I’d had to go home and fess up to my mom that I’d gotten fired, but then I immediately told her about the mysterious Jack who’d bought me Vinnie’s. She’d taken it better than I had, simply saying that it was a gift from God and to cherish it.
“I know,” I groaned. “Okay, I’ll finish it tonight. I gotta go, Mom. Love you.”
“You too, hun.”
I hung up, and the phone rang again.
I picked it up. “Hannah’s Fine Italian, this is Hannah,” I said again.
“Hi, Hannah. This is Chloe, Jack Marrow’s assistant.”
I sat up straighter. “Hi.”
“Hi. Jack’s in a meeting, but he has a message for you.”
My heart flipped wildly in my chest. He’d made it seem like I might not hear from him until next Christmas.
“Okay.” I braced myself for her message. What if Raj had flown home and told him I was horrible at this and he should take the restaurant back? Could he do that? Would he?
“Okay, from Jack: How is your mom? I know you said her numbers were looking bad, and it’s been two weeks, so is she doing better?” she said.
I relaxed. He’d called to hear how my mom was doing? That was beyond sweet.
“She’s doing okay. Numbers are looking a bit better, but she barely eats for a few days after chemo, so it’s hard to keep her weight up.” It felt so weird to be talking through someone else, but I understood that Jack was a busy man.
“Okay, Hannah. I’ll let Jack know. Thanks.” Then she just hung up.
What in the world?
Okay...That was weird. Jack was weird. The social norms people usually followed seemed lost on him, but I couldn’t complain since he was so sweet.
That night was busy. The restaurant was at capacity, and other than Mrs. Mackey sending back her food for being too cold, we had no complaints about the parmesan.
By the time I got home for the night, it was past midnight and my mom was asleep on the couch with a knitted quilt draped over her.
I wanted to move her to the bed, where she would probably be more comfortable, but seeing her finally resting was a good sign. She needed rest more than a comfortable bed.
God, please carry her through this. Heal her.I sent up a silent prayer, the prayer I’d prayed constantly over the past few months. My mother was all I had. I had no siblings, and my father died in a car accident when I was two. This woman was my only family other than Aunt Ellie in North Carolina and her sweet foster kids.
I sat down at the desk in my room, stared at the nine-page letter I’d written to Jack, and actually laughed. I couldn’t send this. It was a trauma dump, and he would think I was unhinged.
I tucked the long letter into the drawer beside me, pulled out a fresh sheet of paper, and began to write. When it was done, I typed it up in an e-mail and hovered over the send button.
I probably wouldn’t see him until next Christmas, but I couldn’t wait that long to thank him for changing my life. I clicked send and went to bed.
Chapter Four
JACK
I stared at the email with trepidation. It was from Hannah, with the subject lineThank you, and I knew that it was going to be filled with praise for what a nice person I was and how grateful she was. I didn’t want to read it. I didn’t deserve it. If she had any idea what I’d done, she wouldn’t have sent it.
Hannah Phillips had captivated my heart from the moment she burst into Vinnie’s restaurant, late for her shift. Her jerk of a boss firing her like that had touched a nerve, and even though I had to pay twice what the place was worth, I was happy to put that guy out of business.
“Knock knock.” Chloe rapped on the door to my office in downtown Seattle.
I didn’t know why I was still working. I could have quit and just joined the board when our app design company went public, but I liked being busy. Then I didn’t have to be alone with my thoughts.
“Hannah answered. Her mom is doing better but having a hard time keeping weight on and eating,” Chloe said.
