7. Chapter 7
Frank
Enoch was a big guy, and he was hella knowledgeable about cooking. He laughed when I asked if I could go find my waitress, and then showed me how he kept track of all the orders.
My salad looked beautiful. I felt bad mixing it all up to eat, and she nailed my favorite dressing.
This place is currently my favorite place to eat.
And Edith?
There was definitely something about her. I wanted to get to know her better.
Plus, she didn’t tell me no. Granted, she didn’t say yes either, but I intrigued her.
I’d bet that almost every red-blooded man who rolled through here hit on her and Evelyn.
And it probably got old.
Big E brought my food out to me, then stayed leaning on the counter to talk.
The door opened and two men in fancy suits came in. Big E’s face changed slightly.
“Bad news?” I took a bite of my salad.
“Nah. They’re decent, but you don’t fuck with them.”
Looking over my shoulder, I chuckled. “What? They mafia?”
When he didn’t respond, I glanced at him to see a slow nod. “And if I’m right, the tall one has a thing for Evelyn.”
“Something tells me that little spitfire can handle herself.” I pushed my salad plate aside to dig into my heart attack on a plate.
“She can.” He nodded.
Tipping my head to the side, “How old is she?”
“Evie? Twenty-one.”
“Wrong sister.” I groaned with my bite. “Fuck me. This is damn good.”
“Right?” he chuckled. “Twenty-seven. How old are you?”
“Thirty-eight.”
He nodded. “What have you been doing with your life?”
“I served in the Corp for the last twenty.”
“Ah. You’re back to being a civvy like the rest of us.”
“Pretty much.”
He crossed his arms over his chest. “Why here?”
“My parents were in an accident, and there’s nothing left in Wisconsin.” I sighed. “Romeo talked about this place as though it was a fairytale, and I agreed to check on his mom.”
“That sucks, man.”
“It really did.” I wiped my mouth. “Thanks for not giving me the same ole platitude.”
“Nah, I mean yeah, I am sorry you lost them, but you know that, the truth of it all is it sucks.”
“You’re the oldest.”
“What? Me? It shows?” He laughed.
“Just a bit.”
Evie came walking up, tearing a ticket from her pad. “Time to get back to work.” She slapped it against his chest.
Big E gave me a nod as he slipped away. “Enjoy your lunch, Frank.”
“Thanks, man.”
He went back to his kitchen and Edie came by to refill my coffee and bring me water. I had the pleasure of sitting there watching the family work until the doorbells rang. In came a herd of older women in crazy hats, and I decided to take my leave.
Throwing some bills on the counter, I left, but I made sure she saw me leave. Edie graced me with a small smile and I felt special.
Walking down the sidewalk, I stopped at the local coffee shop. Mug Shots and picked up a cup of their house blend.
I continued my walk to the park and found a nice place to sit and people watch. The day was mild, and the kids were getting out of school and invading the park with a vigor I wish I still had. The more you watch people, the more you see the same patterns.
There’s always a leader of the pack, the one that comes up with hair-brained schemes and convinced others to go along with it. You’ll find the watcher, who shakes his head at the antics. The one who doesn’t want to be noticed, the one who marches to their own drum.
It’s the same with kids.
I watched this young boy walk across the park to a tree near me and take a seat. He pulled out a baggie and empties the contents at the base of the tree, and a bird swooped down and snagged a piece and flew off.
With a nod, he got up, tossed his trash in the can, and joined the other kids. Soon, a game of tag broke out and chaos ensued. After a solid fifteen, the same little man came over and sat on the bench by me.
He’s followed by a small harem of girls and they all plopped down. I looked around the park and noticed several empty benches and then looked at the kids.
“Sorry, mister. This is our normal rest bench.” A curly red-headed girl informed me.
“I don’t mean no disrespect.” I stood, and they all gasped.
“You don’t have to leave. We just wanted you to know why we’re here.”
Nodding, I sat back down. “Why this bench?”
“Because it’s close to Matt’s tree where he feeds the birds, the water fountain is right there.” Another girl pointed. “And you can see everything going on.”
“You’re not from here. Who are you?” A chubby blond girl asked, tilting her head to look me over.
“I’m Doc.”
“Like the dwarf?” A boy walking up asked as he took a seat.
Chuckling, I shook my head. “Like the old west. Doc Holliday.”
“Are you a cowboy?”
More boys walked over and joined in.
“Nope.”
“Then why the old west?”
“My last name is Holliday.”
