Here With Me (2 page)

“Well, don’t let me stop you from making any plans.  I’m going to be busy at the hospital all summer,” she said, picking her spoon up again and taking another bite of cereal. “I’m going to be working a lot.  Mom’s not doing great, so she can’t work as much.  I’ve
gotta pick up the slack.”

“I wasn’t saying you’re the only reason I’m staying here.  It’s been a while since I spent a summer in Kennebunkport, that’s all I meant.  But, we could hang out if you have any free time.”

“Of course, definitely,” she agreed.

“I take it you have to work today?” he asked, eyeing her scrubs.

“You’re very insightful.  I’m on until six o’clock and then I’m meeting Mom and Grandma at Mabel’s.”

He nodded and smiled.
“Of course.  How could I forget your dinners at Mabel’s?  Every Sunday like clockwork.”

“Hey, if it’s good enough for the
Bushes, it’s good enough for the Leytons,” she said, referring to the seafood restaurant that President Bush and his family were known to frequent. 

“I’m sure the
Bushes and the Leytons dine together all the time,” he said playfully.

“Oh, we do.  I just choose not to invite you,” Mallory said, standing up and rinsing out her bowl in the sink.

Cole got up and followed suit.  He set his bowl neatly next to hers and then hugged her again.

“Well, I should get going.  I just wanted to come by and see you.  Give me a call when you want to hang out,” he said, releasing his hold.

“I will.  It’s so good to see you.”

“Have a good day at work,” he said, smiling at her once more and then turned and walked out the door.  She watched as he climbed into his black BMW and drove away. 
             

Chapter Two

Her shift in the emergency went by quickly, and fortunately it wasn’t too exciting.  A couple of broken bones and indigestion mistaken for a heart attack, but other than that, it had been an uneventful day. 

Once back home, she changed out of the purple scrubs and into a pair of jeans and a white blouse. 
Pulling the elastic out of her hair, she brushed her fingers through it until it spilled past her shoulders in loose waves.  She touched up her make-up, grabbed her purse, and headed towards Mabel’s.

Pulling into
into the parking lot, she immediately saw her grandmother’s shiny red Cadillac sitting beside her mother’s small black pick-up truck and drove her car into the spot beside theirs.  Once inside the restaurant, she smiled at Cathy, the hostess who had worked at Mabel’s for as long as Mallory could remember, and joined her family at their usual table in the back.

Her grandmother smiled and stood up waving her over to them once they’d made eye contact.  As usual, Grandma Jane was dressed to the T in a red sundress and black cardigan.  Her silver hair was cut into a bob that hung just below her chin and Mallory couldn’t help but think what a fashionable grandmother she had.  Even at the age of 70, she was still as lively as Mallory had always remembered. 
Having been a staple in the Kennebunkport realty scene for the past thirty years, Mallory shuttered to think where her family would be without the help and support of her grandmother throughout the years.

She had
been the one constant in Mallory’s life.  She was always there and always reliable.  Her older sister, Paige, had moved to Connecticut eight years earlier, and even though she only lived three hours away, Mallory rarely saw her sister.  She was too busy living her perfect life in the suburbs to worry about things back in Maine.  Paige had always resented their mother’s lackadaisical attitude and as soon as she could, she had left Kennebunkport.

“How was your shift?” her grandmother asked when Mallory walked
over to the table.

“Uneventful,” Mallory replied
and then turned to her mother. “How are you feeling, Mom?  How was work?”

“It was fine, Mallory.  I told you I was fine this morning,” she said to her daughter, an edge of annoyance in her voice.

“Mallory’s just worried about you, Claire,” Grandma Jane said.

“I know that, Mother, but she doesn’t need to worry.  I’m fine.”

Mallory knew not to pry anymore and began looking through the menu, although she knew it by heart.

“Hey!” an unmistakable
voice rang out. 

