by Cookie Jones
I knew that Gina’s mom would react completely over the top.
“Ooh, tell me when you’ll surprise them, I have to be there to see your mom’s face,” I said and she laughed. “So did you hear yet? Mister Price died,” I said and Gina gasped.
“Seriously? How did that happen?” she asked, sounding just as shocked as I was.
“Apparently, he had end stage cancer! Didn’t tell anyone and didn’t take treatment either,” I told her and she gasped again.
“Oh my goodness, that’s crazy, what’s Mrs. Price gonna do?” she asked me and I sighed.
“I have no idea, it’s not like Nick is around to help her with anything and who’s going to take over the company?”
“Oh please, you think he’ll come back to take over that company? It’s the whole reason he left, remember. Plus, I’m sure it can’t be that bad, there’s a board so it’s not like things will completely fall apart,” she said and I nodded.
“Yeah, you’re right, anyway, I’ll be flying to New Haven later on this week, my dad’s really bummed out about it,” I told her and twirled my hair around my finger absently.
“Oh that’s right, your dad and Price were close, I'll give him a call later,” Gina said and that was one of the reasons I loved her so. She and I had been like family since homeroom in the ninth grade and we’d seriously acted like we were sisters, even though Gina was fair skinned and of Italian decent and I had caramel colored skin and from African American descent.
“So on a lighter note, any new prospects?” she asked me and I rolled my eyes even though I smiled.
“What about you? I hope you’re getting out and not living your life in that hospital,” I told her and she snorted.
“Until I get my full surgical license, my life is the hospital…but there is this new nurse who’s quite sexy,” she said with a smirk to her voice.
“Oh really? Give me details, he doesn’t exist without details,” I said and she laughed.
“I swear he could be Channing Tatum’s doppelganger. He looks exactly like him, but Luke’s eyes are the perfect shade of blue and he used to be in the army and he’s so nice and charming and I think I have a big crush,” she said all on one breath and I cracked up.
“Alright, take a breather! So he’s basically Nurse Magic Mike,” I said and she laughed.
“Yes, exactly! But he’s a surgical nurse and he works in pediatrics and he’s a distraction. I was talking to some parents about their two-year-old, he walked by and I forgot entirely what I was saying. I mean, God forbid I end up with him in the operating room next to me,” she said and I rolled my eyes.
“Oh come on, you’d be able to tune him out if you’re operating. And if you have a distracting crush, the best thing to do is to talk to him, maybe ask him out,” I suggested.
“Yeah, well, it’s easier said then done. Imagine if Magic Mike was standing next to you in an elevator, would you be able to form coherent thoughts or sentences?” she asked and I laughed.
“Well, yeah, once I was over the whole star effect. Then just imagine, you guys would end up going out and getting serious and you’d be able to bring someone gorgeous home to your mom, who would be over the moon,” I said and Gina cracked up all over again.
“And get this…he’s Jewish,” she said conspiratorially.
“Well, then it’s settled! You have to marry him, if you don’t your ancestors will frown on you,” I said and she chuckled.
“Yeah, imagine if we do start going out, one mention to my parents of him being Jewish, they’ll start planning the wedding,” she said and I laughed just imagining it.
Gina and I spoke for a little longer before hanging up and then I all but dragged myself to my room and fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow. It would be a busy three days, I’d be getting Jayce situated at the firm and taking care of those cases, I actually looked forward to taking the time off to visit home.
The beginning of the week passed by like lightning since I was so busy, and before I knew it I was on a flight back home. I could have driven and been there relatively quickly, but my parents had a spare car and, frankly, I was too beat from the day to keep focused on the road. Once my flight landed, my dad was there to pick me up and I couldn’t have been happier to see him.
“Daddy!” I didn’t care that I sounded like a five-year-old, but it had been a while since I’d been home. He smiled happily when he spotted me and caught me in a tight hug when I reached him. My dad was a big guy, tall with an athletic build. He had played football while he was in college and kept up his figure ever since. He had dark brown skin and classically handsome features. He and I shared the same light brown eyes that sometimes resembled lion eyes. Other than that, I looked pretty much exactly like my mom.
