The Heavenly Grille Café
Page 25
“I know,” Dean replied. “So am I…”
Kris glanced over at her husband. “Do you ever get the feeling that there is something, oh… I don’t know… something kind of magical about this café? I mean, other than Charlotte Grace being kidnapped from the parking lot, I can’t think of anything bad ever happening here. I’ve always felt so safe sitting inside this booth. I wish I could bottle that feeling up and take it with us to Tampa.”
Dean hugged her against him. “It’s not that long a drive. We can come back and visit as much as you want to. But… you’re right, I know what you mean about the place having a magical feel to it. Hey! Maybe Max is really some sort of sorcerer and he’s cast a major spell on all of us.”
Kris pulled hard at his ear and grinned. “You may not be far off in that thinking,” she thought. “No… not a sorcerer,” she replied, “but… something…”
Doug allowed Bertie a few minutes with Charlotte Grace before he walked over to them and held out his arms. “Okay, my turn,” he grinned as Charlotte Grace reached out eagerly to him. He grinned again as the baby pulled on his thick hair and laughed when he said, “Ouch!” Their bond had only strengthened in the past six months and Doug knew that he would be making frequent trips to Tampa as long as he could. Yes, if he could find a way to appear to age progressively, he planned to be around to see Charlotte Grace graduate from high school, maybe even college. “Oh, why stop there…” he thought, “I may as well stick around until she becomes a grandmother!”
Amanda walked over to the long table where Amos still stood and put her arm around his waist. “Bread pudding for dessert, huh? Shucks, I was kinda hoping for one last serving of Max’s seven-layer coconut cake. That’s my favorite, you know?”
Amos hugged her back and smiled his toothless grin. “Well now, you never knows what a little hope and prayer will bring, now do you, child?”
Mrs. Brooks walked out of the kitchen, as if on cue, carrying a seven-layer coconut cake. “I understand that we couldn’t have a party without this,” she smiled at Amanda. “The cook said he made it special just for you.”
Amanda closed her eyes and inhaled the sweet, buttery aroma and richness of the cake. “Oh, I love all of Max’s desserts, but this one is extra special. Just wait until you taste it, Mrs. Brooks.”
Amanda took the cake from Ida and sat it carefully on the table, allowing it to take center stage, as it so well deserved. “I’m really, really glad you could be here with us today, Mrs. Brooks. The party wouldn’t be complete without the woman who was responsible for bringing Charlotte Grace back to us.”
“Oh, my goodness!” Ida laughed. “Enough of that! I didn’t do anything special. Why, I almost had heart failure when that baby’s hair turned from black to red. I’ll never forget that moment as long as I live.”
“Neither will we!” Dean laughed as he and Kris joined them at the long table.
“That’s for sure,” Kris smiled. “And just think…now we’re going to be next door neighbors for a long, long time, and you can watch Charlotte Grace grow up.”
“Not to mention, we’ll have a built-in babysitter,” Dean added.
It was Amanda’s turn to laugh. “Yep, just imagine it. You three living in the house I grew up in, with the same babysitter I had growing up! What are the odds of that ever happening?”
Dean shook his head in minor amazement. “Well, when the house came back on the market last month, Kris and I took it as a sign, Amanda. We talked it over and decided it had to be fate that it became available when it did. Any sooner or later and we probably would’ve missed the opportunity to get it. After the department accepted my transfer request to Tampa, we started looking for something in your old neighborhood since it’s so close to everything we need. When the real estate agent drove us to your old house to look at it, we both knew what we had to do. By the way, with the market like it is right now, and circumstances being what they were, we got it for a steal. Are you sure you’re okay with us getting your father’s house, Amanda?”
Bertie came up behind them and punched Dean on the shoulder. “What are you talking about? Of course our girl is okay with that. She’s going to be much too busy at the Police Academy to worry about cutting grass and paying a mortgage. Besides, from what I hear, she’s already claimed a spare bedroom in your new house.”
Kris laughed. “I’m still having a hard time with that one! You, Amanda… on the police force! You’ll probably have all the bad guys down on their knees, praying, after you catch them. They’ll be repenting their sins before you even get the cuffs on them!”
Amanda laughed along with everyone else. “I never really thought much about being a cop… until everything that happened with Charlotte Grace. I don’t know if they have any kind of special units that help find lost children, but if they do, you can bet I’m going to be one of the first to sign up for it. Oh, and by the way, Bertie, you are right… I want the spare bedroom closest to the backyard; the one that has its own door leading outside. Just wait until you see that back yard, Bertie. It’s Heaven!”
