"You've been doing a great job Joey," Martha praises her.
"I've only done a couple of shifts."
"I know, but the customers love you so you must be doing something right."
"Well thanks again for giving me a chance."
"Georgie, I told you to watch where you were going." Charlie's voice draws Joey and Martha's attention to the door.
"Georgie!" Martha rushes over to her girlfriend when she notices her limping more than usual.
"I'm ok Martha and I was watching where I was going Charlie, it was that idiot on the skateboard who wasn't watching where he was going." She winces slightly as she takes a seat.
"What the hell happened?" Martha demands, kneeling by Georgie's chair.
"I just stepped from the car when some idiot slammed into me." She rubs her leg. "It had to be my bloody good leg too."
"I hope you got him."
Georgie glares at Aden and Charlie. "No, he slipped through their fingers."
"Once he was on the board, he was far too quick," admits Aden. "I'm Aden by the way," he introduces himself to Martha.
"Martha. Did you see who it was?"
"I didn't see his face, but I'm betting it was Stu. That little bastard is always knocking people off their feet with that damn board of his," fumes Georgie. "Bloody Rosetta will probably use this against me," she mutters.
"Maybe you should get your leg checked out," suggests Martha.
"It's actually not so bad now," says Georgie. "Really, it's ok, though it's going to bruise. I'm actually more pissed off than anything."
"This is the second time in a matter of weeks Georgie that you've been injured," Martha says worriedly. "I've already lost Jack and we nearly lost you too, I couldn't go through all of that again."
"I'm just having a run of bad luck, that's all." She takes Martha's hand, squeezing it reassuringly. "And it's not because I'm a cop. I could easily have slipped or been knocked over even if I wasn't a cop."
"Yeah I know, I just hate seeing you hurt."
"Believe me, I hate it too." She rubs her leg again.
Martha brushes her lips over Georgie's and stands up. "I guess I better feed you lot." She glances at Aden who was hovering at Joey's side. "Seeing as you're new, I was going to give you your first meal at a discount, but I'm not sure if you've earned it after letting him get away."
Aden grins, "I ran really hard after him."
"He did," Charlie backs him up. "For all of 100m."
"By then I realised I wasn't going to catch him."
"What do you think Georgie?" Martha refers to her girlfriend.
Georgie thinks it over for a moment. "I suppose it's not his fault he runs like a girl and couldn't catch him, but at least he tried."
Joey slaps him on the back, "See, I'm not the only one who thinks you run like a girl."
Aden shakes his head, muttering, "Women."
"I think you've earned a discount," Martha concedes. "Not for your failed attempt to apprehend a hit-run-skateboarder, but for putting up with these two," she points to Charlie and Georgie.
"Thanks," Aden says.
"Martha, why don't you sit with Georgie, I can take the orders," Joey offers.
"Thanks Joey."
After taking their orders to the cook, Joey moves back behind the bar. "So barkeep, what's the goss?" Aden asks cheekily.
"I heard a detective met an untimely end when he pissed someone off."
Aden grins. "Bet he was a handsome guy, loved by all."
"He certainly loved himself, that's for sure." Joey sets the juice he didn't ask for down in front of him. "I hope Georgie's going to be ok," Joey says to Charlie when she joins them at the bar.
"She's as tough as nails."
"So what have you guys been up to this morning?" asks Joey.
"I've been familiarising myself with the case and trying to come up with likely suspects."
"Yeah, apparently we're looking for some guy," Charlie says dryly.
"I'll keep my eye out for him then," says Joey with a grin. "Charlie, don't take any shit from Aden and if he becomes an insufferable know-it-all, just come to me and I'll tell you all the things he's totally clueless about."
Charlie glances between the two, seeing again the easy way they were with each other. "I might take you up on that."
"That goes both ways," Aden warns Joey. "I can dish up the dirt as much as you can."
"Aden, you wouldn't do that, you're like a brother to me."
"Want a bet little sister?"
"You're only a month older than me Aden so enough of the little sister remarks."
Aden notices the look Charlie was giving them. "When I said Joey's been my best friend since we were kids, I left out the part where my mum worked as a housekeeper for her family and when dad died, Mrs Collins invited us to live in a little cottage on the grounds, so Joey and I pretty much grew up together under the same roof."
"And ever since, he's always used his seniority to try to lord it over me."
"Not very successfully, I might add but at least you always treated me like an equal, unlike Angie who saw me as the housekeeper's son and treated me as such."
"He wasn't that bad," Joey says, feeling the need to defend her husband.
"He hardly made me feel welcome and he's always resented our closeness, especially now that he has you."
Knowing Aden was right, Joey says nothing. At that moment, Charlie's phone goes. "Excuse me."
Aden notes with interest the way Joey's eyes followed Charlie when she stepped away from them. Not that he could blame Joey, Charlie was a beautiful woman, but he couldn't shake this feeling he'd had since he arrived at the station, that there was something he was missing.
"Sorry about that," Charlie says when she rejoins them. "It was just my sister saying she was going to be studying at a friend's place tonight."
"You have a sister and she actually studies?" jokes Aden.
"I'm sure study could mean something else, but Ruby's a good kid and I trust her."
"How old is she?"
"17."
"Ah," Aden grins at Joey. "I remember Joey at that age."
"And I remember you at that age so keep your mouth shut."
"Or what?"
Joey leans forward.
"At least it looks like the awkwardness is gone," notes Martha when Charlie laughs at something Joey said.
"You don't find it odd that just like that, they're all joking and easy with each other?"