“Hey, baby girl, how was your flight?” he asked me after I let him go, he grabbed my carry on for me and we walked towards baggage claim.
“It was quick, nothing to it. How are you doing?” I asked and looked up at him pointedly.
“I’m holding up, don’t worry about me…your mom is really looking forward to seeing you, though, she’s home cooking up a storm,” he said and I checked my watch.
“Dad, it’s almost ten o’clock,” I said and he chuckled.
“Yeah, well, that’s what I tried to tell her, but she wouldn’t have it.”
“How’s the restaurant doing anyway? I haven’t spoken to Mom in a little while,” I said, feeling guilty. Dad I was obligated to call to stay updated on the firm, but Mom I always forgot to speak to regularly.
“It’s great, you know she loves that place too much to see it slip,” I smirked and looked up at dad with a quirked brow.
“Now that I think about it, I am looking forward to having some expertly home cooked food,” I said wistfully.
After that, we got home pretty quickly and a strong sense of nostalgia caught up with me when Dad pulled up the long drive and the brick facade of our house came into view. It looked the exact same with the two white pillars on either side of the front doors and the three stories of the house looming above.
“Every time I visit it seems like the house gets bigger,” I said and Dad chuckled as we walked towards the iron doors.
“That’s just because you live in the city and all the apartments there are tiny,” he commented just as one of the front doors swung open and my mom came out with a huge smile on her face and her arms open for a hug.
My mom was pretty gorgeous and she showed absolutely no signs of age at her young forty-two years. She had light caramel colored skin and long curly hair that was all natural and a product of her being mixed. She had exotic features, though, high well formed cheekbones, arched brows with hazel eyes, full lips, a gentle nose and chin, and a feminine jaw line. We did look a lot alike, apart from my hair, which I always kept straight because the curls were too much to keep up with. I also had a curvier form than her svelte shape and was just a bit shorter than her five-eleven.
“Oh, I missed you my beautiful daughter!” she exclaimed and hugged me tightly. I laughed and hugged her back just as tight.
“I missed you too, Mom, you smell like food,” I told her and she grinned at me when she pulled back.
“Well of course, I made your favorite, lobster mac and cheese.”
My mouth watered as she said the words.
“I’m about to go and sprint to the kitchen then,” I told her and she laughed; they thought I joked, but oh no.
I made sure Dad had the bags and then ran to the kitchen where the smell of lobster mac and cheese entered my very soul. I found a bowl and went to spoon some into it from the simmering pot.
“Oh my lord, it’s about to go down,” I spoke to the bowl and then heard my mom’s chuckle.
“You are still just as silly as you were when you were little,” she said and I grinned at her as I grabbed a fork.
“It’s always been your food that brought it out of me,” I said and sat down at the breakfast bar.
“So how
are you? How’s work?” she asked me and I took a moment before I replied; the mac and cheese was perfect, the perfect creaminess and perfect lobster to cheese flavor ratio.
“Work is busy, but a good busy. I love it up there,” I told her and she smiled happily.
“I’m glad, you know I always worried you went into law just because of your father.”
“At first I thought so too, but when I actually got to college and law school? I loved it,” I said and then added, “Plus being the boss is pretty good, too.” I grinned and she laughed.
“Who’s the boss? I thought I was the boss,” my dad said as he walked into the kitchen.
“I meant to say co-boss,” I said and grinned at him innocently. He stepped over and kissed me on the forehead.
“So how long are you in town?” Mom asked after I swallowed another bite of food.
“Until Friday after Thanksgiving actually, Gina is coming into town next week, too, but don’t tell her parents, she wants to surprise them,” I said and my mom was pleasantly surprised to hear the news.
