A Chance at Love (A Ferry Creek Novel): (a billionaire romance novel) (3 page)

So Bobby
’
s brother was older than him. Only by a couple
years.

The perfect family image took Bobby
to Annie and took them into marriage, pregnancy, a house, cars, a yard with a
cherry blossom out front, another pregnancy... and finally to divorce.

Now Bobby wasn
’
t sure what the hell the perfect
family actually meant.

Hell, staring at a picture of his
brother on the computer screen made him wonder what any family actually meant.

Bobby couldn
’
t figure out the jealousy but he knew he had to
shake it off.

With a shaking single finger he
gently touched the screen of his cell phone. He
’
d
go for the throat on this one and why the hell not, right? He
’
d start with his brother
’
s cell phone.

“
Hope
you pick up,
”
Bobby
whispered as the phone started to ring.

Jess Winthorne carried two plates
of bacon and eggs to Mr. and Mrs. Rosen. Mr. Rosen liked his bacon juicy and
Mrs. Rosen liked hers crispy. They always ordered the exact same meal except
for that minor detail. Mr. Rosen joked about it all the time, telling Jess that
opposites do attract.

Jess served the Rosens
’
and then took care of three
other tables before finally getting to step into the kitchen and stretch her
neck for a second. She leaned against a sink and took a deep breath. She had
become the unofficial manager of The Pot Diner since Bob
’
s son, Bobby, showed up to take over after Bob
suffered heart problems and was now resting on his deathbed. It all really
shook Jess up. She lost her parents in a car accident after she fled her
parents
’
home when she
became pregnant at eighteen. They wouldn
’
t
have supported her or the pregnancy and the pregnancy itself was the last straw
that had Jess fleeing home and finding comfort in Ferry Creek.

After showing up to The Pot Diner
with no money, Jess had sat and ordered food with no intention of paying. She
planned on ditching on the bill, but Peggie had been her waitress. Peggie saw
through her and left Jess in tears as Peggie sat across from her that morning thirteen
years ago. Jess confessed she had no money and instead of calling the police,
Peggie put her to work. She waited on tables to cover the bill and when Bob saw
Jess in the kitchen, he looked at her and instead of kicking her out, he called
her to his office. At that time Bob was tall and strong. He was a gentle giant
kind of man who became a father figure for Jess. When he took her into his
office that day, he made her fill out the necessary paperwork to work at The
Pot Diner.

Just like that, Jess had a new job
in a new town.

Sadly, her pregnancy didn
’
t last beyond the first
trimester, which in time became more of a blessing than the initial tragedy
Jess thought it was. She worked through her pain and confusion and it wasn
’
t long before she found herself
not only stuck in Ferry Creek, but in love with it.

She was also stuck with Darryl
Stant. He had a motorcycle, dark eyes, and a bad attitude that attracted Jess
long before anything actually happened.

Jess met Darryl when she was
twenty. He had come through town on motorcycle with a bike club. He was there
to ride and visit his dying aunt. Ferry Creek sunk its small town fangs into
Darryl after he wrecked his motorcycle and had to stay in town. The one month
stay turned into a year, and into the present day. He was now working for a
local construction company ran by Jack Houthe, who often used Jess to express
his frustrations with Darryl. Jess wasn
’
t
sure what she and Darryl were. They sometimes had a good time. Most times they
didn
’
t. They shared a bed
when they both needed to do so. They helped each other out when they each sank
into their own demons. To use the word
complicated
would only make Jess
laugh until tears came to her eyes.

“
Order,
”
a voice called out followed by
a bell.

Jess pushed from the sink and
walked to serve more food. She made enough working at The Pot Diner to survive
and that was just fine with her. Survival was the most basic need Jess could
have and as long as that was met, everything else was small.

“
Thanks,
Richie,
”
Jess said as she
grabbed the plate of French toast.

“
Anything
for you,
”
Richie said.

It was well known that Richie had a
crush on Jess. With that came a certain hatred for Darryl that bothered Jess.
Richie and Darryl had come face to face a few times and things got shaky. But
nobody ever threw a punch and Jess always managed to keep everyone calm.

Jess served the French toast,
refilled three coffees, and then took a break out back for some fresh, North
Carolina air. The Pot Diner was only open until three, offering breakfast and
lunch. Of course, she would sometimes stay later if Bobby needed help with
ordering, receiving, or managing the books. He was dead set on taking all of
his father
’
s notebooks and
putting them into a computer accounting program.

Outside she heard the distant
rumble of a motorcycle and figured it was probably Darryl. It was close to noon
and that was right around the time Darryl usually woke up. If that was the case,
and he was supposed to work with Jack, there would be hell to pay.

Jess turned her sights back to the
diner and found Bobby walking out of his office. His face looked flushed and
his eyes were a little dazed.

“
Everything
okay?
”
Jess asked as she
grabbed his arm and instantly thought of his father. Poor Bob. The once tough
man was in a hospital bed waiting to die. That was the sad truth of it.

“
Yeah,
”
Bobby said.
“
Everything is fine.
”

“
You
’
re lying to me,
”
Jess said.
“
I don
’
t like lying.
”

“
Coming
from the woman who spends time with Darryl Stant.
”

“
Enough
about me,
”
Jess said. She
blushed, hating that Darryl somehow activated a weakness in her body.
“
You look like hell right now.
”

“
Just
had to make a phone call,
”
Bobby said.

