Jack and Ginger (Sacred Heart Coven Book 3) (5 page)

The industrial dishwasher didn't get a lot of use since they didn't serve food. It wasn't really convenient to go back there to wash bar glasses. If they got backed up and there was time, she or Steve would help out the bartenders and load a rack or two into the machine, but that had only happened a few times. Tonight it would get fired up to wash the mead jugs and cups she'd brought with her.
 

For the moment she just put everything on the big stainless prep table. She wanted to check in on her husband and snatch a kiss. It was approaching closing time. If they hadn't called last call, she could help them get the last round of drinks out. The parking lot was pretty packed full of vehicles when she passed it before turning down the access road to the rear of the building so she expected to see a bit of a crowd.

The door to the kitchen, when not left open, swung both ways. It was designed that way so that someone carrying food could easily get though without a struggle like the one she experienced coming in through the backdoor.

She walked out into the "dining room", the kitchen door was right next to the service area at the end of the bar. Even the dining tables that were located around the perimeter of the bar were full of people. She only saw Steve behind the bar ringing up someone's drinks and making change at the register. Jasinda looked around the bar for Ginger and feared that she got scared away or had a break down.

"Hey, girl, how was your party?" Ginger unintentionally snuck up behind her looking to get in behind the bar with a small tray of dirty glassware.
 

Jasinda's heart skipped a half of a beat. "Good, although it wasn't really a party. But it kind of was at the same time." Jasinda was fumbling over her words. "I will explain later. I actually brought you something. I will give it to you later. What can I do to help?"

"Hey, babe. How was your night?" Steve came over and gave her a quick kiss with two mugs of beer in his hands. "Almost last call."

"Ok, I'm here to help." Jasinda shook her head and laughed. "How about I start cleaning up behind you. Looks like you guys have everything under control."

Jasinda helped round up all the dirty glassware in the bar. She figured since she was planning on using the dishwasher she might as well just bring the dirties back to the kitchen to save their hands from having to do anymore by hand. The special bar dish soap and sanitizer did a real number on the skin. When she worked behind the bar for several days in a row, her hands would start to dry out and crack, especially in the winter, they were constantly cracking and bleeding.
 

She noticed the ease in which Steve and Ginger were working together. Maybe the chemistry was because Ginger was older than most of the girls that worked for them. It was hard to tell that it was her first day working there. Ginger did not have that lost look in her eyes that some of their new hires seemed to have when they didn't know what to do next. Some of the girls worked through it and became great employees, while a few others only lasted a shift or two.

When Jasinda finished up the last rack of glasses, she brought them out to the bar. She must have been lost in thought with the whirling of the machine that she didn't realize that the bar had quieted down and was now empty of patrons.
 

"So how was tonight?" Jasinda asked as she placed a rack of pints on the corner of the bar.

"Great. Ginger was awesome," Steve said while he put the chairs up on the tables and the top of the bar. It would make sweeping and mopping the floors a cinch.

"Everything is pretty basic. Your register was super easy to learn and you guys set things up in a way that makes sense. So I didn't have to think about it too much." Ginger put her red hair back into quick knot at the back of her head. "Maybe I got lucky with easy people that were not overly demanding."

"Awesome. So does that mean you would be able to help us out again if we were in a bind?" Jasinda asked her.

"Yeah, whatever you need. I am actually in the process of looking for a new job. I wasn't working when Roger and I were married. I have some money that my father left me and Roger has to pay me alimony, so I want to take my time to make sure I do something that makes me happy."

"Well, if you have the convenience of exploring that option, you are very lucky. If there is anything I can do to help let me know." Jasinda liked what she was hearing. Not that her opinion mattered, but it made her happy none the less to know that her friend was making smart choices and thinking things through.

"Thanks. That means a lot to me. I was unhappy for so long and just accepted it as a way of life. Most people seem like they are unsatisfied in their marriages and jobs. I guess I thought that was just life. I am ready to work on making sure I don't find myself in that kind of a rut again.
 

