Mandy dropped the kids off at school the next morning and as she turned onto Main Street and toward the restaurant, her phone rang. She smiled as she answered the call.
“Hi, Matt.”
“Good morning.” His rich, deep voice was one of the first things she’d noticed about him. He stopped smoking years ago, but there was still a slight rasp. “Did you by chance hear me out on the water last night? We were out late fishing and on our way in, we passed by and I flashed my lights and tooted the horn. I didn’t want to call you, as it was late, around ten.”
She laughed. “I did see a boat out there, but I didn’t make the connection that it was you. How did you do?”
“Not a single bite, but I expected that. Fish are mostly gone. It was a fun time, though. I hadn’t seen Kevin in a while, so it was good to have a few beers and catch up. I’m checking in to see if we’re still on for dinner tonight?”
“Yes, definitely. Cory has the kids, and I’m looking forward to it.” Mandy loved her children, but also valued her quiet time with Matt. They were both so busy that she only saw him once or twice a week.
“Great, I’ll come by around seven, and we’ll see what we’re in the mood for. Maybe The Gaslight?” It was one of their favorite restaurants.
Mandy was still smiling as she ended the call and pulled up to Mimi’s Place. Things were going well with Matt. They’d started dating recently as he’d been coming into the restaurant regularly with friends for dinner or even sometimes by himself after work and usually ate at the bar. They’d chatted often when it was slow, and Matt knew she was going through a divorce. While she’d sensed some interest from him many months ago, she’d also made it clear that she wasn’t ready to date.
It wasn’t until after her sister Jill’s wedding in August that Mandy suddenly noticed Matt in a different way. And she finally felt ready. Unlike her ex-husband, Cory, who never had a stretch where he wasn’t dating. Even though Mandy had asked for the divorce, it still hurt, for a long time, when she’d see him out and about with someone new. And the women he dated seemed to get younger and younger. The most recent one, Hannah, was only twenty-three years old. Cory was quite proud of that, according to what Mandy heard from some of their mutual friends. They all thought he was an idiot and that Hannah was likely only interested in his money.
Mandy supposed there was some truth to that, but Cory was a good-looking guy, too. He was fit and vain, and he still had really good hair. Mandy sighed. She didn’t miss Cory as much as she missed what they once had. At one time, they were a close-knit, happy family and she’d loved chatting with him about his work over dinner. But, those days were gone.
Since she’d started dating Matt, she’d discovered that it was nice to have someone ask how her day was for a change. There was always something to talk about with Mimi’s Place and she enjoyed hearing about Matt’s work too with his boat business. He was easy to talk to and to laugh with. So far, things were going really well. Sometimes she worried that it almost seemed too easy.
Both Emma and Jill had suggested that she date other people. They liked Matt but were wary of her getting too serious too fast. She understood their concern, but there hadn’t been anyone else she’d been interested in dating. She assured them that they were taking things slow and were both just really enjoying each other’s company. She wasn’t looking for anything to change.
It was early still when she walked into Mimi’s Place, and no one else was there yet, except for Paul. He was in the kitchen taking inventory before placing a bigger-than-usual order. Their business was way up over prior years, and they expected that this year’s stroll weekend would be even bigger than last year. She and Emma and Paul had been planning for months to make sure the weekend was a success.
Paul had really outdone himself with some new menu items, and a special wine dinner was scheduled for the Thursday before the stroll officially kicked off on Friday. The wine dinner had been Emma’s idea and Mandy immediately loved it. Paul was a little hesitant at first but came around when they reminded him he’d have free rein to go bigger and wilder with the menu, if that’s where his ideas took him. His first suggestion was to reach out to the Charles Krug winery, which was one of his and Emma’s favorites to see if they’d like to partner and suggest some wines for his menu.
Mandy’s contribution was to put some dinner packages together once Paul decided on a prix fixe menu they’d offer for that weekend. It would be one price for a four-course meal, with a choice of appetizer, salad, entree and dessert and an optional wine add-on. She made flyers, both paper and digital and sent them to all the local hotels and bed and breakfasts.
As a result, they had a healthy amount of reservations booked throughout the weekend, and she was confident that they’d have more walk-ins than usual because the foot traffic along Main Street would be heavy with people strolling along, admiring all the creative holiday window displays and eventually working up an appetite.
She’d been sad thinking that she wouldn’t be able to join the crowds this year. The Nantucket Stroll was always one of her favorite events, and she and the children had a long-standing tradition of putting on their new winter hats and mittens and heading out on Saturday afternoon to explore the downtown area and soak up the Christmas experience. It was magnified when snow was in the forecast and the first few flakes swirled around them.
Their favorite part of the day was when Santa arrived on the Coast Guard Cutter. He walked down the wharf and was then driven to the Jared Coffin House where the kids would wait in line to sit on his lap. They were too big for that now, but they still liked to see Santa arrive, and they loved walking around town, shopping a little and trying the various free samples that were offered by different stores.
Mandy was glad that Emma had insisted that she still go this year. She was going to have the kids stay with Cory for the entire weekend and skip the festivities, but Emma and Jill assured her they could do without her for a few hours on Saturday afternoon. So, the kids would still be with Cory, but he had agreed to bring them by in the morning and collect them before she needed to head into the restaurant later that afternoon.
Mandy said hello to Paul, then went into her office, settled behind her desk and opened up her computer and checkbook. Every Monday, she went through their bills and paid them. She was just finishing up the last one, for the electric company when she glanced out the window and felt a thrill at the sight of snowflakes dancing and twirling in the air. It was only the second time they’d seen snow that year. The first had been a brief dusting a few days before Thanksgiving. She checked the weather forecast on her phone and saw that no significant snowfall was expected. The weather was predicted to be cold and mostly clear for the rest of the week with possible flurries again over the weekend. In short, perfect Nantucket Stroll weather.
She collected the stack of stamped envelopes and told Paul she was running to the Post Office. It was just a short walk away, down by the wharf on Federal St. The snow was still flurrying a little, and it put Mandy in a festive, holiday mood on a Monday which was usually their quietest day. On the way back to the restaurant, she stopped into the Corner Table cafe to grab a coffee and got one for Emma and Paul too.