“Actually,” he rubbed the back of his neck. “I have a surprise, sort of. I brought my dog. He’s on the back of the bike—”
“Kit? Oh, bring him in. Heavens, you don’t need to leave him on the bike. That couldn’t be very comfortable for such a long drive. Does he jump? I think I’ll do just fine as long as he doesn’t jump.”
Jace grinned. “He doesn’t jump. He can sleep with me or outside if you want him outside.”
“We’ll figure it out; just go get him. He might be scared.”
Jace went out front and unpacked his dog and duffel. “Be good. No jumping.”
Kit wagged his tail.
Inside, Kit didn’t jump but greeted Jace’s mom in his usual manner, tongue hanging out, tail zigzagging. He heard his mom as he took his duffel down the hall to one of the guest rooms—his old room.
“There now, aren’t you a sweetheart? Are you a good little dog? Yes, you are.”
The basics of his room were the same: full-size bed, stocky chest of drawers painted brown, one of those box-kit desks and a folding chair. The quilt was different, and instead of his motocross posters and a framed print of a vintage Harley Davidson Fatboy, his mom had hung up desert sunset pictures and one of Hoover Dam, which was just a few miles down the road. Over the bed’s headboard, his mom had hung a picture of the Las Vegas Temple. Jace’s dad might not ever join the Church, but he had never gotten in the way of his mom’s adherence to the religion. Jace was pretty thankful for that.
Jace heard the front door open and his mom talking to Kit, he assumed. “Oh, Grandpa’s home.” Jace smiled at the thought of what his dad would think of being referred to as a dog’s grandpa. Still, he hurried back out to the front room. He wasn’t going to leave his mom to face the consequences.
“What the—”
“Hey, Dad,” Jace said brightly as he entered the room. “We made it.”
“So I see,” Liev said, eyeing Kit. “He goes outside.”
Jace nodded. “Outside, then. Nice to see you too.” Jace could already feel the tension in his body.
“Oh, Liev,” his mom said, “he’s harmless. You’re a sweet dog, aren’t you?”
Jace watched Kit lick his mom’s chin and almost laughed.
“Well,” his dad said, still frowning at the dog. “How long you here for?”
“As long as I’m needed.”
His dad grunted and moved to the kitchen. His gait was slower than normal.
“Liev,” his mom called after him. “Jace has come all this way to help you. The dog is fine. Aren’t you, Kit?”
Kit seemed to smile, wagging his tail harder at the sound of his name.
His mom hushed her voice. “Go in there and talk to him. He really is glad you’re here.”
“That is a happy little world you live in up there, isn’t it?” He gently tapped the top of her head, then leaned down and kissed her forehead.
She beamed up at him and shooed him toward the kitchen.
Jace entered the kitchen and folded his arms as his dad poured himself a glass of water and took a couple of Advil. Jace hadn’t been afraid of his father for a few years now, but the man was still intimidating. Though Liev had always seemed like an imposing figure, with his broad shoulders and heavy brow, Jace had reached him in height and was more muscular. Jace noted how his dad’s skin seemed to sag off him a little, like he’d lost weight. And yet, what this man said and did affected Jace like no other human being on the planet. Most times, though, Jace could guess what he would say or how he would react, and that helped. It had helped when he’d left for Seattle. Some.
Liev took a seat at the little square dining table. “You came here to help me.”
“Cassi said you were so impatient in the kitchen, they’re taking bets on who you’ll fire first.”
“Paco. Tomorrow, if he’s lucky.”
Jace paused, then caught a glint in the old man’s eye. “Paco’s made it this long, huh?”
His dad grunted and sipped his water.
Jace pulled a chair out at the table and sat. “Cassi also said you and Mom need time together.”
His dad set his drink down, and he seemed to steady his hands on the tabletop.
“And,” Jace continued, “that you wouldn’t leave the restaurant in anybody’s hands but mine.”
His dad raised his gaze to Jace’s. Jace held his ground, feeling like if he moved he’d be forfeiting some kind of victory. Freedom, a voice inside him cried. Freeeedom. Hold on to any you can keep.