The young man sitting beside me smiled. “So they call you Doc like him?”
I nodded. “See, he gets it.”
“I’m Grady.” The red head informed me before pointing to the entire group as more boys joined us. “That’s Frankie, Dillon, Charlie, Harrison, Grady, Tyler, Marissa, June, Alex, and Matt.”
“Nice to meet ya’ll.” I nodded to them all.
The young man sitting beside me looked me over and twisted his lips in thought.
“Can I ask you a question?”
“Depends. What is it?”
“It’s an interrogative form of sentence, used to test knowledge. But that’s not important right now.” He deadpaned.
My head flew back as I howled with laughter. “I love that movie.”
“So do me and my mom.” He smiled. “Most people never get the humor.”
“You’re so weird, Matt.” June wrinkled her nose.
“So?”
I bumped him lightly with my elbow. “What’s your question, little man?”
“Eh, I forgot now.” He shrugged.
An alarm went off and all the kids stood up.
The one called Harrison yelled. “Game on!”
And just like that, all the kids went off and running again. Laughing softly, I got up and walked in the direction they all came from. I’d bet that’s where the school was.
Maybe they needed a substitute?
Pulling out my phone, I texted Romeo.
Damn you
I’m not even there. Now what’d I do?
Tellin’ me to stop in Port Stella, see what I think
What? You job hunting now?
Shut up fucker
Haha, careful though
Why?
Ma will try harder to marry you off
I ain’t scared
You should be. Those old hens are always up to no good.
Don’t worry until I house hunt.
Check out Kennedy real estate.
Still shaking my head, I found the school and made my way to the office. An older lady sat at a desk, holding her head as she stared at the monitor.
“Excuse me, ma’am?”
“Oh hello. Who are you looking for?” She smiled at me while side eyeing her monitor. Sighing, she deflated. “My stupid mouse stopped working and I cannot figure out why.”
“May I come around?”
“Sure.”
I walked around the counter and dropped to the floor, sticking my head under the desk to see the back of her tower. A smile crossed my face when I found the issue and plugged her back in.
“Try now.”
“Oh! Oh! Look! The boppity pointer is back!” She clapped happily. “Thank you, mister …”
“Holliday. But you can just call me Frank.”
“Jeanette?” She turned, and I popped up to see who was there. A tall, almost imposing man stood there.
“Jerry, this is Frank Holliday. He fixed my computer.”
He came closer and offered his hand. “Jerry Woods. Principal.”
“Frank Holliday. Retired Marine. Looking for work.”
“Really?” He smiled. “Come on in my office and let’s talk.”
Edith
Matt came into the diner and found me in the back doing inventory. “Mom!”
“Hey baby! How was school?”
“It was good. Thanks for the cookies in my lunch.”
“You’re welcome.” I set the clipboard down. “What are your plans for today?”
“Uncle Geno and me are going to a game tonight.”
“What game?” I narrowed my eyes.
He shrugged. “He said he just wanted to see some peaches.”
“Eugene!”
He poked his head in the back room. “Me?”
“Are you using your nephew to troll for girls?” I tapped my foot in irritation.
“Dude. What did you tell her?”
My son shrugged. “You said you wanted to see peaches.”
A sly smile crossed my brother’s face. “It’s a figure of speech.”
“You need help.” I glared at him.
“Come on, Mattie, we can go get a pizza before the game and do your homework.”
“Yeah! Pizza!”
My son wrapped his arms around me. “Love you, mama.”
“I love you too. Be good.”
Shaking my head, I got back to work and finished my counts so I could enter the order later when the new kid showed up for his shift.
I made my way to the front of the house and saw him come through the front door.
“Hi, Edie. Mister Malone said you would be training me tonight.”
“We’re going to start you on small things. The better you are at what you do, the more opportunities you’ll get.”
“Great. What first?”
“Dishes.”
“Is, uh, Evelyn here?”
“She is. Would you like her to show you what to do? She’s already back by the dishwasher.”
“Sure.” He smiled.
I pointed to the back and smiled to myself. “Through that door and you’ll see the sinks.”
That’s for meddling in my life, little sister.
After he disappeared through the door, I walked over to the dessert case, about to check what we had left, when I heard his voice up front again.
“Hockey’s not bad. I haven’t been to a game in years.”
“If you wanna go sometime.” Big E shrugged. “I wouldn’t be opposed to a beer drinkin’ buddy.”
“That sounds good to me.” Frank bobbed his head.
