowned. “No. Why do you ask?”
“Not sure. I just feel like I know her, but we’ve never met. Or least, I don’t recall ever meeting her.”
“That’s strange. Did you ask her about it?”
“Yes. I asked her at the wedding.” When I also asked her to go out for a drink with me and she declined. My ego had taken a bruising that day, for sure. “She said we never met.”
“Then you must not have. She probably just reminds you of someone, and you can’t think of who it is.”
“You’re probably right. But enough about me. What’s going on with you?”
“Well,” Nuala began, a small smile pulling at her lips. “I just found out the other day that Principal Morris is retiring next year, which means the position will be open.”
“That’s great. Are you going to apply for it?”
She nodded enthusiastically. “They’re accepting applications from in-house as well as outside ones, but Principal Morris gave me her seal of approval.”
“Of course, she did. You’re a shoe in.”
“Thanks, Tristan. You always believe in me,” Nuala said before letting out a sigh. “The only trouble is that Eric De la Barre has put himself forward, too.”
“Is that the new teacher you said everyone loves?”
“Yes, the wonder boy, or, well, wonder man. Some of his students just placed first in this really prestigious science competition, and the parents never stop singing his praises. I just don’t see myself being selected over him.”
“Hey, it takes a different sort of temperament to be a principal. They could decide you’re the better fit. You never know.”
“Maybe,” Nuala allowed, though she didn’t sound very convinced.
We talked some more before I headed home for the evening. I lived in an apartment only a short drive from Nuala’s place, but I hadn’t been home in a couple days. Instead, I’d been staying in a room at the Astor Cove because it saved time on the commute. I had a couple of things to catch up on and opened my email to find Rinnie had responded to my message.
