Never Again (Never Again Series Book 1)

by Jamie Lynn Boothe

  When Sam was in the kitchen she wasn’t like normal people; at least that’s what she was told a few years ago. It was like something would come over her, but in a good way. She was the same at Tonya’s uncle’s restaurant as well. If she wasn’t prepping everything that went on the salad bar or whatever the cooks needed for the day, she was making breads or pies. If she wasn’t doing one of those things she was helping on the line cooking where she really felt she should be. When she was there she felt more in control and that was how she liked it.

  She loved their menu. It held a lot of dishes that she was already familiar with from her training at school but nothing too difficult to quickly learn. Within her own dreams of opening her own place one day, she thought about a three or a four-star restaurant. After her first week there however, her ideas became a little simpler.

  The menu held appetizers such as Oysters Rockefeller, Spicy Crab Bites, Fried Calamari, Crab and Spinach Dip, Buffalo Fish Bites and of course Hushpuppies.

  There were specialized soups from Tonya’s uncle’s own recipes. Salads that were for the healthier minded customers. Burgers and sandwiches of various varieties, all of which had their own special bling to them. There was a kids’ menu as well, but what truly tickled her senses were the main courses.

  That particular part held steaks that would melt in your mouth and you could cut with a fork. Seasoned with a personal recipe that would awaken anyone’s senses. The seafood was all fresh and perfectly seasoned and even the pasta was freshly made right there. Everything was made fresh and from scratch. She might only be working there for a few weeks, but she was loving it and taking in everything she could.

  After closing on her last night of the first week Tonya’s uncle asked her what she thought about his restaurant.

  “I love it! I want to own my own place one day and being here has opened my eyes to some new thinking on what it would be like. Thank you for letting me get in your way for a few weeks.”

  He laughed and told her that she most certainly wasn’t in his way.

  “Tonya told me you were close to finishing school to be a chef. How much more do you have left?”

  “Yes, it’s been a great experience. I have one more quarter which will start in a little over a month. I would have finished a lot earlier, but with everything that has happened in my life, school was put on the back burner for a while. I can’t wait to graduate.”

  He nodded and thought for a moment. They sat in the dining room with a glass of tea, relaxing for a few minutes before going home. What he said next caught her off guard.

  “Sam, you have surprised me to be honest and please don’t take that the wrong way. At the same time, it was a very nice surprise. Your skills are impressive. I know you will have to go back to Connecticut so you can finish, but I would like to offer you a position if you are interested. I have been thinking about making some changes in the near future and I have no doubt that you would be a great piece of the puzzle. Think about it. Take your time and let me know if you like the idea.”

  Sam stared at him with a stunned expression. Tonya and her uncle laughed at her and finally she shook her head to clear her thoughts.

  “Wow, I don’t know what to say. Thank you.”

  “Like I said, think about it while you are here and let me know what you think.”

  “I certainly will,” she replied with a huge grin written from one side of her face to the other.

  After Tonya checked on everyone who was still there to make sure all the tasks were completed, she sent her staff home. With her purse strapped over her shoulder she walked up to a grinning Sam and asked if she was ready to go.

  “Yes, ma’am. I’m ready for a hot shower and a good night’s sleep, too.”

  Together, they walked out of the restaurant and started for the car, but Sam changed her mind.

  “You know, I wouldn’t mind taking a walk down on the beach for a little while before we go home. If you aren’t too tired. It’s a beautiful night.”

  “Okay. Sounds good to me.”

  They put their purses in the trunk of the car and took off their shoes. Tonya noticed that Sam was walking with her eyes directed towards the ground.

  “Penny for your thoughts.”

  Sam grinned and stuck her hand out as if she expected a penny. Tonya laughed and slapped her palm away. They took a few more steps and their bare feet enjoyed the coolness of the sand. Immediately, they both sighed from the cool feeling and how it relaxed them.

  “It’s a great night for a walk. I don’t get to do this back home. I mean, not on a beautiful beach at least and I wouldn’t feel safe walking around at night by myself,” Sam expressed.

  “You’re right about that,” Tonya looks over at her. “What’s on your mind? I can tell that something is. Are you okay?”

  Sam nodded. “Yeah. I think I’m beginning to be. Chris is on my mind, and it hurts, but right now I’m not going to break down. I miss him. God, how I miss him.”

  “I know you do. I wish I knew what to tell you.”

  “There’s nothing anyone can say or do really. Just you being here in my life is more than enough. Thank you. For everything. Most importantly, and I’m sorry if I haven’t said it yet, thank you for saving me from myself. I was dying in that apartment. All alone in my depression. I don’t know how much longer I would have lasted.”

  A cool breeze blew in from the ocean and over them. Their hair swayed as their hands clasped together. The fringes of the cold water teased their feet with each step and they gazed upon the stars that were sparkling in the clear night sky.

  “I knew you needed me,” Tonya told her. “There’s nothing I won’t do to help you if I can.”

  “I know and the same for you.”

  Another few quiet steps and Sam continued.