“Again?” Shaking my head, I walked over to them. “You’re back again?”
My brother slipped past me, going back to the kitchen, and left me alone with Frank.
“Admit it, Edie, you missed me.” He winked at me, and I felt my cheeks heat.
“You’re crazy.” I flipped a mug over and poured him coffee. “Counter’s for paying customers.”
He groaned. “That mouth.”
“Oh yeah?” I smirked at him. “What about my mouth?”
He cocked a finger at me to come closer, and lord help me, I went. His nose skimmed along my cheek to my ear. I felt the skin on my neck fill with goose pimples, and then his deep voice dropped to a husky whisper.
“One of these days I’m going to show you what that mouth is really made for and have you begging for more.”
My face burned, and I dropped the coffeepot, splashing hot coffee and glass all over my feet. He lifted me up and set me on the counter in this weird ninja move. “Shit. Edie, are you okay?”
Evelyn and Big E came running from the back. And Frank came around, moving the glass with his foot. His strong hands gently slid from my knees to my feet. He removed my shoes and socks, and his fingers felt cool on my hot skin as he checked for cuts and burns.
“It all looks okay. Does it hurt?”
“It stung.” I looked down at his thick head of dark hair with a few silver hairs mixed in and found it hard to swallow. “But I think I’m good.”
“I’ll clean it up.” Evie disappeared into the back.
Frank looked at Big E. “Is there a chair in back?”
“There’s a couch in the office.”
Nodding, Frank positioned his arms and looked into my eyes. “Wrap your arms around my neck, sugar. You need off your feet for a few.”
I shook my head fervently. “You can’t carry me.”
“The hell I can’t.” He growled. “Up we go.”
Tears burned my eyes as he carried me to the office in back. I clenched them shut, listening for the telltale signs that I was too big.
This man was carrying my fat ass.
There wasn’t any grunting, groaning, or huffing and puffing. He followed Big E to the office and sat down with me in his lap.
“What happened?” Dad asked, coming around the desk.
“She dropped a coffee pot, sir.”
“Edith? Are you okay?”
Nodding my head, I sat on Frank’s lap quietly.
“Be sure to order a replacement.” He patted my leg and then I heard the office door close.
I felt tears running down my cheeks as I opened my eyes to find I’m alone with Frank.
“Edie?” He tilted my face up and wiped away a tear with his thumb. “What’s hurting?”
“You carried me.” I tried looking up to stop the tears.
“I know.” He cleared his throat. “Look, Edie, I can’t help how my body reacts to you, so I’m, uh, sorry.”
Twisting in his lap, I asked, “sorry for …” then I giggled. “Oh.”
I don’t know what to do or say. And I don’t want to think about how good his arms felt holding me.
“How do your feet feel?” Frank ran a hand down one leg, then the other, checking again for any cuts or remnants of glass.
“They’re fine. Thank you for reacting so fast.”
Could you sound any more like a dork?
“Not a problem, baby.”
“I should, uh, get some clean socks and get back to work.”
“You probably should.”
“I mean, we can’t sit here like this all night.”
Way to go, Edie, you’re a master conversationalist.
“I could.” His voice dropped low and husky. “But your family might kill me for what would happen.”
Holy. Hell. I. Can’t. Breathe.
“I’m not a virgin, Frank.” Laughing, I pushed myself up from his lap. “I know what can happen.”
“Well, thank god for that.” He laughed.
“Dinner’s on me.” I stumbled over to the door and looked back at him.
His eyes were closed, and a low growl rumbled from his chest. “You’re killin’ me, Edith.”
“What?” Confusion filled me as I looked him over.
He stood up from the couch, towering over me, making me feel small and dainty. “Someday dinner will be you .”
With a wink, he tried to adjust himself inconspicuously and reached across me to open the door, where Evelyn stood with my backup shoes and a clean pair of socks.
A slow grin spread over her face. “All clean.”
“Thanks, Evie.” I took them from her and watched her face morph into disgust.
“By the way, I hate you.”
Throwing my head back, I laughed hard. “Paybacks are a bitch, little sister.”
She gave me a snarl and walked away in a huff.
“What’d you do to her?” He thumbed after her.
“The new guy is shadowing her tonight.” I snorted with laughter. “He drives her nuts.”
Frank laughed and left the office.
I sat back down on the couch, took a deep breath, and felt tiny shivers all over.
He smelled so good.
I got my socks and shoes on and checked my reflection in the mirror before heading back to work.