Chapter Five Hundred and Eighty Four
It was lunch time and the restaurant was bustling. Joey was happy, not to mention relieved to see that despite The Pizza Oven opening up practically next door, her regulars and the tourists coming to visit the Bay, were still pouring in. They still wanted her food and they still wanted the experience of eating and drinking in the restaurant she had put her heart and soul into.
She popped out of the restaurant, where she had been cooking pretty much all morning. She loved working front of house and talking to people but cooking and creating food had been the whole point of all this. That was her first love (apart from Charlie). She loved being able to step in there and take control of the kitchen. It felt like art.
Romeo, Scott and Claire were all serving hungry and thirsty customers. Romeo was not smiling. He would be terrible for profit if he wasn't so attractive but thankfully his constant bad mood just meant that he had the whole brooding thing going on, which was attracting people to him, rather than turning them away – at least those that didn't know him, anyway. He was currently annoyed because he had asked for more hours, having quit school and she had had to break it to him that she had none to give. In contrast, she didn't think she had ever seen Scott in a bad mood. He was a constant ray of sunshine and was definitely bringing Claire out of herself. Evidently, she and Hannah had been on a double date with him and Blake last night and from all the exclamations she had been hearing since, it had gone very well.
"Joey?"
She turned to see Elijah hovering nearby, looking a little sheepish. She hadn't seen him since the night he had been drinking heavily and he had stormed out of the bar when she had refused to serve him.
"Hi, Elijah," she said warmly. "How are you?"
"Embarrassed," he admitted. "And I just wanted to apologise for my appalling behaviour the other night."
Joey beamed at him and patted him on his broad shoulder.
"Hey," she said. "We all have a bad day every now and again."
Ruby and Casey had opted to take their packed lunches to the beach in order to spend some alone time together.
"It was weird that April and Dex weren't in class today," Ruby mused, sitting down on the sand.
Casey nodded. He didn't know April very well. She seemed like quite a closed person. But he did like Dex a lot. And it was strange for him not to be at school.
"Maybe they're sick," he said.
"Both of them?" Ruby said, her eyebrows raised suggestively.
"Oh!" Casey said, catching on.
Ruby laughed, commenting that Xavier would have a fit if his ex-girlfriend ended up with Dex.
"Why?"
"He's not the coolest kid in school."
"He's probably the nicest though," Casey pointed out.
Ruby nodded and agreed.
"Hey, um… my Mum's having like a family gathering type thing on Sunday," Casey said a little awkwardly. "You know, just some food, some drinks, that sort of thing. She asked me to ask you."
"I'd love to come!" Ruby agreed, thrilled.
"And… your parents."
Ruby froze.
"My parents?" she asked. "We're at parents meeting parents stage?"
"Yeah… well, I mean, I doubt they'll want to come but… but they're invited. I know Joey doesn't like my brothers but Brax has promised that nobody will step out of line and…"
"I'll ask them," Ruby promised. "Thank you."
She kissed him.
Charlie and Watson had just arrived at Buckton's' for their usual lunch time visit when Leah arrived, hoping to swap some notes for change.
"Sure, no problem," Joey said, opening the till.
"Hey, you haven't seen Elijah recently, have you?" Leah asked all of them, hopefully.
"I saw him about an hour ago," Joey confirmed.
Leah's heart surged as she asked if he was okay. At first, she had been avoiding him and since then, he had been avoiding her.
"He's okay," she said. "Not amazing but okay. He's taken a job at the homeless shelter. He's there now, I think."
Leah accepted both the change and the information gratefully. She passed Bianca on her way out. The teacher threw herself onto a chair. Watson glanced at Charlie.
"I love these therapy sessions you bring me to," she remarked.
Charlie laughed and asked Bianca what was going on.
"April… Liam… I mean, I'm just sick of them both," she said. "If I wasn't working this afternoon, I'd be downing shots by now."
Joey presented her with a shot of orange juice. Chuckling, Bianca downed it.
"You're the best, Jo," she said happily. "Thank you."
"Things aren't improved with Liam?" Joey asked.
"It's like he's a different person," she complained. "And I've changed my whole life for a teenager who doesn't even want to know me. I'm trying so hard to talk to her, to help her and she doesn't want to know. She's just shutting me out completely. It's so damn hard."
Elijah was in the office of the shelter when Leah arrived. He was more than surprised to see her and not thrilled.
"Look," she said, getting right to the point. "Can we just draw a line under everything please?"
He paused, considering his options. He was grief stricken over Thabo and full of regret over Grace. He missed Leah terribly and had so much regret over the last few months. He sighed heavily.
"Yes please," he eventually said.
Ruby found her parents at home when she finished school.
"Great!" she said enthusiastically. "You're both home."
Charlie and Joey exchanged suspicious glances.
"Hey, it's nothing bad!" she assured them. "It's just that… well, Casey's Mum is having a family gathering on Sunday and… well, she wondered if we three would like to come."
Charlie and Joey exchanged deeply uncomfortable glances. Joey sat down on the arm of the chair that Charlie was already sitting in. She looked back at Charlie, wondering what to say.
"Well, don't answer all at once!" Ruby said, trying not to feel irritated.
"Well, um… it's lovely to be invited but…" Charlie said.
"It's just…" Joey tried.
Ruby sighed heavily and sat on the sofa. She hung her head.
"It's okay," she said sadly. "I get it. Case gets it too. He didn't think you'd feel comfortable. I just said I'd ask you – in case you might."
Both women felt bad.
"He said that Brax had promised that everyone would be on their best behaviour – even Heath. And you wouldn't have to talk to anyone you didn't want to – again, like Heath."
She thanked them again and went into her room. Joey sank into Charlie's lap.
"Well, now I feel terrible!" Joey said.
"Hey, it's okay. The last place she expects you to go is to the Braxton house!" Charlie said kindly, wrapping her arms around her.
Joey snuggled up to her, resting her head on her shoulder and kissing he neck.
"I know but she was so disappointed," she said. "Did you see her sad little face?"
Charlie nodded. She had seen her face.
"I mean, maybe I could try?" she said. "For Ruby? And for Casey? If this is the real deal then our families are going to be tied together forever."
"I mean, I doubt they're going to be together for the rest of their lives, Joey. They're in high school…" Charlie scoffed.
Joey looked a little stern.
"Probably not," she said. "But we've promised to treat them like they are."
Charlie nodded and kissed her.
"So, are you saying yes to the Braxton family?" she asked.
"I mean, if you think so?"
Charlie sighed. The last place on earth she wanted to be was eating and drinking with Cheryl, Daryl and Heath Braxton – personally or professionally – but Joey was right. They needed to do it for the sake of the kids.
"If you think you'll feel comfortable enough," she said. "Let's go for it."
They called Ruby back into the room. She ran in like an excited child on Christmas Day.
"What time is this family gathering?" Charlie asked.
"One o'clock," she said.
"We'll be there."
Next time… Claire is preoccupied, Ruby and her friends make a big mistake, things spiral out of control…