  “Over the past few days I keep thinking about certain memories. Times that Chris and I would walk in Coe Park and watch the bands play. Usually local bands. We would sit out on a blanket and watch the kids run around throwing their ball or play with a dog. Sometimes we would go to Carvels for ice cream after we left there. That was where we first met. Did I ever tell you that?”

  “At Carvels or the park?”

  “At the park.”

  Shaking her head, “I don’t think so, but you may have.”

  Sam smiled and had a look in her eyes that told she was lost in the moment. As if she was there, in Coe Park.

  “It’s a day that I’ll never forget. I guess you couldn’t say we actually met because we didn’t talk, but we saw each other. I was walking with a friend and it was a gorgeous day. It was Spring and the weather was perfect for anything, so we went for a walk. My friend and I were walking around looking at the flowers and reading some of the history plaques they have out with the statues when I saw him. I knew he was watching me, but I purposely didn’t look at him. My friend said something, I have no idea what, but it made me laugh and I glanced his way and he was smiling at me, but I looked away. I remember how my heart was beating so fast and for some reason I was nervous, but we kept walking toward him. Him sitting there looking shy and trying not to be. It was all I could do to not laugh at him he was so cute. When we finally reached him, and was walking past I made full eye contact and gave him my best smile and he did the same for me. I didn’t know for certain until later that he wanted to talk, but was scared.”

  Sam giggled and her eyes had grown slightly misty, but it was obvious she was into her story. Slowly, they kept walking along the edge of the water and Tonya allowed her to finish without interruption.

  “When we did actually meet again, and I didn’t think we would, we literally bumped into each other. It was funny because neither of us were paying attention to where we were walking. I was leaving a convenience store and he was going to walk in. If I wasn’t so short we would have bumped heads. We recognized each other immediately and surprisingly he talked to me. It wasn’t a long talk, but he asked for my number and promised that he would call me that w
eekend. He called me that night. It was a good thing we were both off the next day because we talked for hours and it was like three in the morning when we stopped. I know it’s not the perfect love story meeting, but it was ours and that’s all that matters.”

  Tonya squeezed Sam’s hand and said, “I think it’s a perfectly lovely beginning. A real love story beginning.”

  A moment passed and Sam told her about her dreams. She talked about the clouds and hearing Chris and a baby somewhere in them and never finding them.

  “What do you think they could mean?”

  Tonya thought before answering. “Honey, I have no idea. I wish I did, but I believe dreams have meaning of some type. Maybe, you should write about them and have faith that in time the answer will be given to you on what they mean.”

  Samantha stopped and hugged Tonya.

  “Thank you.”

  “You feel better now? With the walk and talking.”

  Sam nodded and said, “Yeah. I know I have a long way to go, but it’s a start. We can go back now.”

  They turned and started walking back towards the car. Not many more words were shared on the return walk, but they loved the time together all the same. Like Sam said earlier. It was a perfect night for a walk.

  ***

  After her shower and saying goodnight, Sam laid on her side feeling the beginning of her healing. It was minor and she was still fragile, but she saw a tiny white light at the end of the tunnel. She looked at the clock and wasn’t worried as much as she had been. Before she closed her eyes, she looked at the card in her hand one more time. The card that was sent with her dozen roses. It had grown a few wrinkles over time and wasn’t quite as white as it used to be, but it still held the same words. The same meaning. Anything for your love.

  She whispered to a silent room. To her husband’s spirit that surrounded her, “Anything for your love.”

  Marion sat beside Sam and watched her read the card softly. She heard her words of love and adoration for her deceased husband. She knew Sam was healing and she thanked the Lord for helping her. She gazed upwards towards the Heavens and praised His name.

  She knew her job wasn’t quite finished and the road was still long ahead of them, but she could tell that it would be a smoother one. Sam didn’t know what else lay ahead. Neither did Marion, but God knew and it would be good. God is good all the time and all the time, God is good.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  When time flies by quicker than you thought it would, you realize how powerless you really are. The next two weeks felt as if they had only started when Sam had to get ready to return to Connecticut. There were reasons she didn’t want to go. Things she didn’t want to face and feelings she wasn’t certain she could handle, but knew she had to do it.

  Within the three weeks she had been in Florida she learned some things about herself as well as at the restaurant. Things that she had forgotten she remembered and memories were rekindled. Her relationship with God was still rocky, but she knew He was still there. He had never left her, but she had to work through her anger and feelings somehow. She wasn’t sure how long it would take or how she would do it, but desperately hoped she would be able to.

  She learned she was stronger than she ever realized. Most of her life had been easy. Up until the accident that almost killed her, she hadn’t had any tough trials in life. Most of her years had been easy compared to what other people go through. She had a great, comfortable life growing up. She had loving parents, and in high school she was one of the popular cheerleaders. She had always known who she was and what she wanted to do.

  When she was hit by that car at the beach everything changed. She had her first brush with death. She found out she had a bad heart and needed additional surgeries. Then the unimaginable happened with Chris. In such a short period of time, the world she had known and loved was shattered.

  Over the past few weeks memories flooded Sam’s mind, her heart and her soul. It seemed there were times every moment that she and Chris had experienced together were playing through her mind like a slide show. Sometimes, when she was lying in bed she felt like she was watching a movie.

