Queenie's Cafe

by SUE FINEMAN

  She followed him. “Why did she turn you down?”

  “Queenie told her she was lazy, and she’s still trying to prove she can run that place better than Queenie. You’d think she’d already proven it.”

  “Does she love you?”

  “She said she did.”

  “Then she’ll come around.”

  “She wants to get married, but she won’t leave that damn place. I told her that won’t work for me. I can’t compete with a dead woman, Mom. I won’t beg her to marry me.”

  Lily peered around the door. Since Luke yelled at her, she’d been afraid to come into his room.

  “Hi, squirt,” he said. “You can come in. It’s okay.”

  “I’ll marry you,” offered Lily.

  “Don’t you want to marry someone your own age?”

  “No.”

  Luke looked at his mother, silently pleading for help.

  “Don’t look at me,” she said.

  Luke pulled Lily onto his lap. “I want to marry Laura, squirt. Someday, when you’re all grown up, you’ll find a nice guy and fall in love. Then you’ll get married. I’m way too old for you.”

  “You don’t like me?”

  “I like you more like a sister than a girlfriend.”

  “Oh, okay,” said the little girl, sliding off his lap. She scampered off to play, leaving him and his mother smiling at each other.

  Mom said, “Her mother hasn’t called or written or contacted either one of the girls. She can legally ask for them back at any time, but I haven’t heard a thing. She knows where they are and how to contact them, and Ivy’s baby is due any time now. You’d think she’d want to know how she’s doing.”

  “Did Ivy decide what to do with the baby?”

  “I don’t know. I’ve tried to talk to her about it, but she doesn’t want to give her baby to a stranger.”

  “So take it yourself. Adopt the squirt, too. You wouldn’t mind keeping her, would you?”

  Mom smiled. “She’s grown on me.”

  “I noticed. Jay likes her, too.”

  “Don’t push us together, Luke. If he’s interested, he’ll ask. If not, that’s okay. I’ve been on my own for a lot of years.”

  The way things were going, Mom and Jay would be married long before Laura left that blasted diner.

  <>

  Laura stayed in her apartment for two days. Florence tried to coax her to come out, but she wouldn’t. The morning of the third day, Laura forced herself to go into the diner, back to work. She knew she looked terrible. She hadn’t eaten or slept in two days, and her eyes were swollen from crying so much.

  Meg said, “You look like something the cat dragged in. Are you all right?”

  “I don’t feel like seeing anyone today. I’ll cook this morning if you’ll take care of the front.”

  “Maybe you should call Judy and take the day off, Laura.”

  “No, I’ll be all right. I need to work.”

  Laura avoided everyone that day. She felt drained, as if all the life had gone out of her. Luke didn’t love her or he wouldn’t ask her to give up her business. He knew she couldn’t walk away from Queenie’s now. She’d already lost him, and she couldn’t lose her business, too. It was all she had. Didn’t he understand that? Didn’t he care about all the work she’d done here?

  Meg called to her just after ten. “Laura, they’re putting the new sign in.”

  She peered through the sunroom window. Luke stood with the sign man as the crane lifted the new sign off the truck and slid it into place in the sleeves they’d installed in the ground last week, when they removed the old sign. It was beautiful. Black letters on a light blue background, with a crown at the top corner, as if it was sliding off, just like she pictured. The crown was outlined with tiny white lights, with bigger blue lights at the points.

  Luke glanced her way and she quickly stepped back from the window. She didn’t want to see him or talk to him. Not now. She had no idea what to say. He didn’t really love her or he’d understand.

  <>

  Luke was quite pleased with the new sign. It was beautiful, thanks to Laura’s design. That silly crown at the top would catch the eye of any motorist, especially after dark. She had a good eye. Too bad she wasn’t willing to work for the corporation.

  Too bad she didn’t love him enough to marry him.

  A heaviness settled in his chest, an overwhelming sadness for what might have been. She didn’t want him. She valued this place more than she valued him. Nothing in his life had ever hurt like this.

