“Mmm, schmoozing it up at a fancy restaurant? I like it!” Rowena happily agreed. “First, bottoms up, boys! These mimosas are not going to finish themselves.”
As they drank and continued planning the wedding, Jimmy was beginning to enjoy himself. Even though it wasn’t quite getting married at the beach, it was going to be beach inspired. It was better than nothing.
He felt a pang in his chest, and he suddenly hated that he felt like he was settling. A big fancy ceremony wasn’t what he wanted at all, but he wanted to be able to compromise with Cold. A large event made sense because of Cold’s status, though Jimmy still would have much preferred a private gathering.
Well, he decided firmly, they were definitely going to go somewhere very warm and tropical for their honeymoon. That was non-negotiable.
By the end of the pitcher of mimosas, Jimmy was surprised to find he was actually having a good time. He was buzzed and smiling, finding Charlie’s company much more palatable with alcohol in his system. More than that, having Rowena’s infectious energy close by was always hard to resist.
If he thought of this as planning a big party and not a wedding, it was even fun.
Charlie was thrilled to announce that Chef Thornton would take them this afternoon for a private tasting, and they all piled into the limo with Jerry at the wheel.
“So, Chef Thornton just happened to have some availability for us?” Jimmy asked curiously. “Or was this some of your wedding planner magic?”
“Some of your magic, actually,” Charlie replied. “As soon as he found out it was for you and Mr. Legrand, he was practically begging me to come.”
“Being a mafia husband has its perks,” Rowena giggled sweetly.
“It certainly does,” Jimmy chuckled.
They arrived at the restaurant and were greeted personally by Chef Thornton. He escorted them to Cold’s private table where trays of food were already waiting for them: a colorful buffet of bite-sized treats and snacks to help plan the wedding menu.
The food was very welcome after so many mimosas. They all eagerly dug in, chatting and discussing what they liked best as they picked at the vast selection. Jimmy was having a great time choosing what he wanted, and he enjoyed knowing that he had full control of this.
It wasn’t as satisfying as being married barefoot in the sand, but he could have all the crab cakes and shrimp cocktails that he wanted.
They were just finishing up the dessert selections when Jimmy felt his phone ring. He checked to see who was calling and saw it was Dario. He opted to let it go to voicemail since they were nearly done, and he decided he would call Dario back later.
Jimmy frowned when his phone rang again. It was still Dario, and Jimmy felt a peculiar lurch in his stomach. It wasn’t often that Dario called as opposed to texting. He excused himself from the table, hastily answering on the way to the bathroom for some privacy. “Hey, Dario! What’s up?”
“Where are you?” Dario immediately demanded.
“At Ingrid’s with Rowena and Charlie. We’re doing this tasting thing for the wedding—”
“You’ve gotta get out of there, right now!”
“What are you talking about?” Jimmy gulped, letting himself into the handicapped stall and sitting down. “What’s going on?”
“Are you somewhere safe?” Dario demanded. “Are you with Charlie right now? Can he hear you? Oh, shit—can he hear me? Am I on speaker?”
“Huh?” Jimmy’s heart began to thud uncomfortably. “No, I’m freakin’ hiding in the bathroom. What’s wrong? You’re starting to freak me out.”
“Charlie is a fuckin’ federal agent!” Dario exclaimed. “He’s a plant! A snitch! A narc! Whatever!”
“I knew it, I knew it, I fuckin’ knew it!” Jimmy hissed triumphantly. He shouldn’t have been so excited, but he had been wary of Charlie for so long that having his suspicions confirmed was very satisfying. “Shit, how did you figure it out? Do you have proof?”
“Hell, yes, I do,” Dario declared. “I knew I had seen that doofus somewhere before, and I’d been racking my brain like crazy trying to remember! I was re-alphabetizing my VHS tapes and then it just freakin’ hit me! Space Demon Dog Number Four inCurse of the Alien Death Woof!”
“Huh?”
“Okay, it’s this super awful science fiction movie that’s been out of print for like twenty years. I got a copy as part of a trade ‘cause this guy really wanted myStar Warstapes, you know, the old ones that aren’t all that special edition crap—”
“Dario,” Jimmy pleaded.
“Right! Sorry! In the movie, there’s this one dude who yells out ‘Cheerio, chaps!’ right before he becomes an alien chew toy. It’s Charlie. Like, baby-faced Charlie, but it’s totally him. I check the credits and it says his name is Thomas Eastwick.”
“Charlie isn’t even his real name?”