  She had been asking herself about her relationship with God. She had feelings she struggled with and wasn’t sure how to handle them. She didn’t know how to feel toward Him. She knew He was there all around her. She never doubted His existence during her struggles, but she had an anger toward Him that didn’t seem to want to go away. She felt she should probably talk about it with someone, but it hurt too much to bring it up. She accepted that possibly in time she would be able to deal with it on her own.

  Her last evening with Tonya was an emotional one. Tonya insisted she take Sam out for a special dinner. She wanted to express her gratitude for everything Sam had done for her.

  “It’ll be a casual night. You don’t have to get all dressed up. We’re just going to the Olive Garden, but it’s my treat. You can have anything you like.”

  Sam was applying her make-up and said, “You really don’t have to do this Tonya. I already know you appreciate me as I do you.”

  “Well, I feel like I do. Besides, I want to so stop fussing over yourself and let’s go. I’m getting hungry.”

  Sam finished the final touches of her eyeliner, admired her reflection in the mirror, and turned the light off.

  “Okay, I’m ready miss bossy pants.”

  Laughing, they walked out into the starlit night and enjoyed their last time together before Sam had to leave. She hadn’t been to Olive Garden in years and looked forward to their brand of Italian food. She couldn’t even remember what they had on the menu, it had been so long.

  When they first arrived and walked in, Sam gasped at the amazing difference from the one she had been to years ago. The lobby was modern with plush sofas lined up against the glass walls. There was a double-sided love seat in between them so the lobby could accommodate plenty of hungry waiting customers. As they sat and waited Sam appreciated the décor, distinctive with long leafy plants in large vases. The artwork hung along the walls as well as flat screen televisions provided soundless landscapes that could take a person’s breath away. Watching the pictures on the screens made her long to be wherever they were taken. They were so incredibly beautiful.

  The ceilings were decorated with long polished pine boards that stretched from one end of the restaurant to the other. Between some of those hung lamps that appeared to be from a glass blowing factory. It was breathtaking and they hadn’t even been seated yet.

  After a forty-five minute wait, a young waitress with curly, coal-black hair that hung to her waist and gorgeous deep blue eyes asked them to follow her. She took them down an aisle and Sam saw some of the dishes covering the oak tables, putting smiles on people’s faces. She saw large amounts of pastas and mussels and overflowing baskets of breadsticks, and her stomach growled intensely. She almost wanted to run to her table so she could place her order.

  With menus in front of them, Sam gazed at the list and wondered how in the world she could pick just one item from the selection when everything was so tempting. After much debate, they agreed on an appetizer of classic calamari and asked for lemon water to drink.

  “What are you ordering?” Sam asked. “I don’t have a clue. Everything looks so good.”

  “I know, right? I haven’t been here in a long time so I’m not sure, but the Tour of Italy looks fantastic.”

  “What is that?”

  “It says it’s chicken parmigiana with lasagna classic and their signature fettuccine alfredo.”

  “Oh, yeah that does sound good, but I like the way the five cheese Ziti al Forno looks. I think I’ll try that.”

  Their waitress arrived with a basket of breadsticks, their water, and the calamari. She took their order, told them to enjoy the appetizers, and said she would be back shortly. As they enjoyed the calamari and breadsticks, they talked about what Sam would do soon after she got home to Connecticut.

  “I guess since the next qua
rter at school will be starting soon, I’ll have to get mentally ready for that. It’ll be a couple more weeks so I have plenty of time to review my books and notes and stuff.”

  Knowing it wasn’t an easy topic, Tonya tread lightly and asked, “Do you think it may be a good time to do something with some of Chris’s things? Maybe donate his clothes to Goodwill or something.”

  “I don’t know. Can we not talk about that right now? I’m sorry, but I don’t want to get depressed and ruin my last night here with you.”

  “Of course. I understand.”

  Their dinner arrived and the power of hunger overtook the majority of the time they spent together. Forgotten for the time being was any conversation concerning the disposal of Chris’s belongings. They talked about more enjoyable topics such as what Sam learned at the restaurant, Tonya’s sudden interest in a very frequent customer who happened to look a little like a young Elvis Presley, and her dying to ask him if he could sing like him. When Tonya told her that Sam laughed so hard she almost spit her food across the table. People started looking at them like they were becoming a bother so they tried to quiet it down a notch.

  The one thing that turned the rest of the evening into a more memorable night was when a herd of waitresses started clapping and headed in their direction.

  “Oh, look! Someone must have a birthday!” Sam beamed.

  Tonya grinned at her mischievously and giggled. At first, Sam didn’t know what to say because it wasn’t her birthday, but when they stopped in front of her with a large piece of fudge covered chocolate cake with a single candle on it she glared at Tonya. The waitresses finished singing the Happy Birthday song and walked away, and Tonya couldn’t keep from losing her control of hysterics.

  “You know it’s not my birthday, right?” Sam asked her and tried to keep her glare but failed miserably.

  “Yes, I am fully aware of when your birthday is, but I had to do something to make this night a special occasion. I couldn’t think of anything else and it was the only song they would do.”