Dirty

She raised her brows in question.

“But while I was going over the figures, I went over the figures.”

With a groan, she shook her head. “I’m tired, Lydia. What do you want to say?”

I sat forward, hiding my trembling hands beneath the table. “Last night, Eric offered me a month’s trial managing the restaurant floor section. I trust you’re in agreement about that?”

“Of course.”

“And Pat still wants to sell his third of the business?”

Her lips tightened, pain flitting across her face before being determinedly smoothed away. “Very much so.”

“Okay.”

“Lydia, tell me you’re saying what I think you’re saying.”

“I’d like to do the month’s trial with a view to purchasing Pat’s share of the business at the end of that time, if we’re all in agreement that we can work together long-term.”

Nell’s smile was beatific. “You do?”

“Yes. I know this probably seems sudden, but the idea has been growing in the back of my mind for the last few days. Which still sounds sudden.”

She said nothing.

“Anyway, I want to do something I like for a change, sell products I believe in, and I think the Dive Bar could be that opportunity for me.” I didn’t know what to do with myself. Jump around the room or hide in a corner. Both were viable options. “I realize it’s a lot of money, a big commitment, but this feels right to me. I think I’d regret it if I didn’t give it a try.”

“But you definitely have the money?”

“I will in a couple of days, yes.”

Curiosity lit her eyes. “A couple of days?”

“Between you and me?”

“Of course.” No hesitation. One of my favorite qualities about Nell was her plainspokenness.

“I have a legal settlement coming through from the Delaneys.”

“Okay,” said Nell. “It is a bit sudden, but you saw the figures. You’ve worked here, you’ve seen how much local people like the place. We’re not relying on seasonal trade to the same degree as others. This is going to be awesome.”

“I hope so.” I tried to bite back a smile; it didn’t quite work.

“I know so.” Nell’s gaze dropped to her lap, fingers fidgeting. “In the interest of full disclosure … I have some news to tell you. No one else knows about this just yet as I only found out this morning. So I’d appreciate you keeping it to yourself for now.”

“Of course.”

“I’m pregnant.”

My mouth hung open, my eyes feeling bigger than the moon.

“That was pretty much my reaction too.” She gave me a grim smile. “It’s Eric’s. So, yeah. Not exactly planned. Not even remotely.”

“Congratulations?” I asked quietly.

Her smile improved. “Thank you. I always wanted kids. I thought they’d be with Pat, but things change, right?”

“Right. And I think you’ll make a great mom. No one will dare mess with your kid.”

“I do know how to throw knives,” she said. “The benefit to knowing this early is we can plan how to handle things business-wise. I don’t expect to take too much time off and Boyd can run the kitchen almost as well as me. We’ll get another cook trained up along with an assistant. That way I can be back after the baby on reduced hours. It also lets Boyd go to more sci-fi conventions. So it’ll work out for everyone.”

“Okay.”

“Please don’t let this scare you off. I swear it won’t impact in any big or bad ways on the rest of the business.”

I pondered it for a minute. “The fact is, each of us will go through periods when we need to pull back a little, focus on other things. That’s life.”

“Yeah.”

“How are you feeling?” I asked.

“Terrified. Excited. More terrified.”

“Me too. And I’m not even having a baby.”

Nell picked up her juice again, picking at the label. “I’m really glad you’re staying. I lost a lot of my friends in the divorce, so it’s good to make some new ones. I know they say not to go into business with friends. But honestly, if you’re going to work that closely with people, trust them with your money and your name, I’d rather have friends. The thing is, they need to be friends that you can talk to. Complete honesty.”

“I agree.” I straightened my shoulders, putting on my brave face.