Chapter Four
Sienna
I wasn’t the first to arrive at Sunny Daes that Monday morning. The outline of Tony’s motorcycle leaning against the building indicated his arrival. I parked alongside it and turned off the engine.
A small circle of orange caught my attention.
“Seriously?” I mumbled and got out of the car. “I thought you said you stopped?” I said to him.
Tony blew a puff of smoke through his lips. “Yeah, yeah.”
I stormed over to him and placed my hands on my hips. “No yeah; my uncle died from those cancer sticks. You said you were going to stop. Now put it out before I do it for you.”
He stood up and towered over me, but I didn’t move from my spot. He had muscle and weight on his side, but my determination to save my friend from dying an early and unnecessary death would overpower him. And I knew he would never hurt me. I think his intimidation techniques worked with some people, but not me.
He took one last drag and threw the cigarette the ground, smashing it with the toe of his shoe. “Happy?”
I pushed past him and dug my key into the back door’s lock. “I’ll be happy when you quit for good.”
He reached down and picked up the butt and flicked it into the garbage bin.
I held the door open for him. “You know, if I wanted a girlfriend to nag me all the time, I would get one.”
I chucked him in the arm. “Until then, you have me.”
He went inside and I followed, closing the door behind me. “I might have to call Parker and get him to come by so you can annoy him instead of me.”
The lights flicked on and I squinted at the harsh light. Tony was across the kitchen and into the dining room before I could see clearly.
“I only ‘annoy’ you because I care,” I said.
“Have you heard anything from him lately? Usually, he comes in at least once a week. I don’t think I’ve seen him since the day before the proposal.”
Ugh, don’t remind me.
“He’s busy, I guess,” I said, lifting an apron from the hangers on the wall.
“You haven’t heard from him since the proposal? I thought you helped him prepare everything?”
“I got a quick text that night saying she said yes.”
“And that’s the last you heard?”
“How many ways do I need to say it, Tony?” I said sharply.
Tony lifted his hands in surrender. “I’ll drop it. But I think he’s being a dick if he drops you after getting together with that chick.”
“He’s not dropping me,” I said defensively. “He’s probably in some post-proposal high. Maybe she’s changed after getting what she wanted.” It made me sick to think they were having sex, but at least Parker would deserve it after waiting an entire year. He was a man, after all. A man in love with a whore. I stifled a smirk at the thought.
“Maybe, but it’s still a dick move on his part. Especially after you helped him.”
It did suck that Parker hadn’t been in contact with me for two weeks. This was the longest we gone without talking in all the years we’d known each other. Even with his string of girlfriends in the past, he’d always made time for me. I wasn’t about to tell Tony how much I missed Parker. I had a feeling he knew, though, so saying it out loud would only make it true, and I wasn’t ready to do that just yet.
My mind was distracted by the influx of customers that morning. It was school break, and there were a lot of tourists in the area looking for a normal place to have breakfast. A few of the customers told me that this was the first place they saw in several different apps when looking for restaurants in the area. Even though Parker wasn’t talking to me, I wondered if he had gone through with his promise to help me out using his connections.
Other than that, I tried to push him out of my mind as I cooked for a full restaurant.
“Hey-yo!” Tony said from the dining area.
I glanced through the pass-through and saw Harriet and Kenneth Lamonte slowly making their way across the room to their regular table. It was the only one empty and Tony had been good about guarding it for our best customers.
When I cleared the grill, I went out there and greeted them.
Harriet fluffed her white poof of hair after taking off her giant straw hat while Kenneth groaned his way into a seated position in the booth.
“Morning, guys.” I looked down and let out a whoop. “Harriet, girl, those are some nice nails.”
She waggled her wrinkly fingers at me. “Do you like the color? The woman said it was called Three Alarm Fire.”
“It’s hot, woman.” I turned to Kenneth. “You better watch out for this one.”
He chuckled and then proceeded to cough into his handkerchief. He sputtered a few times before speaking. “I’ve been watching out for this woman since I met her. It was a good thing I scooped her up and married her before she could get away.”