"Maybe Charlie really is just moving on."
"As long as they keep it at just friends, I'll stay out of it, but I'm the one who has to work with both Charlie and Angelo, so if she and Joey hook up, it's going to affect us all."
"Joey won't betray her marriage vows and Charlie loves her job, she'd never do anything to risk it, so just relax Georgie."
"You're right."
More laughter drags their attention back to the bar.
"You're a natural at this job Joey," Charlie says. "You've made me feel as if the customer is definitely always right."
"It's my job to please," she grins at Charlie, who grins back.
Charlie glances over to the toilets where Aden had just disappeared to. "Does he know about us?"
"I haven't told him but he knows me so well, it wouldn't surprise me if he figures it out." Joey reaches over and squeezes Charlie's hand. "He won't say anything or think any less of you." Realising she was still holding Charlie's hand, she pulls her own back quickly.
Charlie stares at her empty hand, already missing the contact. "He wouldn't find it strange you were with me the eve of your wedding?"
"Nah, he already thinks I'm strange. Charlie, everything is going to be fine."
After their meals were over, Martha stood with her hands on her girlfriend's hips. "I want you to take it easy this afternoon," Martha tells Georgie, much to her embarrassment.
"Martha, I'm not even limping. See." She walks over to the bar and back to prove her point. "Well no more than usual."
"It's ok Martha, I'll make sure she doesn't do too much," Charlie assures her, her lips twitching at the glare of annoyance her cousin was sending her way.
"Would you two give it a rest, I'm perfectly fine."
"Oh I don't know about that, I've always found you to be a little odd," a voice comes from behind them.
"Belle!" Georgie stares in surprise at the young woman before pulling her into a big hug. "Irene said you were coming back," she says as she steps back. "I just wasn't expecting it to be so soon."
"One of the journos at the Coastal News quit unexpectedly so the editor asked me to start early."
"Well I'm glad you're back."
"Me too." Her eyes move over to Aden. "I see we have a couple of new faces."
"This is Det. Jeffries and Joey's the new Sergeant's wife, Aden, Joey, this is my sister Belle."
"A detective, huh?" Belle enquires as she shakes Aden's hand.
"That's right."
"What are you investigating?"
"I'm here to investigate a series of fires."
"Really, then I guess we may be seeing a lot of each other then, at least in a professional capacity."
"Wonderful," Georgie mutters. "I was forgetting how inquisitive and annoying journos were."
"No worse than cops," Belle fires back. "Hey Martha," she gives her a hug. "As usual, you need a reward for putting up with Const. Grumpy."
Chuckling, Martha returns her hug. "It's good to have you back Belle."
Noticing Aden's rather smitten look, Joey leans over, whispering into Aden's ear. "I've heard Georgie is so protective of her family, she eats anyone who so much as looks at them wrong."
"Huh?"
Joey rolls her eyes at his obliviousness. "It was nice knowing you Aden."
"It must be nice to have your cousin back," Aden says to Charlie, his eyes firmly on Belle.
"Ah, well, Belle's not exactly my cousin."
Aden glances between Charlie and Georgie and then back to Belle. "But you're sisters."
"Belle's my foster sister."
"But we've been family for years, so we tend to drop the foster part," Belle finishes.
"Oh right."
"It's still a death wish," Joey whispers to him.
"Shut up Joey," he whispers back.
"So, any suspects for the fires?" Belle asks.
"Time to go," says Georgie, giving Martha a quick kiss goodbye.
"I take it that means no inside scoop from my sister or her colleagues?"
"Good guess."
"Oh well, it was worth a try."
"You staying with Irene?"
"Yep, back in my own room."
"I'll catch up with you later then."
"Hey detective," Belle calls out to Aden when the trio starts to leave. "I'll be seeing you."
Georgie groans at Aden's expression. "She is so going to chew you up and spit you out," she warns him.
"Yeah, but what a way to go."
Charlie glances over to Joey who offers her a warm smile. "Aden, I should warn you, dating Belle means dating Georgie." She quickly dodges out of the way of Georgie's errant elbow.
"Belle can date whoever she likes," Georgie says. "But anyone who hurts her, answers to me."
"Point taken," says Aden.
"You also might want to remember that she's a journo now," Charlie adds.
"She wouldn't use me just to get a story, would she?"
Georgie and Charlie smile at each other behind his back. "Probably," Charlie says at the same time Georgie says, "Wouldn't put it past her."
"Maybe I should stay away."
"Good idea," agrees Charlie.
"Very good idea," adds Georgie.
Arriving home to an empty house, Charlie pours a wine and flops down onto the couch. They'd spent the afternoon compiling a list of potential suspects, which seemed to include just about every male in Summer Bay and the surrounding area and it was going to take some time to work their way through the list and cross off names. It was unnerving to think that one of those men, most of whom she'd known her entire life, could be the arsonist they were looking for.
Sipping her wine, she puts her feet up and closes her eyes, her mind drifting to Joey. While she was still disappointed that nothing could happen between them, it had felt so good to be able to talk to Joey in such an easy manner and she was glad they were able to move past their previous awkwardness. She smiles as the image of Joey in a bikini comes to mind. It was probably a bad idea to think of a friend like that, but she couldn't help herself; Joey in a bikini sent her heart racing and she doubted that would change any time soon. "Face it Charlie, it's probably going to be a long time before you can look at Joey in a bikini and not want to tear it off her and have your way with her," she murmurs to herself, before letting her imagination run wild.