Finally his dad cleared his throat and flipped his hands over, palms up. He looked at them. “Your mother . . . wants time with me. And while I’m trying to figure out why the—”
Jace cleared his throat.
“—why she would want that, I’m realizing time with her wouldn’t be such a bad thing . . .”
Jace lifted his brow.
His dad continued. “Kelly doesn’t want the diner. She’s got enough to handle with Rob deployed. Cassi’s working her tail off for this business degree. I think she might actually consider taking it over if Dan gave the nod, but . . .” He shook his head. “She’s got enough to handle.”
Jace wondered how much truth was in that. “Cassi seems to be under the impression that you don’t want her to take over because she’s a woman.” He braced himself for the fallout from that statement. It was a good thing Cassi wasn’t here.
His dad pursed his lips. “She’s the assistant manager. And she’s a good one. She’s been wanting to train Addy to help with management, but Addy’s got her sights set on college and teaching—”
“That’s a good thing, Dad.”
“I know. Don’t think I don’t know it. But I’ve got a small staff with only a few who’ve been with me longer than a year, and I tell you what.” He stuck his finger on the tabletop and stabbed at it to emphasize his words. “Leaving that diner for a seven-day cruise with your mom is one thing, but that’s not the time—” He pressed his lips in a thin line and tried again. “That’s not the time your mother is talking about. That’s a blip compared to what she wants—what she’s asking for after all of these years of asking for nothing. Nothing.” His dad swallowed and lowered his voice, though it was no less powerful. “And God will roast me alive if I don’t give her what she wants now. She’s in earnest, Jace. That look about her—”
His dad then did something Jace had never seen his dad do before. He quickly wiped a tear on his sleeve.
Liev swallowed. “She’s in earnest. And I’ve got to pay attention to that. Because who knows how long we’ve got left.” He took a moment to collect himself, then he nodded his head. “I know the timing is lousy. Cassi says you’re moving up at that restaurant.”
Jace made a small shrug.
“I just don’t have anyone else I can lean on right now. And I’d be honored . . . I’d be humbled . . . if you would take on the diner. While I get my feet back under me and see what time has in store for us. While your mom and I try to figure out a plan for the future.”
Jace had no words. The freedom he’d been determined to hold tight to in negotiating with his dad, the conversations and practiced declarations he’d run through his head during his trip down, now hung as limp as a wet flag. “Sure, Dad. I’ll help.”
* * *
A few days later, after enduring several hours of the retraining his dad considered necessary and two days of working side by side with the old man, Jace worked the grill at the diner solo, shouting back orders as Cassi read them off.
“Two BLATs, a bowl o’ red, a crying Johnny, and give ’em shoes.”
“Two BLTs with avocado, bowl of chili, quarter pounder extra onions to go.”
She gave him a smile, and he appreciated it. He wiped his brow on his sleeve and turned back to flipping burgers and grilled-cheese sandwiches. His parents were home spending time together, preparing for their cruise. He guessed that meant his dad was asking a lot of questions about why they were being forced to do this and his mom was fu
ssing over how much clean underwear to pack. Jace threw bacon on the grill with a sizzle, lowered a basket of home fries into the vat of boiling oil, and set the timer.
He pictured Georgie learning the bread ovens.
The diner’s fries were like the restaurant’s bread, and they went through a lot of them.
“Fish and chips,” his sister called.
Nobody had come up with anything clever to call fish and chips. He smiled, then shook his head at himself. Somebody shouting “fish and chips” in his direction shouldn’t fill him with a longing for home.
He paused. Home.
He frowned and set two full plates on the counter, and Paco, who still remained on staff, took them off to be delivered before Jace even rang the bell.
Cassi appeared at his side. “House is full today.”
He nodded and lowered the fish into the fryer.
“I wonder why that is?” she asked pointedly.
“Why?” he lifted the fries out to let them drain.