“
About
Bob?
”

“
Something
like that.
”

“
How
did it go?
”

“
Not
as I thought it would.
”

“
Oh?
”

“
Nobody
picked up,
”
Bobby said.
“
I was all set on what to say and
nobody picked up.
”

“
Did
you leave a message?
”

“
What
I have to say, Jess, can
’
t
be said on a message.
”

Bobby nodded and shook away Jess
’
s hold on his arm. He went to
the backdoor of the diner and then paused.

“
I
’
m going to see my father,
”
Bobby said.
“
You have this place?
”

“
Always,
”
Jess said.
“
Go. Give him a kiss for me.
”

“
You
know, Jess, you could do that yourself.
”

Jess swallowed and Bobby forced a
smile as he left. The door shut and Jess touched her face. She took a deep
breath to control the emotion that was desperate to come out of her.

She didn
’
t handle death well. She never had and never would
deal with it. It scared the hell out of her. The whole notion that death was
part of life just didn
’
t
connect with Jess. Not to mention seeing a man like Bob in the state he was in.
Just picturing him dying made her choke up. He had helped her with everything.
He gave her a job. He let her stay in the apartment upstairs rent free for a
year. Bob did more for Jess than anyone else had ever done.

And on top of the fear of death,
Jess felt guilty.

She felt guilty that she hadn
’
t gone to see him more. It was
just so hard to see Bob like he was now. Tired and weak, the strength of his
body and muscles were long gone and even when he smiled it wasn
’
t the same big genuine Bob
smile.

Jess did her best to get back to
work. She made sure everyone was fed and happy. She conversed with all those
she could. As usual it was just she and Peggie working. Bobby had a few other
part-time waitresses and kitchen staff, but it was the
regular crew
(as
the locals began calling them all) who spent the most time in the diner.

Peggie stood with her hands spread
on the counter as Jess checked and began to make more coffee.

“
You
told him to take the cuffs off and he did?
”
Peggie asked.

“
That
’
s right,
”
Murphy Winters said as he scooped eggs into his
mouth.

Murphy Winters owned the local
garage repair shop. Anyone who needed him knew to find him in the diner before
looking at the repair shop. He survived on what everyone called
‘
old money
’
and always had stories to share.

“
I
don
’
t believe it,
”
Peggie said.
“
Jess, are you listening to this?
”

“
Nope,
”
Jess smiled.

“
Well,
listen up,
”
Murphy said.
“
I
’
m
telling how I got out of getting arrested down in Chester.
”

“
How
long ago was that?
”
Jess
asked.

“
Probably
when you were still in diapers.
”

“
There
’
s an image,
”
another voice added.

The counter broke out in laughter.

Jess looked at Tyler Aberden and
stuck out her tongue. He was another one of the locals that spent probably too
much time in the diner. Jess and Tyler always had a fun flirty relationship and
nothing more. It never made sense to Jess, but somehow nothing ever happened.
Peggie bothered Jess about it all the time, but the truth was they just didn
’
t click in that way.

“
Don
’
t you have a job, Tyler?
”
Jess asked.

“
Not
today,
”
Tyler said. He
flicked at his coffee mug.
“
Could
use another cup here.
”

“
Sure
thing,
”
Jess said.

She stepped down from a step stool
and grabbed a pot of coffee. She put it on the counter and turned back to the
coffee machine.

“
You
’
re not going to serve me?
”
Tyler asked.

“
Nope,
”
Jess called out.

“
She
’
s vicious,
”
Peggie said. Peggie then
whispered.
“
She needs a
boyfriend...
bad
.
”

“
Boyfriend?
”
Tyler asked.
“
What about biker boy?
”

“
Can
we go back to Murphy
’
s police
story?
”
Jess asked as her
cheeks burned red.

She caught Tyler staring and
smiling at her. He would sometimes give her that look and Jess could never
figure it out. She could never figure out what it meant or what to do about it.

“
I
was just getting to the good part,
”
Murphy said. He lifted one of his thick hands hoping to keep everyone in
silence.

“
I
can
’
t listen to this,
”
Tyler said.
“
I
’
ve
talked to every cop in Chester. Nobody knows who the hell you are, Murphy.
”

The counter erupted in laughter.

Tyler was in plain clothes that
morning, but he was a cop in Ferry Creek. Some people believed he was the only
cop in town. That wasn
’
t
true, by any means, but it seemed that Tyler was everywhere. He was always
involved with every little happening and not in an intrusive way but in a
helpful way. That
’
s what
made him so personable and that
’
s
why everyone trusted him.

“
Now
wait a minute,
”
Murphy
said.
“
Did I say Chester? I
didn
’
t mean Chester. Ah, my
head is going.
”

“
Your
head is gone,
”
Peggie said.

She took a piece of bacon off
Murphy
’
s plate and bit into
it. She placed the piece back on his plate and smiled.

“
Am
I getting charged for that?
”
Murphy asked.

“
Talk
to the boss,
”
Peggie said
and nodded to Jess.