Page 9 of Keeping it Local

“Just don’t go falling for her and expect her to stick around—not going to happen. And make sure she doesn’t fall for you either. That’s the last thing you need. Or me, for that matter. Because when she leaves after the summer, I’m going to be the one listening to your whining.”

“Don’t worry. There’s no way that would happen.”

Chapter 5

Beth

After getting the first couple of weeks under me at the rental shop, I was starting to get into it. Megan had hooked me up with the owner, Mary, and she was thrilled to have a direct reference for an assistant manager for the summer. Luckily, I didn’t need to know much about the boats since the shop’s handyman, Ted, would come every morning and do his rounds, along with getting everything set up. He’d give the basics of driving and navigating to the renters, and all I had to do was give them the keys. Mostly, anyway.

On the bike side of things, we had a corral out back that had rows of different sizes and types—everything from little kids bikes with training wheels to a couple tandem bicycles. The shop itself was tiny though. It was a glorified booth without much space to walk around, which made it that much better that I had a wide view of the marina every morning when I came in.

I’d lived in Michigan my entire life but never lived on the water, or even close to it. The small farming community I grew up in was at least thirty miles inland, surrounded by fields, wind turbines, and century old wooden barns. We weren’t one of those big farms. Instead, we focused on smaller operations—lots of farmer’s markets and a few key vendors. Here, it was a completely different vibe. The wind was always blowing, and I enjoyed watching the sunrise with my coffee when I started early enough to catch it. I had even started running every morning along the lake before classes or working. It was something I’d always wanted to do but never given myself the space to. When coming here, I’d vowed to focus on myself and that’s exactly what I was trying to do.

It seemed like everyone was in a better mood here. Maybe because it was a vacation town, or maybe because it was on the water. I couldn’t put my finger on it. It just felt good. I was surprised how quickly I was getting on with everyone in Port St. Clair and how much I was enjoying my busy schedule.

Ted and Mary had been out on the docks for a while that morning tinkering on things when they walked back in some kind of back-and-forth argument that I couldn’t hear the details of. Just then, I heard the backdoor slam.

“That Ted,” Mary said. “He drives me nuts.”

“Anything I can do to help?”

“Yup. Put your sign up. You’re going to be learning a little more about the business than I anticipated. One of the other shops had one employee already quit for the summer, and I need to have Ted drive up to help until I find a replacement or two. I need more of a buffer.” She ran her hand through her hair. She owned three rental shops up the coast, and this was her prime season. “But that means you’re going to have to start doing the walk-throughs in the mornings more often.”

“Okay.” I placed my Be Back in 10 sign on the counter. “What did Ted do, though?”

“He just likes to get cheeky with me. Something I really don’t have time for.”

“Oh.” I couldn’t help give her half a smile as she huffed off. I’d seen them spat back and forth multiple times since starting, but I knew deep down they liked each other.

“That man.” She paused. “Come on. Let’s go.”

I followed her through the rows of boats. She moved so quickly, keeping up with her was more challenging. She zig-zagged in and out of the slips until she suddenly stopped at one of the tritoons.

“You’re going to get a crash course today,” she said. “Pull out your phone and take notes.”

She proceeded to give me a quick, yet surprisingly in-depth, crash course about how each of the boats started and operated.

“Whatever you do, make sure you get them to sign the waiver and the rules.” She put her hands on her hips. “Last year, I had a bachelorette party that had a wild ride. When I came back out to check the boat the next morning, the entire pontoon was sunk to the ground. I had to call a tow boat to pull it out. Total shitshow.”

My mouth fell open.

“Yeah, so make sure they sign, and make sure they know where to go. Some of these people shouldn’t be renting boats at all, but what can you do?” She continued on like it was normal. “Luckily, we don’t get into too many issues though. Any questions?” Mary stopped talking and looked at me.

“Nope. All good.”

“It will be. It won’t be just us this summer, but we’re down a set of hands. Once you get the hang of it, you’ll be good.” She patted me on the back, and I followed her in.

“We’ve got it,” I said. “I know this is different from what I did back home, but I’m used to having to pull my weight to figure things out on the fly.”

“That’s actually one of the big reasons I hired you. Outside of Megan’s glowing review, that is.” She laughed, shaking her head. “No one can say no to that woman. She’s a spitfire.”

“Are you going to have to spend more time at the shops this summer then?” I asked.

“That’s what it looks like. My daughter is about your age. She’s pregnant and lives in the U.P. At the start of the summer, I had planned on spending some more time up there to help her get ready for the baby. Guess it’s not in the cards.” She was brushing off her pants while saying that, glancing to the ground.

“Ugh, I’m sorry. I’ll try to get up to speed as quickly as possible, and maybe you can still take that trip,” I said.

“I’m just getting too old for this.” She grabbed the broom and started working on the fishflies on the outside of the building. “I’ve owned this place over twenty years, and it might be about time to hang up the keys. Unfortunately, I don’t have much of a choice at this point.”