“Oh that’s great! She’s so sweet; she called your father yesterday to see how he was doing,” she said and I glanced at Dad.
“So when is the wake and stuff?” I asked him in a gentler tone and he sighed, the melancholy evident in his eyes.
“It’s tomorrow afternoon and then the funeral is on Saturday morning,” he said and I nodded, glad I managed to get to New Haven that Wednesday.
“Oh and you know what? Marge’s son is back, Nicholas?” my mom said conspiratorially and my eyes widened.
“Really? Do you think he knew his dad was sick?” she shook her head even as I asked the question.
“He had no idea, he only just got here too, earlier today, and he and his mother had it out right in their drive. Your father had to walk over there to diffuse the argument,” I glanced at Dad who nodded sagely, his arms crossed over his chest.
“That boy is something else…the way he spoke to his mother was just unacceptable, she just lost her husband, you know?” he said and I simply listened to the story, wide eyed.
“That’s sad…the whole thing is just…sad,” I said and my dad nodded.
“Well, let’s not sit here and gossip, how’s that mac and cheese?” Mom asked and I grinned at her.
“So good, my knees are weak,” I said and she cracked up.
“Speaking of weak knees, when are you gonna find yourself a man?” she asked me and my dad groaned.
“That’s my cue to step out,” he mumbled and then kissed us both goodnight before leaving the kitchen.
“Mom, you know how busy I am with the firm right now. I only just got it all set up,” I said and she smirked at me; she wasn’t having any excuses.
“You know the Peterson’s from down the road?” she asked me and I groaned.
“Not again with Joe Peterson,” I said and she gave me an innocent look.
“What? I’m just saying that Joe is quite handsome and whenever we go over for dinner and he’s there he always asks about you,” she said, trying to be all convincing.
“Mom, that’s just because he’s trying to be polite,” I said and she shrugged.
“Well, he’ll be at the wake and such so you’ll get a chance to see what I’m talking about for yourself,” she said and I stopped myself from rolling my eyes.
“Mom, I’m not going to talk to guys at a wake,” I said and she waved her hand dismissively.
“You know what I mean, if he says hi, you can say hi…” she said suggestively and I groaned again.
“I’ll be polite but that’s it,” I said and she sighed in longsuffering.
“I’d just like a son-in-law to cook for is all, and eventually some grandbabies.”
Oh no, the grandbaby talk.
“I just want to enjoy my mac and cheese right now, that’s all I’m thinking about,” I said to stop her before she built steam and she smiled while she rolled her eyes at me.
“Alright fine, but like I said, say hi,” she said and then got up from the counter. “I’m going to head up to bed, don’t forget to put that pot away when you’re done,” she said and I nodded.
We wished each other a goodnight and I finished my mac and cheese in blissful peace. Afterwards, I made sure to put the leftovers away and then took the kitchen staircase to the second floor. My room was at the end of the hallway and just as I remembered it, decorated in modern furniture and complimenting pastels. The bed was by the two large French windows and there was a little reading area in front of the fireplace across the room from the bed. On either side of the fireplace was the door to the bathroom and then the closet. My bags were set neatly near the closet door and I went to unpack and change into my pajamas after a quick shower.
***
The next day I learned my mom took the day off from the restaurant and we hung out and went shopping. I had almost forgotten how whenever we were out together people always commented that we looked like sisters.
“Alright, your father should be home soon from work, then we have to head over so we’re not late,” she said once we got home from being out all day.
I honestly didn’t like wakes, what with the open casket, then the emotion was always a bit more raw at a wake than a funeral. I showered and straightened my hair, then got dressed and was ready just as my dad got home, hollering through the house that it was time to go.
“Just in time, where’s your mother?” he asked when I met him downstairs in the foyer.
“Uh, probably still getting ready,” I said.
“No, no, I’m here, let’s go,” she said and then we were off, driving towards one of the old historic churches in New Haven.
