As usual, Ben woke up at six o’clock in the morning, got dressed and brushed his teeth, then went out to the newsstand on the corner of Bush Street and Grant Avenue to get his newspaper. Then he crossed the street to the The Cream and Sugar Coffee Shop, bought himself a large coffee and a jelly doughnut and read the paper while eating. He perused the news section, then the weather. Crappy, crappier, and crappiest. He checked the TV listings to see if Rory’s show was going to be on. Yep, there is was. He was usually working when In Pursuit aired, so he bought a videocassette recorder so he could tape it and watch it later at night. The thing was gigantic, cost him twelve hundred dollars and getting the cassettes were next to impossible, so he used the same one over and over when he taped the show.
He thought it was interesting and Rory was a pretty good actor. His co-star, Serena Smith, was hot. The show always opened on the beach or on some boat and she was always either hanging out or swimming with the tiniest of bikinis on. He imagined there were a lot of guys who got off on her and he didn’t blame them.
To avoid getting turned on while in the coffee shop, he read the comics. He was halfway through them when someone tapped him on the shoulder.
He looked up and saw Annie smiling at him.
“Hi,” she said shyly.
“Hello,” he replied. “I wasn’t expecting you to be here.”
“Well, I get the paper every morning and then I come here and read it.”
“You’re kidding! That’s exactly what I do too!”
“We’ve must have been here at the same time before we met, then.”
“Why didn’t I notice you?”
“Probably because we both had our noses buried in the paper.”
Ben chuckled. “You’re right. You know, all this time I thought the only people awake at this hour were me and the living dead. Guess I was wrong.”
“Is it all right if I sit with you?” Annie asked.
“Of course. You want a coffee or something to eat?”
“I’ll have a large coffee, one cream, two sugars and a jelly doughnut.”
Ben might as well have been ordering for himself. That’s what he had gotten.
He went up to the counter, put in her order and brought her jelly doughnut and coffee back to her.
“For you, mademoiselle,” he said.
“Merci,” she replied, reaching for her hand tooled leather purse.
“Hey, it’s on the house,” Ben said.
“Are you sure?”
“I’m single and I have some money,” Ben replied. “I can afford to buy a pretty lady a coffee and a doughnut.”
Annie smiled. “How often do you do that?”
“This is the first time in a very long while. I’m working twenty four seven.”
“Me too,” Annie replied. “I’d be a boring person to live with. All I do is work, go home, sleep, get up and work again.”
“Who lives with you?”
“Nobody,” Annie replied. “I don’t have time for anyone. Do you have a girlfriend?”
“No,” Ben said. “I’m mostly through with women.”
Annie frowned. “Oh, I see.”
“I said mostly.”
Annie giggled. “Well, I’m mostly through with men myself. It doesn’t matter who I pick, he’s either unavailable or else he’s an asshole.”
“Are we living the same lives here?”
“It seems like it, doesn’t it?”
“How does your family feel about you living so far away by yourself?” Ben asked.
“They don’t care.”
“Uh-huh.” Ben could tell by the way she squirmed in her chair that this was something she wasn’t exactly comfortable talking about, so he changed the subject.
“So, how do you feel about the weather here?”
“Overall or lately?”
“Both.”
“Overall…it’s beautiful. Lately…I honestly think it’s warmer in Canada now.”
Ben chuckled and took a sip of his coffee.
“I was curious…how did you get to own Michele’s?”
“I saved up my money then paid for it with cash.”
“Yeah, but…what’s the story behind it? You know what I mean? Why did you want to own a restaurant?”
“Well, it’s something I always wanted to do. When I was eighteen years old, I got the opportunity of a lifetime. This woman I met while mini-golfing had a lot of money and was interested in starting a business.”
“You were co-owners with this lady?”
“Yep.”
“Anyplace I know?”
“Valben.”
Annie raised her eyebrows. “I applied there, you know.”
“Really? How did it go?”
“They never called me back.”
“Too bad.”
“Well, I’m glad in a way. The atmosphere there seemed kind of…tense, I guess.”
