“He’ll be two months in three days.”Christine simply beamed.“He’s been the best baby.He sleeps most of the time.The rest of the time he eats, poops, and gurgles,” she laughed.
“Lucky you,” Jamie leaned in towards the baby.“Babies always have the best smells.”
“I know, right?”Christine took the baby back.“Can I see the kitchen?Please?I’m so excited!”
“Me too.Sure, let me give you the grand tour.”Jamie noticed that the four delivery guys were taking a much-deserved break, guzzling down bottles of water they’d obviously brought with them.Jamie led the way through the back door of the diner.“Everything should be hooked up by the end of the day and ready to go.”
“Oh...wow.”Christine looked at the new kitchen equipment and then through to the dining room.“You’re doing almost the exact same design as the Peasant.”She looked at Jamie.“This is going to be fantastic!”
“That’s my hope.”Jamie turned towards the rear wall.“This will be the baking/pastry station.”
Christine ran her hand over the new stainless-steel table, with its protective covering still on it.“This is nice.Well thought out.”
“We have our own dedicated ovens here,” Jamie pointed out.“And there will be another bench here”—he motioned— “it’ll be my biscuit table.”
“It all looks good, Jamie.You’ve done a wonderful job.Of course, I didn’t see it before, but this is like a brand-new restaurant.”Christine looked around again.“I can see myself in here.”
“Thanks, I did put a lot of thought into it.Of course, Joesph had the final say on everything from the kitchen to the dining room.”
Christine laughed.“Oh, I’m sure he did.Where is he?”
“I’m coming.I’m coming!”Joesph shouted from the outside.“I’m here.”He announced as he ran through the doorway.“Quick, give me a hug, beautiful.”Joesph wrapped his arms around Christine.“It’s so good to see you.”He held her at arm’s length, looking her up and down.“Are you sure you just had a baby?It doesn’t look like it.”He hugged her close again.“So, introduce me to the wee one.”
Christine showed Joesph the baby in her arms, still asleep.
“He isstunning!”Joesph cooed over the baby.“I’msohappy for you, Christine.”
“I hope you’ll come down from Atlanta often and see us.”
“Oh...about that,” Joesph said, then cooed at the baby again.“I’m going to move down here.I’m opening up my own place here.”
“What?”Christine looked shocked.“You?Move here?Not live in Atlanta?”She looked at Jamie.“Is he sick?I thought he hated small towns.”
Jamie laughed.“Well, Columbus isn’t exactly small anymore.Besides, he may starve to death if I’m not there to cook for him.”
Joesph stood up and glared at Jamie.“Youdorealize that there areotherrestaurants in Atlanta, don’tyou?I wouldnotstarve.I can make a sandwich at the very least.”
“And where would you get biscuits and gravy?”Jamie asked, “Or apple pie à
la mode?Or homemade ice cream?Hmm?”
“Hush up.No one likes a smarty-pants.”Joesph turned back to Christine.“How long are you down for?”
“Just the day.I have an appointment to see the house that Jamie found.I love what you’ve done here, Joesph.It’s brilliant.”She glanced towards the dining room.“It looks like an upscale diner.”
“That’s exactly what I was going for.Thank you, kind lady.”Joesph did a little bow.
“What time is your appointment?”Jamie asked.
Christine looked at her watch.“In about twenty minutes.Do you know how far it is from here?How long will it take to drive?”
“The house is closer to the middle of the town, so you should probably be on your way soon.I don’t think it will take that long, but if you’ve never driven there, you’ll want more time.”
“I hope it won’t be a twenty-minute commute every day,” Christine said, a slight scowl on her face.
“No.I’d say it probably wouldn’t take you more than ten minutes to get from there to here,” Jamie quickly added.“And the location is great.So close to any and everything you’d need.”
“Did you find out about childcare?”She asked as she shifted the baby to the other arm.“Here, you hold him for a minute.My arms are starting to ache.”She pushed the baby towards Joesph.