  <>

  Laura went back to work, but her heart wasn’t in it. Luke didn’t come in for lunch, and she was too busy to check on the sign again until around three that afternoon, when her father poked his head in the kitchen.

  “Laura, come look at the new sign.”

  She shook her head.

  “Luke left two hours ago. Come on. Take a break.”

  “Get outta here,” said Judy, shooing her out the door.

  Her father took Laura’s hand and they walked out to the street together. They walked a little way down the street and looked back at the diner and apartments, at the new roof and asphalt, the fresh paint, the planter with the tinted glass rising above it. And the new sign.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  THE DUCHESS DINER

  ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT

  ~ B U F F E T ~

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  THE DUKE’S DIGS

  ~ APARTMENTS ~

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  “Laura, look at what you’ve done. Look at this place. Does it look like Queenie’s now?”

  “No.”

  “You did this, Laura.”

  She shook her head. She couldn’t have done it without Luke’s money, without his vision and encouragement. Sure, she could have made the café profitable, but just barely. It was their combined effort, their partnership, that made this possible.

  “Queenie is dead. Her business is dead. This is yours. You built the business from scratch, from nothing. You did it. Not Luke. Not Queenie. Not me. You. You’re the one who fought the odds, who coaxed the customers to come in, who built this business. It took your sweat and your vision, and you should be damn proud of yourself.”

  A picture of Queenie’s filthy, run-down café popped into Laura’s head, then faded away. What she saw before her was a fresh, new business. It wasn’t just the change in the building. The business was different, too. It was a clean, pleasant place where people laughed and enjoyed themselves. Her diner was nothing like the grease-filled, somber atmosphere of the old Queenie’s Café.

  “It’s time to let it go, Laura. Don’t throw away a chance of happiness to stay in this place. Trust me on this, honey. I don’t care how nice it is now, it’s not worth it.”

  “Is that what I’m doing?”

  “Isn’t it? Florence talked to Luke. He loves you, but you bruised his ego when you rejected him. He still wants to marry you, but he’s too proud to ask again. You’ll have to do it yourself this time.”

  “I can’t, Dad.”

  “Why would you want to stay here? To prove something to yourself? Or to Queenie? She isn’t worth it. She never was. I let her ruin my life. Don’t let her ruin the rest of yours.”

  Laura’s eyes filled with tears. Her father handed her his handkerchief.

  “He won’t want me now. I hurt his feelings.”

  “Do you know how to find that beach house?”

  She nodded.

  “Go. I’ll call and tell him to meet you there.”

  “But I have the dinner shift tonight.”

  “Florence will do it. Do you want me to drive you out?”

  “No.” She wiped away her tears and looked again. Queenie’s was a dump when she took over, and the motel was useless when Dad left. Her half of the business was worth more now than the whole thing was when Queenie died. The new parking lot filled with customers every evening. Her customers, not Queenie’s. “It doesn’t look
like Queenie’s anymore, does it?”

  “Honey, it didn’t look this good when Queenie and I took over.”

  She took a deep breath and blinked away tears. Dad had given her the ultimate compliment, and he rarely gave anyone compliments.

  Luke was more important to her than this place, and they didn’t really need her here now. Judy and Florence and Meg could run it without her. Luke was right about that. She knew she’d hurt him deeply. Would he ever forgive her?

  She walked back to her apartment and packed her things. All her things. She’d live at the beach house with Luke.

  If he still wanted her.

  Laura found the beach house locked and dark. Luke wasn’t there. Maybe he didn’t want her now. She walked around to the back and unlatched the gate. She sat on the deck as the sky darkened, waiting for Luke to come. The moonlight shining on the water reminded her of the first time he’d made love to her, and she cried. Where was he? A cruise ship went by in the distance, its lights competing with the moonlight, but Luke wasn’t here to see it.

  As the hours passed, she knew he wasn’t coming, but she couldn’t move. She’d had a chance at happiness and let her obsession with the café ruin it.