“Is it now?” Bertie winked at her as she punched her on the shoulder. “Well, now, if it’s anything like Heaven, then I know I have to see it!”
Amanda blushed, afraid that she had hinted too closely at the truth, but she relaxed when Bertie hugged her tight and winked again.
“Okay, everyone!” Max shouted from the kitchen. “Here comes the main course. Make way and grab a bowl!”
Kris held up her hand. “Not before we say grace!”
The friends gathered together and formed a circle around Charlotte Grace. They held hands while Max offered a prayer of thanks for the wonderful friends and food that filled the room.
“Amen!” they all shouted at the end of the prayer.
Charlotte Grace giggled and twirled around the adults. “A-M-E-N!” she echoed, speaking her first real word.
Several hours later, after the sun had set and everyone’s bellies were full, Max motioned them all to the center of room.
The nine of them held hands again as Max led them in a final prayer. “Dear, Lord… life is all about getting through the changes… some of them good, and some of them not so good. We gather here today to thank you for all the blessings you have bestowed upon us all; we thank you for the friendships that have formed; and, most of all, we thank you for forgiving us our shortcomings and allowing us the strength to offer forgiveness to those who have hurt or deceived us. We pray for Jack Peterson as he begins the next journey of his heart. We thank you, Lord, for the time in which you have allowed us to build new friendships that will endure a life time… and beyond. As some of our friends leave us to begin their new lives in Tampa, we pray that you surround them daily with your angels to keep them safe, healthy, and happy. We ask these things in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior… Amen.”
“A-M-E-N!” Charlotte Grace shouted.
CHAPTER 40
–Heaven–
December 2012
The Angels’ Next Adventure
It was the Sunday before Christmas and Heaven was even more exhilarating than usual. Everyone was preparing for the celebration of their Lord’s birthday. Fresh fruits and vegetables were everywhere. There was no meat eaten in Heaven but nobody seemed to mind the vegetarian requisite; after all, food was more or less an afterthought, totally non-essential.
Doug, Bertie, Max, and Martin watched and listened to all the happy commotion surrounding them.
“I’m glad all of you were able to come Home today,” Martin smiled. “Your families will certainly be happy to have everyone together for this special celebration.”
“I can’t imagine being anywhere else today,” Doug answered back. “Things have slowed down quite a bit at the café since Amanda moved to Tampa.”
Martin watched Doug carefully. “You miss her, I know.”
“We all do,” Bertie sighed.
“Let me ask you all something,” Martin began. “Are you absolute
ly, totally sure that she can keep your secret for the rest of her life? Are you certain that she won’t be tempted to tell anyone the truth about the employees of the Heavenly Grille Café?”
Max lifted his eyebrows and shrugged. “Without a doubt… that young lady will carry our secret to her grave.”
“And, hopefully, that will be a long, long time away,” Doug added. “I’m hoping and praying she has a long life ahead of her… a life time full of happiness. She deserves it.”
“Well,” Martin sighed, “That’s not for us to know, but… if the three of you trust her to keep your secret, well then… that’s good enough for me. I don’t suppose you’ll have to up and move the café for a few more years.”
“Actually,” Max smiled, “I’ve been doing some thinking along those lines. I was thinking of staying put for another year or two before moving to some place we’ve never been before. Well, that’s not quite true. I’ve been there, a very long time ago, but I don’t think any of you have.”
Bertie punched him on the shoulder and laughed. “And where might that be, big fella?”
Max grinned mischievously and stood tall and proud before them. In an instant, his white and gold robe had been replaced with a gladiator’s shiny shield of armor. His muscled arms and thighs glistened in Heaven’s natural glow. Solid, but simple, sandals graced his large feet.
“Well… I’ll… be… damned!” Bertie laughed, clapping her hands, and jumping up and down. “Hook up your chariots, my friends, it looks like I’m finally going to get to meet the Pope!”
“B-E-R-T-I-E!”
“Oops…my bad!” Bertie whispered before punching Max on his chiseled shoulder. She shook her hand in mock pain. “Ouch…damn! That hurt!”
“B-E-R-T-I-E!!!”
“For this is God, our God forever and ever; He will be our guide even to death.”
-Psalm 48:1 (NJKV)
The End…for Now
To purchase the next book in the Heavenly Grille Café series:
Four-Footed Angels
Click here
or read the first chapter here
To purchase book 3 in the Heavenly Grille Café series:
Star-Spangled Rejects
Click here
or read the first chapter here