Mallory looked up and saw the smiling face of her best friend, Kenna Rounds, standing above them wearing a red apron with the Mabel’s emblem embroidered across the chest.  Her jet black hair was tied back into a ponytail and her bangs wisped across her forehead. 
Kenna’s pale skin was accentuated with white powder and red lipstick and her bright blue eyes were heavily lined with black eyeliner.  Dangly silver earrings hung from her ears and she stood with a pad and pen poised to take their order.  Mallory often wondered how she and Kenna had managed to stay friends considering they were the polar opposites of each other.  While Mallory’s life was structured and predictable, Kenna’s was anything but.  Kenna had barely graduated high school and had worked at Mabel’s since graduating six years before to make a living while she pursued her art career.  Kenna’s paintings were what could only be described as unique.  Mallory wanted to tell her friend she might consider a different vocation, but she also had a feeling Kenna would pull off her dream somehow. 

“Hey,” Mallory said, standing up to give her friend a hug.

“I get off in an hour.  You wanna hang around after dinner and grab a drink across the street?”

It had been a while since they’d hung out and Mallory instantl
y nodded her head in agreement before Kenna took their order.

“The
Bushes came in for lunch today,” Kenna told them when she brought their food out a while later.

“I didn’t know they were town,” Mallory’s mom said as she sprinkled her shrimp scampi with salt.

“Yeah, George Senior and Barbara were here.”

“You act like you’re close personal friends,” Mallory joked.

“Oh, we are,” Kenna laughed. “We go way back.”

“Well, give them my regards,” Grandma Jane said
.

“Let me know if you need anything else and just wait for me at the bar when you’re finished, Mal, okay?”

Mallory nodded as she took a bite of her lobster salad.

“I wonder about t
hat girl sometimes,” her grandmother said skeptically after Kenna had left to check on another table.

“Why?”

“I just do.”

“Well don’t.  She’s my best friend and she’s great,” Mallory said defensively.

“Did you see her hair?  For goodness sakes, she’s 24 years old!  No one’s hair is that black.”

“It’s
harmless, Grandma and I think it suits her.”

“I’m just glad you’ve got your head on straight.”

“So,” Mallory said, changing the subject before she could get more annoyed. “Cole stopped by this morning.”

“Cole?” her mother piped in. “How is Cole?”

“He’s good.  He’s home for the summer.”

“You’ll be spending some time with him then?” her mother asked hopefully.

“Yeah, I guess so.  We
are
friends.”

“I’ve always liked Cole,” Grandma Jane
added.

“I still don’t know why you ever broke things off with him
.”

“Probably because I didn’t love him
, Mom.”

“What’s not to love?  He’s adorable and he’d offer you security for the rest of your life.  That boy’s in love with you, Mal,” her mother continued.

“Then why don’t you date him?”

“Maybe I will.  Is he into cougars?” her mom said with a smile. “I’m just saying he’s a good boy, Mallory.”

“I know he’s a good boy
,
Mom.  But, he’s my friend and that’s all.”

T
he two women across the table were eyeing her suspiciously and she knew deep down they were both determined to see her end up with Cole. 

****

Mallory sat at the bar across the street from Mable’s waiting for Kenna to get off work.  She ordered them each a drink while she waited and Kenna joined her a few minutes later, having taken off the Mabel’s apron and replacing it with a black and white striped tank top and tight jeans.  Her hair was free from the earlier ponytail so her thick black hair hung to the middle of her back. 

“Ah, it feels good to get off my feet,” Kenna said, sitting down and taking a drink.

“I know how you feel,” Mallory agreed, thinking back to her shift at the hospital.

“So what have you been up to stranger?  It’s been a while since we hung out like this.”

“Nothing much.  Just work as usual.”

“How’s your mom doing?”

“She says she’s alright, but you know she never tells me the truth, so I don’t know.  I don’t think she’s doing well.”

“It’s a good thing you’re a nurse so she can’t keep things from you,” Kenna said, taking another drink.

“You’d be surprised at how good she is at it though.”

Mallory took a drink and when she looked up across the bar to the entrance, she noticed two men walking in.  As they got closer, she was surprised when she recognized one of them as the stranger from the beach.  He had changed from his running gear into a pair of loose jeans and a black t-shirt.  His thick brown hair was still tousled on top, but looked more put together than the morning.  He was looking away when he walked in, but then he spotted Mallory.  He watched her quizzically, as if he was trying to place where he knew her from, but then he smiled and she knew he remembered.

“Who’s that?” Kenna whispered to her.

“I met him on the beach this morning.  I don’t know his name.”

“What?”

“I’ll explain later,” Mallory said quickly.