“It must have been in the last year then.”
“Why did it close down?”
“Well, my partner left me high and dry with medical and tax bills. I had no choice.”
“Oh, that’s awful!”
“Well, in the long run, I think it turned out for the best. I enjoy running Michele’s more.”
“Who’s Michele? Is that an old girlfriend?”
Ben almost choked on his coffee. “No, though she thinks she is.”
Annie grinned. “A hanger-on, huh?”
“Yes, definitely. Actually, she’s my niece.”
“Oh, how sweet! She must be so happy to have a restaurant named after her.”
“She is. She told everyone at her school that she owns it.”
Annie laughed.
“Is she going to be a future chef?”
“Well…I hope so, but if her mother has her way, she’ll be a master mechanic.”
Annie looked puzzled.
“My sister’s into cars,” Ben explained.
“Oh wow, that’s unusual,” Annie said. “You and your sister…are you close?”
“Yeah, but she lives in L.A. now, so it’s a little difficult to get together. We try and call each other about once a week.”
“Is she older or younger than you?”
“Younger…but not by much. We’re twins. We don’t look alike though.”
“Do you have any other brothers and sisters?”
“No,” Ben replied. He had no intention of mentioning Bryan, who he hadn’t thought of in years and was dead to him now. There was no need to delve into ancient history anyway.
“What do your parents do?”
“Well, I guess my mother was a housewife, and my dad was in the gold business.”
“Is your dad retired now?”
“No, they’re both gone.”
“Oh, I’m so sorry.”
“Don’t worry; they passed away a long time ago. We’ve adjusted to it. Now, what about your family?”
Annie squirmed in her seat again.
“Do you have any brothers and sisters?”
“No sisters, but I have three brothers. I’m the youngest.”
“You must have been spoiled.”
“Oh yeah. Rotten.”
“And what do all these siblings do?”
“Well, my oldest brother, Pascal, he installs windows for a living, my second brother, Henri, he’s a trash collector and my third brother…he can’t keep a job to save his life. I guess you could call him a professional alcoholic.”
“What’s his name?”
“Ugh.”
“With a name like that, no wonder he drinks.”
Annie burst into laughter. “His real name is Calix.”
“I think I prefer Ugh.”
“Me too.”
“So, he’s the bad seed, I take it?”
“That’s the understatement of the year,” Annie said.
“Let’s forget about Calix The Menace. What about your parents?”
“My dad fixes furnaces
. My mom works in a bakery.”
“Oh, so you got your passion for food from your mother.”
“She taught me everything I know.” Annie then looked at the sunburst clock on the wall. “I have to get to work.”
“Since I’m training you, I guess that means I have to get to work too.”
“Yeah, otherwise I won’t know what to do. It was really nice talking to you here. We ought to do this more often.”
“How about every day?”
“Okay. Every day, then.”
“Before we go to the restaurant, I just want to ask you something,” Ben said. He couldn’t believe he was even doing this. It would probably end up being a stupid mistake, but he couldn’t help himself.
“What is it?”
“Would you like to go out somewhere…tonight?”
Annie looked very surprised. “I wasn’t expecting that. Uh, but isn’t it against your restaurant’s policy for two employees to date?”
“Yes, but since I own the restaurant, I can do whatever the hell I want.”
“Good reason,” Annie replied.
“So, what do you say?”
“Hmm…” Her finger tapped her chin. “Okay.”
“Well, that was enthusiastic.”
“Oh sorry, it came out wrong. Actually, I would love to go somewhere with you tonight.”
“I’m just kidding,” Ben said. “Now let’s get our asses to work before we get fired.”
Annie giggled. “You’re so funny.”
“So are you.”
“I know,” Annie said. “Come on, boss…we have a restaurant to open up. Everybody is going to think we’re lazy bums if we get there late.”
Ben was tempted to hold her hand, but didn’t. As they left the coffee shop together, he felt a connection to her that he never felt to anyone else.
Maybe he finally found his soul mate.
Chapter 51: March 15
What They Left Behind Page 50