Taken by Surprise

Chapter 4

As they walked through the house, Jessie could not stop herself from running her fingers over the gleaming polished wood of the furniture, or the silky feeling curtains at some of the windows. The high tech kitchen amazed her the most.

"I believe she tested new recipes here," the attorney told her. "She purely loved cooking."

When they'd finished the tour, Jessie turned to him, excitement wriggling through her. "Are you sure it's really mine?"

He nodded, smiling at her. "Not a doubt. In fact, you could even stay here. We got a housekeeper in when we knew you were on the way. You can see the house is clean, linens are clean. Utilities are still in place, although you'll need to get them switched over to you."

"Stay here? Really?"

"It's all yours and ready for you." He handed her a key ring. "House and restaurant. There're two sets on there."

"I'll be sure to keep one in a safe place," she assured him.

Fort Mavis was a far cry from Houston. In fact, they were worlds apart. But her grandmother had taught her always to believe in signs, and maybe this was one she should pay attention to. She had no job, two months until she had to vacate her apartment, and no emotional entanglements to hold her back. At that last thought, she felt a stab of pain in her heart, but then she sucked it up. Her own fault.

Marshall looked at his watch. "How about taking a run down to the diner? It's almost dinnertime. We can get you something to eat and you can see how the place works."

Again excitement bubbled up in her. Delfina's Diner. Her own business. If it was half as nice as the house, she'd figure out how to make it work. Not that she had a lot of options.

"Sounds good," she told him. "Let's go."

Delfina's Diner-Jessie repeated the name, letting the the sound of it roll around on her tongue again-was located about halfway down Main Street. Somehow she had envisioned an old railroad car made into a restaurant -yes, she got her images of things from movies-but this was a storefront, albeit a good-size one. But she noticed the lights in front were off.

"The Diner usually closes at five," Marshall told her. "Delfina does-did-a great breakfast and lunch business. But I figured you'd want to see the place and the people were anxious to meet you, so they stayed around."

"I'm sure they're worried about their jobs. I know I would be." Jessie sure knew what it was like to get booted out with no warning. "But I'm not in a hurry to make any changes. I'll tell them that."

"We'll go around and park in back," Marshall said.

Jessie had no idea what to expect, She'd never even worked in a place like this, never mind been in a town like this, and her nerves suddenly decided to wake up and kick the butterflies in her stomach into a jitterbug. She followed the attorney into what was obviously the storage area, supplies and other things stored neatly on rows of metal shelving. Three doors opened off a tiny hallway-the office, and the restrooms. Then they were in the kitchen.

Jessie wanted to take her time examining it, but first she had to introduce herself to the two men and two women standing there with attitudes that were part nerves and part belligerence. Well, she hadn't expected them to welcome her with open arms. They knew as little about her as she did about them-nothing. Or maybe the attorney had told them about her and she wasn't sure if that was good or bad.

Before Marshall could say anything, she stepped forward

"Hi. I'm Jessie Coford, and I'm real glad to meet all of you." I hope.

She went to each one individually, shaking hands and smiling.

Okay, so far. They didn't skewer me with that long fork hanging above the griddle.

They introduced themselves and she tried to burn their names into her memory: Bob, Diane, Rona, Alton. Two cooks. Two waitresses.

"We hear you come from one of those fancy restaurants in Houston," Rona said, folding her arms across her chest. She looked to be the older of the two women, short and compact, greying hair pulled back in a ponytail. "We're not fancy here." She paused, her chin out. "Just so you know."

Jessie wanted to tell her she was well aware of that but she was here to make this work. She had no other options. Connecting with these people was mandatory or she was screwed from day one.

"Fancy isn't everything," she said in an even voice. "Good food is. And I'm hoping in the next few days all of you can show me the things that have made Delfina's Diner successful."

"A few days?" Alton snorted. "Try a few weeks."

Uh oh. Trouble on the griddle.

"However long it takes. I'm here to learn."

Bob looked at Diana and then back at Jessie. "You plan to do some of the cookin', like Delfina?"

Jessie nodded. "I do. I enjoy cooking." At least that much was true. "But I want to learn your menu and watch you before I do anything."

Her success here depended in large part on these four people. She could not afford to piss any of them off. And she had a lot to learn. She wasn't in Houston anymore and this was her only option. She had to make it work.

After that, the atmosphere relaxed a fraction. They took turns explaining the schedule and work plan to her. Jessie made mental notes but first thing tomorrow she'd be here in the office. She wanted to go over the books, check the inventory, and watch her crew at work.

Her crew! Just the sound of the words thrilled her. She hoped before long they'd feel that way.

"How about walking me through the place." She smiled at all of them. "Just a little walkthrough."

"We open at six," Rona told her when they were finished. "First shift gets here at five."

"What time did Delfina usually get here?" she asked.

"Some days five and then left in the afternoon. Some days, midmorning."

Jessie nodded. "I'll be here at five so you can show me the setup for the day."

She waited for everyone to precede her out the back door then locked up with the keys Marshal Wohl had given her.

"Whew." She made a fake swipe at her forehead. "They'll be tough nuts to crack."

"You can do it." He opened the car door for her. "Delfina had a lot of faith in you."

Really?

She wanted to ask him a lot about Delfina, including how exactly they were related and how she'd never heard of her before. But first she needed to get settled in.

"Can we take a minute just so I can get a good look at the front?" she asked.

"Sure. No problem."

She stood on the sidewalk, staring at the place that was now hers. At the booths lining the front window and the cheerful lettering on the door. She'd make this work because it was the only option she had. The excitement that had been wiggling its way through her since she opened the letter burst into full bloom. On an impulse, she pulled out her cell and snapped some photos. In case it all turned into a big mistake, she wanted proof she'd at least owned it for one day.

"Okay." She turned back to the lawyer. "I'm ready now, if you'll just take me back to my car."

She happened to glance down the street and her heart nearly stopped. A man walked out of one of the stores, paused for a moment then headed down the street. For a moment, she thought he looked like Jack Ward. Then he disappeared into another store and she was sure her mind played tricks on her. He'd been too much on her thoughts lately as she contemplated the disaster her life had turned into. That had to be it. No way in hell would Jack Ward be here in Fort Mavis, about as far from Houston as you could get and still be in civilization. She was definitely in a bad way, no doubt about it.

"Jessie? Miss Coford?"

She realized Marshall Wohl was speaking to her. Damn! Had she fallen into a trance? A Jack Ward trance?

"What?" She gave herself a mental shake. "Sorry."

"I asked if you were okay. You looked a little strange?"

"Oh, no, I'm fine." She let out a breath. "Probably just road fatigue catching up with me."

"Well, then, let's get you to your car and you can head on home."

Home! Wow! Talk about a change in lifestyle.

As they drove back down the street, she kept an eye out, scanning every man she saw, but no Jack.

Figment of my deprived imagination. What would Jack Ward be doing here, anyway?