  She cried herself to sleep.

  <>

  Luke found Laura early the next morning, sound asleep in the deck chair. “Did you sit out here all night?”

  She looked up and unfolded her legs. “Luke, I thought you weren’t coming.”

  “Your father left a message on my answering machine, but I didn’t listen to my messages until this morning. Come inside.”

  “I’m not going back. If you don’t want me, I’ll go somewhere else. I don’t belong there anymore.”

  “You belong with me, Cinderella,” he said softly, helping her to her feet.

  “Do you still want me?”

  “Are you asking me to marry you?”

  “Yes,” she whispered. “I’m sorry about before. I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings.”

  He gently brushed her hair off her face and pulled her close. “You’re here now. That’s what matters. I love you, Laura. I’ll always love you, honey.”

  “I love you, too.”

  “I’ll bring in your things. Are you all right?”

  “A little shaky. I can’t remember the last time I ate.”

  After breakfast, they made love. This time, it was more than sex. It was a bond, a commitment to love and cherish each other forever, to spend their lives caring for each other. His kisses were tender, his caresses gentle, and as he slipped inside her, she knew this was right. They were meant to be together like this, to be joined in the most intimate way, to love and be loved. She couldn’t believe she almost threw this away. She held him like she never wanted to let go. Laura gave herself to him completely and let the depth of his love fill her body and spirit.

  They stayed at the beach for three days. Laura told Luke about Hank and Queenie’s scam, about the tape she’d found, and about Billy’s investigation. She told him everything. She didn’t want to hide anything from Luke. There would be no secrets between them. There’d been enough secrets in her life already.

  It was twilight when they approached Kingston, a magical time of day. “Oh, look,” she murmured. The spotlights in the new bushes below the sign lit it up, but the crown was something else. It sparkled in the fading light, serving as a beacon to guide people to the diner.

  Lights glowed behind the tinted windows in the sunroom. Hibiscus plants filled the planter, separating the wall and the sunroom windows with a frilly red and green ribbon, matching the ring of red and green under the new sign.

  “It’s beautiful,” she said. “They did a nice job.”

  “So did you.”

  “We did it together.”

  “Yes, we did, and we’ll do it again, at other places.”

  “I can’t hardly wait,” she said, slipping into Jay’s accent.

  “I wonder how long it’ll take Lily to start talking like that.”

  “Maybe it’ll be the other way around,” said Laura. “Maybe she’ll teach him to speak proper English.”

  They looked at each other, then both said, “Nah!”

  When Laura strolled into the kitchen, Judy said, “No, ma’am. You’re not workin’ tonight. Tonight you’re a guest. Billy’s been waitin’ for you and Luke. Go have dinner with your fella. Florence is helping tonight. Go.”

  Laura hugged her. “Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome. Florence cooked tonight and I want to know what you think.”

  Laura sat down with Billy and Luke. “What’s up?”

  Billy sipped his iced tea and explained, “Earl’s attorney saw the tape you made the night he was arrested for indecent exposure. He advised his client to plea bargain. He confessed on that tape and threatened to beat you again, Laura. His DNA was on your uniform, and we have a copy of the 911 call, statements from your doctors and some of your customers. The evidence is overwhelming.”

  “What about his business?” asked Luke.

  “A supplier in Miami contacted the local authorities. They found CD’s and DVD’s rolled up in carpet that was returned from one of Earl’s warehouses. Kind of ingenious, really. It was high pile carpet, but it had little places cut out for the CD’s and DVD’s.”

  Luke leaned forward. “What was on them?”

  “Child pornography, probably smuggled in from South or Central America, Cuba, or somewhere. The kids on them all spoke Spanish.”

  “Disgusting,” said Laura. “Is that what they were hiding in those little rooms?”

