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CHAPTER 7
Janel
“Oh, my feet are killing me!” Rica complained as she pulled her shoes off and rubbed her feet.
Janel took her sneakers off and massaged the feeling back in her own. It was bad enough working for hours at a time on her feet, but then had to walk home, adding another thirty minutes of pain. When she leaned over to put her shoes on the floor, she got a twinge in her lower back. “My back hurts too. Who knew plates of food could be so heavy?”
“How did your mom do this for years?”
Shaking her head in dismay, Janel admitted, “I have no idea. Remember, my mom not only held down a fulltime job waitressing, but she also ran a bakery out of her house.”
“I have great respect for what she did so my mom could go to college and have a chance at a better life.”
Their mothers were sisters and, as the older one, Janel’s mom took on the care of Rica’s mom when their parents passed. Janel had heard the stories and she knew her mom had a lot of responsibility on her shoulders but she’d never realized it more than she did now. “Our moms overcame a lot. I’m not sure I could have done the same.”
“I know what you mean. We’ve led a very sheltered and privileged life.”
“We have, but we have our own unique set of challenges.” Getting a tiny glimpse into her mother’s early years had given her a greater appreciation of the struggles she must have gone through. Janel had only been working a short time, but her mom had worked for years.
Rica snickered. “Yeah, like what shoes to wear to a Christmas ball or how to not end up in social media as a GIF.”
“Yeah, there is that.”
They were lost in their own thoughts for a few moments before Rica commented, “I’m glad you asked me to come with you, Janel.”
She met her cousin’s gaze and smiled. “Yeah, thanks for coming. It’s nothing like I thought it would be and so much more than I ever expected.”
“I saw you talking with the dishy neighbor at the diner tonight,” Rica teased.
Janel grinned and scooted down on the couch to rest her head. “He’s a contradiction. He started out just as grumpy as ever and then he loosened up and even laughed, but he closed up tighter than a clam after. It’s like he has to remind himself to be irritated at life.”
“I overheard one of the diners saying he’s in a motorcycle club.”
“Well, he does own a motorcycle so that would make sense. They probably get together on Sunday afternoons and go for a ride.” She really had no idea what one does as a member of a motorcycle club.
“Yeah, I guess. Walter said he needs us for five more days. If we live that long, then what are we going to do?”
Janel wasn’t sure her feet would make it five more days. “I don’t know. This is a day-by-day vacation. As tired as I am, I really like working there.”
“Are you ever going to tell me why we’re really here? I know you said you wanted to see where your mom grew up, but I don’t think that’s all of your agenda.”
“It’s not,” she replied honestly.
“Is this about James?” Rica asked softly.
What is the reason?
Maybe she was still looking for the answer. “I suppose in a way it is about him, but not really. I’ve accepted the life I would have had with him isn’t possible. I loved him deeply and I don’t think I will ever love anyone as much as I loved James. He was my everything. We grew up together and knew from the start that we’d be together forever.”
“I think it’s wonderful that you’ve had such an amazing love in your life, Janel, but that doesn’t mean you can’t have another. Do you regret that you waited to have sex?”
She was close with all her cousins and even if she wasn’t, it would be hard to keep secrets from such a tight-knit group of nosey people that she loved with all her heart. “I do. I never really understood why James was so dead set against taking our relationship there. I could see when we were younger, but when we were in college and talking about marriage…” She lost her words. She didn’t understand it, therefore she couldn’t explain it. “He must have had his reasons. I always wondered if Father put the fear of God in him if he ever touched me, but you know how much Father liked James. He stayed with us at the palace more than he did at his own home.”
“James was one of us and you’re right, Uncle Ki did like him. He had James interning at his office whenever he had time away from school. Do you think he was getting him adjusted to royal life for when you married?”
James had looked up to her father so much. “I wouldn’t put it past Father, but James really loved working for him. He’d stay late many nights when we could have been out with friends or having quiet time at home.”
Rica threw a pillow at her head and giggled. “I think you should take care of that little virgin problem with the dishy neighbor next door.”