“Well, I wanted to look good for Ken since it's our fortieth wedding anniversary today,” Harriet said and took Kenneth’s hands across the table.
“Wow! Forty years. That’s quite an accomplishment. Congrats! Are you going out to dinner somewhere special?”
“No, no, dear. This is our special meal.”
I pressed my hand against my chest, feeling the warmth inside. “You wanted to spend your anniversary here? That’s so sweet.”
“We love coming in here,” Ken said. “And the food is better than all of those fancy places that the tourists go to.”
I smiled. “Well, today I’ll make you anything you want; just name it.”
They ordered the same special they did every single time they came in, even after I tried convincing them to try something new. It was obvious that whatever they were doing was the right thing. Forty years! I couldn’t believe it. “Coming right up.”
The morning rush had died down a little bit, so I was able to take my time making their meals. I added a few extra spices and a lot of love. I brought them out the dishes myself.
“Here you go,” I said, sliding the plates in front of them. “Enjoy.”
Harriet touched my hand; hers were freezing. “Thank you, dear.”
“You’re welcome. And I wanted to let you know they are on the house.”
“Oh, no—” Kenneth started to protest.
“I won’t hear a word from you, mister. This is my anniversary gift to you. I only hope that one day I can say I’ve been with someone for forty years.”
“It’s not easy,” Harriet said honestly. “But I wouldn’t want to be with anyone else.”
“Me neither,” Kenneth said and winked at his wife.
The bell on the door rang and I turned to see Parker standing there.
I couldn’t help but smile. My heart bloomed seeing him there.
“Excuse me,” I said to the Lamontes.
Tony cleared his throat across the way and caught my attention. His look said, “Don’t be too eager,” and I flipped him the bird behind my back. I wasn’t eager. I was happy to see my best friend.
“Hey, long time no talk,” I said.
Parker scratched the back of his neck. “I know, I’m sorry. Can I talk to you about something?”
I looked around. We were still busy enough that I needed to be cooking instead of talking. “Are you staying for breakfast?”
“Not today; I have to get back to Rachel.”
Of course he did. Mentioning Rachel was a surefire way to put a damper on my mood.
“Well, follow me to the back; I have orders to prepare.”
Parker followed me into the kitchen and stood in the corner. He knew not to get in my way, and he probably didn’t want egg or other food particles all over his expensive clothes.
“What’s up?” I asked, grabbing a ticket from the pass through.
“I wanted to talk to you about the wedding.”
“Okay,” I said, fuming on the inside. “Go ahead; shoot.”
“We’re planning a small wedding, close friends and family only. And it’s going to be at the end of next month.”
I froze in my spot. “Wait, what?”
He sighed. “I know it's soon, but we don’t see why there’s a reason to wait.”
“We or she?”
He gave me a look, and I cracked a few eggs on the grill before he said anything. “Rachel suggested it, but I agree. Anyway, that’s not the whole thing.”
What else had she done?
“I want you to be my best man.”
I couldn’t help but laugh. “What?”
“I’m serious. You’re my best friend. There’s no reason that gender should be an issue.”
I shook my head and headed over to the other counter to and threw some bread in the toaster before pressing the lever down. “What did Rachel say about this?” I was sure she would have something to say.
“She gets a quick wedding; I get my best friend as my best man.”
Had they compromised over me? Interesting….
“So, what do you say?” he asked.
“Okay, fine,” I said, scooping the sunny side up eggs onto a plate. “I’ll be your best man.”
Parker came up behind me and lifted me off my feet. I let out a yelp. “Put me down.”
He hugged me tight against him. His scent filled my nose, and I sagged against him as he placed me back on my feet. I was momentarily lost in his light blue eyes. His smile was infectious, and I felt one spreading over my own lips. My best friend was positively giddy with the prospect of marrying Rachel. I should have been supportive of and happy for him. I mean, I would have been if he were marrying anyone else but her.
He took my hands in his and kissed me on the cheek. “Thank you. I wouldn’t want anyone else by my side on my wedding day.”
I caught the double meaning in his words, but it was obvious that he hadn’t intended to say I was the one he wanted by his side as his wife. Only as second best.