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Sitting
in the sleek, modern kitchen of Uncle Jimmy’s restaurant, I sipped some coffee.
Sue was in the office, feeding Charlie so I could get some time to talk to my
uncle. It had been a couple of weeks since the opening of the restaurant, a
month after the christening and he was so busy, making it difficult to connect
with him. Inside of that month, the popularity of the Blue Swan exploded. He changed
the hours to include lunch service, but closing on Sunday for inventory and
deep cleaning of the kitchen.
Uncle
Jimmy demanded I come in so I could help him test out some new recipes, daily
specials. I eagerly agreed and had Jake drive me and Charlie to the restaurant.
“So, I heard from Victoria,” Jimmy said, sautéing some onions.
“There’s
a blast from the past,” I snorted, nibbling on some cookies. “What did that
slacker want? Did she want to reconcile? Apologize for being a heinous bitch?”
“She
read about the Blue Swan and she had the gall to ask for a job,” Jimmy
retorted.
“What
did you say?” I asked, arching a brow.
“I
met with her,” he said, giving me an evil grin.
“What
did you do?” I laughed. “Did you torture her?”
“Psssh,
no,” Jimmy snickered. “I just wanted to see how much she’d declined. She’s in
her early forties and she looks like a woman in her sixties, at least in the
face. She’s lost a lot of weight and she … the past two years have not been
kind. She looked like she was or is a heavy drug user. Makes me look at what I
have now with Sue and I’m grateful for that.” He put some chopped mushrooms
into the sauté pan, flicking them with a spatula. “I’m thinking about asking
Sue to marry me.”
“What?”
I breathed. “You were with Vicky forever and you never even considered it.”
“That’s
because, in my mind, I knew she was fucked up,” Jimmy said, adding a few pats
of butter to the pan. “She was a user, in more ways than two.” He turned down
the heat and looked up at me. “I saw how she treated you and how little she
worked. I’m sorry about that, Bells.”
I
waved him off. “We both know that Vicky was lazy. Besides, her laziness was my
gain. I made more in tips than she ever did.” Leaning forward, I smirked. “So,
when are you planning on popping the question?”
“Don’t
laugh, but on Valentine’s Day,” he blushed. “I know it’s clichéd, but I love
Sue and I adore her children. Seth is a good man and Leah … she’s such a sweet
girl.”
“She
is,” I grinned. “She loves you so much.” I blinked over my shoulder, ensuring
that Sue wasn’t hovering. “Do you have a ring? And what are you planning to do
for the wedding? A big to-do?”
“I
need to ask her first,” he laughed. “But, I do have a ring. I bought it when I
was going Christmas shopping, a total impulse buy. She never expected to find
another man in her life, nor did I think I’d find her either. I just know that
I want to share my life with Sue. Well, what’s left of it.”
“You’ll
live to be a hundred,” I quipped. “Don’t be negative, James Swan!”
“I’m
older than Sue. Not by much, but I’m older. With my accident and the residual
issues from it … I’m afraid that I may not last as long …” he trailed off,
shrugging. I hopped up off my stool and threw my arms around his waist. I don’t
know why, but I started crying. I’d already lost my dad. My mom was not in my
life. I couldn’t lose the last connection to my family. “Bells, hey … don’t cry
baby girl.”
“I
can’t lose you. Not yet, Uncle Jimmy,” I sniffled, tightening my hold on him.
He
cupped my head, leaning his cheek against the crown of my hair. He held me
tightly and swayed us gently. “I’m not going anywhere, Bells. I’m too ornery to
die. Hell, I got blown up and I bounced back.” He squeezed me before taking a
step back before guiding my chin up. “I buried my brother and that shattered my
soul, even more than burying your grandparents. I loved him and he was my hero.
Now, I see so much of him in you, Bells. I love you and I’m so proud to be your
uncle and surrogate father.”
“I love you, Uncle Jimmy,” I whispered, kissing his cheek.
Charlie's adorable onesie
Senna
Zafrina
Detective Peter Maas
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