"I also forgot how much fun working in a bar or restaurant is. When I was in college, I thought that someday, when I retired, I would open a little place."

"Really...why wait, right?" Jasinda said as she stacked up the pint glasses on the shelf under the taps.

"Tonight was a real eye opener. I see how content and happy you and Steve are. You guys never seem stressed. I am sure that not everything is easy or perfect, but, I don't know, you guys just work. I want that. Even if it is not with another person, I want to feel like my life works." Ginger was wiping the same spot on the bar with such a vigor that Jasinda was afraid she might wear off the finish.

"Oh that reminds me, I have something for you. I will be right back." Jasinda disappeared
 
into the kitchen. When she flashed back, Ginger was still wiping down the bar. Jasinda admired that she had an eye for detail, most of the girls wiped it and went on about their business not really checking to make sure things were as tidy as they should be.

"Stop that for a minute." Jasinda put her hand on her arm. She pulled the mug out from behind her back and presented Ginger with it.
 

"Oh. Cool. Wait what is that?" She nervously giggled a little. "I see it is a Chicago Bears mug, and you know I am a diehard Bears fan, but what is that in it?"

"I had a get-together tonight with my sisters. We kind of worked together to make you this. It is a salt scrub. One of the girls is a massage and aromatherapy specialist, she picked out the essential oils. It is made with Himalayan Sea Salt."
 

"I don't know if you know about Himalayan Sea Salt, but it is special because the salt was covered by lava over two hundred million years ago. That is why they say it is richest, purest and most healing salt on the planet."

Ginger unscrewed the jar and sniffed at the contents. Jasinda could smell the sweet floral notes from where she stood. Ginger smiled and sniffed at it again.
 

"I was going to put it in the mug, but I didn't want it to spill. When you get home you can pour it into the mug and leave it in your shower or on the edge of the tub. You can use it on most of your body. I don't know if you have used salt or sugar scrubs before. A lot of people like to use a gentle loofa and others swear the only way is with your hands. I don't think it really matters.
 

"But it will help you to relax and help to cleanse away any toxins that your body is releasing. I know you have been going through some things. I wanted to offer you a little bit of peace, even if it is for five minutes in the shower. Your skin will be soft and smooth all day long, not to mention you will smell good too." Jasinda tilted her head trying to see what was going on with Ginger who seemed like she pushed the pause button on her.
 

Ginger's eyes had stayed on the jar. She didn't look up at Jasinda, and she wasn't usually one to not make eye content. She put her hand on Ginger's shoulder. "Hey..."

"I'm sorry. I don't know what to say. This is so unbelievably thoughtful." Ginger grabbed a cocktail napkin. Jasinda could tell she was holding back, but the reddening was starting to show on the whites of her eyes.

"I finished college and moved here with Roger. Things were so great in the beginning that it never really occurred to me that I wasn't making time for myself. Any free time I got I spent with my father. I was so grateful that he moved out here to be closer to us. He was hoping for grandbabies. Roger told me that I didn't need to work, he made plenty of money and he didn't think that it looked good for his wife to be working.

"I bought into all of it. Look at me, I am rambling on now. What I am trying to say is that you have always been so kind and this just goes above and beyond. I don't have any friends here, and you took the time out of your function to make me something." The tears started to stream down her cheeks. Ginger pressed the rough little napkin at the corners of her eyes. She was clearly still holding back.

Jasinda took the mug from her and stepped forward to embrace her. Ginger practically collapsed into her arms. The tears instantly started to soak through the shoulder of Jasinda's white shirt. Steve made eyes with Jasinda and she gave him the eyes with a little nudge of the head for him to leave. He nodded at her and grabbed the empty dish rack and went back into the kitchen.

Jasinda reached over and grabbed a handful of napkins and held on to them for when Ginger was ready. She didn't want to interrupt Ginger's cry. She clearly needed to let it all go. Jasinda's heart was aching for her and she couldn't imagine the utter loneliness that she must have been experiencing.
 