  “Probably. They found three CD’s and two DVD’s in that roll, then got search warrants for Earl’s other suppliers. One of his suppliers had several rolls like that. He was the distributor. He had seventeen people in place in Earl’s warehouses and others in his offices. It looks like they used those rolls of carpet to distribute the CD’s and DVD’s.”

  “Isn’t that a waste of good carpet?” asked Laura.

  “They didn’t waste it. It went back to the supplier and back to Earl’s warehouse. They sold the same rolls of carpet over and over again.”

  Luke cocked his head. “Did Earl know?”

  “He didn’t have a clue,” said Billy.

  “What about that other supplier, the one who found the CD’s?”

  “His men picked up that roll by mistake when they cleared out Earl’s Jacksonville warehouse. If they hadn’t, no one would have known what was going on.”

  Billy chuckled. “The agent in charge said when they picked up Earl’s contact, the guy kept saying estupido every time someone mentioned Earl’s name.”

  Laura laughed. Stupid described Earl quite well. “His accountant should have known what was going on.”

  “He was in on it, too. Earl’s backers gave him cash when he got too far behind on his bills. It’s hard to believe he didn’t know what they were doing.”

  “My father is not a bright man,” said Luke.

  “I don’t think there’s any limit to his stupidity or his cruelty,” said Laura.

  Billy slapped Luke on the back. “Good thing you take after your mother.”

  Luke shook his head and glanced at Laura. “Aren’t you working tonight?”

  “Judy said I’m a guest tonight, so let’s hit the buffet. I want to see what the food tastes like in this place.”

  Tomorrow they’d shop for rings and start making plans for the future.

  A few months ago, Laura wanted to run Queenie’s Café by herself and make enough to pay her bills. So much had changed. Luke had taught her how to dream bigger dreams. She still owned a half-interest in the diner and apartments, but someone would manage them for her.

  She had better things to do with her life.

  Chapter Twenty

  Luke and Laura spent that night at the ranch. After Jay and Barbara put Lily to bed, they sat talking in the living room.

  Luke said, “We’re shopping for rings tomorrow.”

  �
�I’m happy for both of you,” said Barbara. “You belong together.”

  Laura whispered to Jay. “Is she sassy enough?”

  “And then some.”

  “We could have a double wedding.”

  Jay’s face split in a huge grin.

  “What are you two whispering about over there?” asked Barbara.

  “Hey, break it up,” said Luke. “You’re my woman. Let him find his own.”

  “Already got me a good woman right here.” Jay dropped to his knees in front of Barbara, then looked up and smiled.

  “What are you doing?” she asked, an astonished look on her face. “Oh, you’re not going to—”

  “Propose? Yep. Wanta get hitched?”

  “Well, if that isn’t the most un-romantic proposal I ever heard. If you can’t do better than that, the answer is no.”

  “You mean if I do it right, you’ll say yes?”

  “I didn’t say that. I want to hear what you have to say first.”

  “You gonna make me embarrass myself right here in front of Luke and Laura?”

  Laura said, “Luke and I can step outside for a few minutes if you two want to—”

  “No,” said Barbara. “Stay and listen. I may need a witness.”

  Jay suddenly looked a little shy. Laura said, “Why, Jay Fisher, are you blushing?”

  “You gonna make me stay down here on my knees all night?”

  “No, sir. You go right ahead and do what you have to do,” said Laura. “We’ll be right here, watching.”

  “Thanks a lot!”

  Luke waved his hand in a signal to get on with it. “So do it already.”

  “You ain’t makin’ this easy.”

  “You ain’t either,” snapped Barbara.

  “All right. Okay. Give me a minute.” Jay took her hands and gazed into her eyes. “I love you, Barbara. I want to fall asleep every night with you in my arms and wake up every morning and see your pretty face. I want to be with you and love you for the rest of our lives. Will you marry me?”

  “Do I have enough sass to suit you?”

  “More than enough.”

  “Then I guess I’d better marry you. Somebody has to take care of you.” Barbara kissed him gently, and then he let out a whoop that could probably be heard in the next county.