It was a private wake, but still I was surprised by how many people were present. I could only imagine how many people would be there for the funeral. I recognized Marge Price at the doors welcoming everyone, and next to her was a tall guy wearing large black sunglasses and a crisp black suit. He had curly shoulder length hair that was brown and gold, or dirty blonde. From what I saw, his features were starkly handsome, like supermodel worthy. He had a razor straight jaw that was peppered with five o’clock shadow and a straight nose as well as full pink lips and a superman chin, slightly cleft, not to mention he had those perfect cheekbones any male model would kill for.
“Is that…” I leaned towards my mom and nodded towards the guy next to Marge.
“Yes, that’s Nick,” she said in a soft voice as we got closer to them, and then we were next up to walk through the doors.
“Oh Jeff, Ronnie, you made it,” Marge said, her voice was wispy and colored with sadness. Then she saw me and seemed a bit surprised. “Clary! Oh look at you, it’s been so long,” she said and then embraced me first in a tight hug.
“Hi, Mrs. Price, I’m so so sorry about Doug,” I whispered to her and she shuddered in my arms before she slowly pulled away.
“Thank you, Clary, thanks for coming all the way out here,” she said and I nodded, a lump formed in my throat just from the loss pouring off of her. Then my mom got her into another hug and I turned my attention to Nick.
“Hi, I’m sorry about your dad,” I said politely and he nodded, but didn’t say a word.
Odd, but I couldn’t blame him…his dad did just die. Soon we were walking inside and taking a seat at a pew that wasn’t so full, off to the right side of the room. The casket was all white and the top was open, it was decorated with flowers and there was a large portrait of Doug Price next to the casket. He was a handsome man and in the picture one would never suspect that he was sick or could be sick. His green eyes were bright and his hair perfectly gelled; his smile was happy, though, as if he was looking at someone he loved.
“It’s just…such a shock,” I murmured as I studied the portrait and my dad put his hand on my thigh just before he got up to go and pay respects.
My mom followed him, her hand in his and I decided not to go up. I didn’t know Mr. Price that well and, frankly, I didn’t really want
to see the body. I heard the doors close at the back of the room and assumed the service would be starting soon, especially as Marge and Nick made their way to the first pew and sat down. They sort of both just stared straight ahead sightlessly until a priest called everyone’s attention.
Honestly, I had a hard time paying attention until Marge went up to the pulpit to speak about Doug. She really did love him and explained that since they found out about the cancer so late, she didn’t want to push him to spend his last days in hospitals, he didn’t want it, either. I understood their reality towards the end of Doug’s life, but what about Nick? It was definitely sad seeing him looking ahead, his expression blank and his shoulders slumped. When the service ended we stayed back because Mom and Dad wanted to support Marge.
“Clary? Clary Richards?” I glanced over to the left and saw none other than Joe Peterson.
I was standing near the back of the room trying not to run into too many people. But he found me, though as I looked at him, I had to admit that my mom was right. He had grown up since I saw him last. He was tall and broad shouldered, had flawless tan skin and a great shape that was evident under his suit. He was very clean cut and his smile was like…mega watt charming.
“Oh my goodness, Joe,” I said and he closed the distance between us and pulled me into a hug.
“You look good, New York seems to agree with you,” he said and I laughed, more for his sake than the comment actually being funny.
“Yeah, I guess so. How have you been?” I asked politely. I didn’t know if it was just because my mom wanted me to talk to him or what, but I wasn’t really feeling Joe, no matter how handsome he was.
“Well, I’ve been pretty well, yeah, I’m finally at the helm of my father’s company and it’s going really well,” he said and the fact that he began and ended his sentence with ‘well’ told me he must be a little dull.
“Your dad does consulting right?” I asked and glanced around for my parents; they were talking with Marge and I figured I’d excuse myself from Joe soon.
Joe seemed pleased that I remembered what his dad did for a living and started to talk about the business. But I made an excuse and then made my way over to my parents who were slowly meandering towards the exit, finally.