Mallory subtly kept her eyes on the stranger, not wanting to appear too eager.  He was talking back and forth to his friend, and then both of their eyes looked towards Mallory and Kenna.  A few moments later she saw them approaching. 

The other man was tall
and he was older too, probably in his early-thirties.  His light brown hair was cut short and he was lean and muscular. 

“Hey.  You’re the girl from the beach this morning, right?” he asked when he’d made his way over.

“You remembered,” she said smiling at him.

“I never did get your name.”

“Mallory.”

“And I’m Ryan,” he said before continuing. “So
now that the formalities are out of the way, this is where you hang out when you’re not getting attacked by wild dogs?”

“Sometimes,” she said, noticing Kenna was eyeing her strangely.

“Are these taken?” Ryan asked, pointing to the two empty seats next to her.

“No, go ahead,” she answered and Ryan and his friend sat down.

“Hi, I’m Kenna,” she said, never one to wait to be introduced.  She leaned across the bar and waved to Ryan and his friend.

“This is Nate,” he said, gesturing to his friend, who waved, but said nothing.

“So how do you two know each other?” Kenna pressed.

“We saved a runaway dog on the beach this morning,” Mallory answered.

“You didn’t tell me about this, Mal,” Kenna said, suddenly very intrigued.

“Yeah, Mallory was quite the hero,” Ryan began. “I was jogging on the beach when I saw this old lady walking this huge beast of a dog.  It got scared or something and just took off.  I went after the dog, but couldn’t catch it.”

“Then it tackled me to the ground,” Mallory added with a grin.

“Yes, she saved the day.”

“And what are the chances you two would meet up again so soon?” Kenna said, nudging Mallory under the counter.

“We heard this was a good place
to get a drink,” Nate said, finally joining the conversation.

“I
t is,” Kenna said and then suddenly looked at the two men questioningly. “Do I know you guys from somewhere?”

Ryan and Nate looked at each other, both of them raising their eyebrows in confusion.

“I don’t think so,” Ryan answered.

“Yeah… I’ve seen you two before,” she insisted.

“No,” Nate refuted. “Maybe we’ve just got those kinds of faces.”

“No, I’m sure I’ve seen you before,” she said adamantly. “I work across the street at Mabel’s.  Have you been in there?”

“I think you’re mistaken,” Ryan said with an easy smile.

“Give it a rest, Kenna,” Mallory said, looking over to her friend,
silently telling her to shut up with her eyes.

“Maybe I am mistaken,” Kenna said doubtfully, but Mallory could tell by her tone that she wasn’t convinced.

They were quiet for a minute until Ryan and Nate ordered a beer from the bartender.

“So are you guys from around here?”
Kenna finally asked.

“Not hardly
,” Ryan answered. “I’m from Arizona and Nate’s from Tennessee.”

“I thought I detected a sexy southern drawl,” Kenna said, smiling over to Nate and Mallory cringed at
Kenna’s forwardness.

“What brings you to
Kennebunkport?” Mallory asked as she reached down and hit Kenna on the thigh.

“Work,” Ryan answered.

“What do you guys do?” Kenna pried.

“We’re in security,” Nate said.

“And how long will you be in town?” Kenna asked, rising from her seat to sit down in the vacant one next to Nate.  Mallory couldn’t help but think it was turning into a game of 20 questions.

“A while,” Nate answered.

“Oh, so mysterious,” Kenna whispered, raising her eyebrows at Nate, while running a finger from his shoulder to his wrist.  Mallory saw a slight look of panic on Nate’s face as Kenna’s open flirtation continued, and she winced, wishing for once Kenna would show some reserve.

“Anyway,” Mallory said
, trying to reel the conversation back in. “What do you guys think of Maine?”

“It’s nice,” Ryan replied. “We haven’t done much though.”

“Well, we’ll have to fix that,” Kenna piped in. “I was thinking about having a clam bake and tomorrow’s as good a time as any.  You guys should come.”

“
A clam bake?” Ryan asked. “What exactly do you do at a clam bake?”

“Exactly what it sounds like.
  We bake mussels and clams in a fire pit on the beach.  If you’ve never been to one you have to come while you’re in New England.  It’s a must,” Kenna insisted.

“I’m not sure if we can make it tomorrow night,” Nate said
, looking over skeptically at Ryan.