“Oh, I don’t know . . . Could be word’s gotten out that a certain someone is back in town and working at the Boulder Buzz Diner.”
“What? You’re nuts.”
“Go check the shake machine.”
He shook his head. That had been a signal between all of them as teens if somebody worth checking out came into the diner. He wiped his hands, and she took over the grill.
“Addy should be coming in at the hour. Hasn’t been this steady since The Coffee Cup had their day on Food Network.”
The Coffee Cup was another diner across town. A TV show featuring diner food had run a spot on their pork chili verde omelet, and a lot of out-of-towners visiting Hoover Dam now saw The Coffee Cup as the only diner in Boulder City. It was a great place, but they weren’t open for dinner. The Buzz was open for dinner.
Jace rounded the corner and glanced furtively at the crowded restaurant as he checked the milkshake machine for any adjustments.
“Yo, Jace!”
“Jace, there’s my man.”
“Welcome back, Jacey!”
Jace smiled, raised his chin, and gave a wave, not having a clue who these people were and not really wanting to investigate further. He refilled the cup dispensers and ducked back into the kitchen.
“Oh, no, you have to go out there and work the crowd.” Cassi finished up an order and rang the bell. “Order up!” she yelled past him. Then back to him, she said, “We’ve got table campers out there, and for whatever reason, they’re going to hang out until they talk to you, and that leaves my waitresses unable to turn tables. Now get out there, say hi to your admirers, and get your butt back in here.”
“What? That’s insane. What’s the big deal?”
“You think I know? Just get out there and turn in circles a couple times, and then they’ll leave when they’re supposed to leave.” She opened a couple of to-go bags.
“Ugh, I never had to do this at the restaurant.” He turned to go back out.
“The sacrifices we make . . .” she mumbled after him.
As it turned out, a couple of acquaintances from high school and his old baseball coach were in the crowd. He visited briefly and checked on a few tables to see if patrons were enjoying their meals. He remembered bussing tables way back when and even garnering a few tips of his own.
When he thought he’d done a sufficient job of it, he turned to head back to the kitchen, passing a booth full of girls.
“Jace!” they called in chorus, then giggled.
He stopped. “Yes?” he asked, wondering if he knew any of them.
“We’re Addy’s friends,” one of the girls said, flipping her hair.
He smiled. High school girls. Seniors. All grinning at him expectantly, leaning forward on their elbows; one was up on her knees.
“Can I do something for you, ladies? Have you ordered yet?”
A few of them giggled. “We’re still deciding,” their spokesperson said.
“I know what I want,” one of them mumbled, and the table broke out in laughter.
Jace looked at his shoes and swallowed. He took a little breath and looked the girls over again, a smile still plastered on his face. “Would you like to hear my favorites?”
They all widened their eyes and nodded, and he tried to keep from laughing. He wondered what Georgie would say if she was witnessing this spectacle. Something about puppetry or gagging. He opened one of their menus, pointed out some favorites, tagged on some extras, then motioned for a waitress and turned the mob over to her.
He got back to the kitchen and found Addy tying on an apron. “Hey,” he said, “I just met a table full of your friends.”
Addy’s brow furrowed, and she peeked out over the counter. “Ugh. They told you they were my friends? They don’t even talk to me.”
“Well, they talked to me,” Jace said with a smirk.
Cassi laughed.
Addy made a face. “Oh, please.” She got to work assembling baskets. “Just because you’re cute.”
“You think I’m cute?” he said, a big grin on his face. “Aww.”
“That’s not what I meant.”
Jace took Cassi’s place at the grill. “Crowd worked, my liege. Campers moving along.”
She looked at him. “Thanks, Jace.”
He shook his head. “The only thanks I ask is a bonus in my paycheck.”
“Ha.”
He winked at his older sister. Addy passed with a pile of plastic baskets lined with red-checked paper. He nodded his head toward her. “She thinks I’m cute.”
Cassi laughed again as Addy made a disgusted sound and hid her smile.