"I am so sorry..." Ginger started sniveling between her ragged attempts to catch her breath. "I'm so embarrassed."

"It's ok, let it out, honey. It's not healthy for you to hold it in. You don't want that sadness to fester into anger. A broken heart left unattended can turn black and wither away."

"I was stupid..." Ginger's chest heaved up and down. "I thought Roger was the one, I thought he was my everything."

Jasinda handed her the napkins and used her arm to help Ginger around to the outside of the bar. She pulled down two of the stools while Ginger wiped at her wet cheeks.
 

"I messed up. I was lucky to spend the time I did with my dad, but it should have been more. There should have been more of everything. I wasted so many years. I lost so much believing in so little. How could I be so blind?"

Jasinda rubbed Ginger's back as she held her head between her hands. She reached over and pulled the bar caddy closer so Ginger could access the freshly stocked stack of napkins, what she grabbed may not have been enough.
 

"Ginger, I don't know your whole story, but don't play the victim. I know you are stronger than that. You can't blame yourself. You made the best choices that you could at the time.
 

"It is a new day and you have a lifetime ahead of you to craft the life you want to live. You can't change the past, sweetie. All you can do is learn from your experiences to make a better future." Jasinda stood back up. "Don't worry about the rest of the cleaning. Steve can come finish mopping the floors, we are going to have a drink."

"I can help finish cleaning," Ginger said while she was still trying to catch her breath. "And you are totally right about everything. I am ready for some big changes."

"That a girl. I have something special for us to toast with. I will be right back. I have to get it from the kitchen and I need to get Steve out here to finish cleaning for us." Jasinda ran into the kitchen and was back before Ginger could get up to go anywhere.

Ginger was wiping her runny eye makeup off with one of the bar napkins. She added the dirty napkin to the pile of wet ones in front of her.
 

Jasinda had mixed feelings for Ginger's situation. Looking at her swollen face it touched a place inside that she could relate to and it made her want to console her. On the other hand it sounded like she was moving on to a better place, and Jasinda liked to focus on the positive.
 

Jasinda put a dark growler on the bar and pulled out two mason jars from the rack. She poured out the contents filling each glass halfway.

"What is that?" Ginger's sadness was now replaced by a look of trepidation.
 

"This, my darling, is my passion. I make homemade mead, and this is my favorite recipe, Pumpkin Spice." She pushed one glass in front of the pile of dirty tear rags and raised her glass in the air.

"This is to life with an open heart, may you follow yours to a life full of passion and satisfaction." Jasinda smiled at her hoping that it would be contagious.

Ginger lifted her glass to her nose and cautiously smelled the brew. Her eyebrows went up and she nodded her head. A little smile broke through her somber face.

"I will drink to that." Ginger clinked her glass against Jasinda's and took a small sip, followed by another lager one.
 

"Oh, Jasinda... I have never had mead before and this is like a little taste of heavenly fall. I can taste your passion. You should be bottling this and distributing it."

Jasinda laughed, she laughed really loud. She was worried that the spiced cocktail was going to fire out of one of her nostrils.
 

"What? What is so funny?" Ginger asked.

"I don't know. It can't be that good. I mean I love it, but I know its not everyone's cup of tea."

"I don't know booze as much as I know food, even though I did work more years behind the bar than another position at any of the restaurant jobs I have had, but it is really delicious and unique.
 

"I don't know what the legal rules are, but can you sell this here? Do you? You could be doing food pairings. So you make other flavors?" Ginger's mood flipped the switch.
 

"I can serve it here as long as I make it on premises. I never thought to serve it to customers. I usually only make it for family or friend gatherings. And if you didn't notice we don't serve food here."

"Yet." Jasinda didn't even hear Steve come out of the kitchen.

"Yet, it is on our list of things we want to work on. We are not great in the kitchen so we have been hesitant to make that leap. Things are going well right now. We don't want to make any uneducated decisions just because they seem like the right thing to do."