Later, as he collapsed into bed at his parents’ house, as he’d done every night since he’d arrived, he fought the urge to call Georgie and tell her about work. And just as he’d done every night, he stared at his phone, wondering why in the world she would want to hear it.
Chapter 22
Georgie let Deacon bring her to work. He’d wanted to take a look at the restaurant and meet her coworkers, and he stayed for a few minutes, comfortably chatting with Reuben and Caleb. He’d always been outgoing in a reserved kind of way. People liked that, Georgie thought. Mai had immediately introduced herself and, if Georgie had observed correctly, had thrown in some flirt. The girl was subtle, but the way Deacon responded, suddenly becoming a fraction more smooth, his voice reaching a bit deeper, told Georgie her guess was spot on.
Huh. Didn’t see that coming.
Speaking of flirting, Tyler had suddenly become chummy with a new waitress, an islander Georgie had spotted in the halls at church, probably from another ward. Maybe they would go to BYU together in the fall, get married, and have cute Tyler babies and—wow, she sounded bitter.
Georgie shook her head and walked outside for her break, joining Rhea on the picnic table. She sighed. “Hey there, Rhea.”
“Hey.” She smiled as she folded the paper bag that had held her dinner. “How’s it going?”
“Good. And you? I never got to ask you about your date with John.”
Rhea’s smile widened. “It was fabulous. It was funny. It was really, really great.”
“How was it funny?” Georgie asked.
Rhea’s enjoyment of the date was apparent. She shook her head, considering. “Just . . .” She glanced at the back door before she went on. “John was kind of tripping all over himself making sure I was having a good time. It was pretty cute, you know? When we went walking later, in the rain, he was disappointed with the overcast skies because he wanted to show me the stars.”
“The stars?”
“Yeah. He’s kind of an amateur astronomer. Who knew, right? He’s got a really nice telescope at his place. He can see planets and everything.”
“Please tell me he didn’t use that as some kind of pick-up line. ‘Hey, baby, want to come up and see my telescope?’”
Rhea laughed, shaking her head. “We didn’t go back to his place. But we drove out to the hills in north Seattle and parked—�
�
“Uh, TMI.”
“No. Ha. We parked the car, and even though we couldn’t see them, he showed me where all the constellations would be if we could. And he told me the stories about them, and it was so great, him just knowing all this stuff and wanting to show me.” She looked down, her smile still on her face. “It was pretty romantic. I like it when a guy doesn’t, you know, just take, take, take.”
“Yeah,” Georgie said, considering that. “So you had a good time.”
She nodded.
“Are you going out again?”
She lifted her head. “Next clear night.”
Georgie did smile, then. “I hope it comes soon.”
“Me too.” Rhea sighed. “Have you heard from Jace?”
Georgie’s smile faded a little, and her heart skidded. But she didn’t show that. “No. He did send me a text letting me know he got to Nevada safe.” A very brief text. It had said, Nevada.
“Oh, that’s good. It’s too bad about him leaving. And just before the Tulip Festival. I hope his family stuff gets cleared up soon.”
“Yeah.”
Reuben had told the staff that Jace was helping out indefinitely with a family emergency.
“That was pretty smooth, by the way, getting my favorite flower like that. It’s scary how much of a deal maker that was.” Rhea laughed.
“I’m glad you liked it.”
“So what’s your favorite flower? If somebody needed to ask you out?”
Georgie shook her head. She looked out over the treetops and a little to the north. She hoped her smile still looked genuine. “Tulips,” she said.
Rhea nudged her. “You came to the right place, then, huh?”
Georgie nudged her back but kept her answer to herself.
Rhea stood up from the table and brushed off her pants. “Well, my break’s over. Enjoy the rest of yours.” She gave Georgie one more grin, then hurried back to the kitchen.
Georgie picked up the foam cup she’d brought out and pulled the plastic spoon out of her pocket. She scooped up a spoonful of lobster bisque and tasted it, letting the creamy warmth slide down her throat as she swallowed. Haru had made the bisque today. It was good.
But not steal-the-last-bite good.
Kisses in the Rain Page 28