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“I guess so.” I unfold the second paper and read it out loud.
Billy, if you’re reading this, it means you’re in charge now. Guess I had to kick the bucket to officially let go of the reins. It’s okay, you can laugh. I don’t want you crying over me. You’re going to have a lot more to cry about when you try to figure out the books. I haven’t paid bills or kept any receipts for the last six months. Good luck.
Laughing and wiping a tear, I clear my throat. “Fucking guy knows I hate numbers.”
I’ll never forget the first time you tried getting into this place. You confidently displayed an ID with a nameof John Doe that made you thirty-three years old. I believe you were actually fifteen at the time. I still laugh about that night and the look of shock on your face when I told you to get home before I called your father. He and I had been friends for years. You didn’t think I knew how old his children were?
We all burst out laughing. “Oh my god, I remember that! Bill, you were clueless!” Tom slaps the table, doubling over in laughter.
“No, he just thought his charm and good looks would get him a beer,” Francesca says.
“I honestly didn’t think the old man would ask for it, but I had it just in case.”
Pulling out a chair, I sit and continue to read aloud.
I found out I had cancer about six months ago. Doctors told me it was an aggressive form, and I needed to make plans. I decided that day I would not live my last months with everyone babying me and tiptoeing around. So, I kept the news to myself. The night I asked you to be my business partner was the greatest night of my life. I knew it would set into motion everything you needed to reach for, to become the man I knew you to be all along.
When Adley came back to town all those years ago, I knew you were done for. If that amazing woman was here for you, giving you the time of day, then I knew she saw exactly what I saw all along.
You had so many cheering for you, silently waiting and watching as you battled daily. But no one cheeredlouder than me. I can’t tell you how it made me feel to walk your beautiful wife to you yesterday.
“Oh, my god,” I whisper. He just wrote this. He knew. The tears come fast and blind me from being able to continue, so I hand the page to Adley who takes it and continues reading.
There are always things that happen in life, things we don’t want to remember or be a part of. Some of those take hold so strongly we have no choice but to fight our way out. Without these things, though, we’d never see just how amazing the other side is. We’d never get to watch how amazing the redemption story actually is. Billy, you wouldn’t have one million stories to tell if you got here quietly. You think it’s by chance you married an author?
Her voice is like a song as she speaks the words I can hear him saying. It’s like he’s in the room with us.
Right before my eyes, I watched your miracle take place. From an eighteen-year-old boy to a thirty-three-year-old man. Those fifteen years have not been easy. There have been many ups and many downs, tears and laughs, but no matter what, the man I see now is the one who was waiting to be seen. Watching you fall into your role in your family was the greatest blessing for me. The Casanova family has been broken down in every way, but your heart is what pieced it back together, Bill.
I’m proud to have been there to see it and I’ve never been prouder of the man taking over my bar. The manwho’s starting a new generation of love and stability. Just do me a favor. Please teach your nephew the art of a real ID.
Signed,
Your biggest fan,
Al
“Well, fuck,” I say tearfully, and everyone repeats the same sentiment as they too wipe away tears.
Adley folds the letter, placing it on the table, and moves to my lap where she wraps her arms around me and says, “He’s right, you know. I came here for Chelsea, but I stayed for you. And it was the best decision of my life.”
CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR
BILLY
Four weeks later
Me: I can still taste you, Adley
Adley: Hurry home, I’ll give you another taste.
My brothersand I are at the bar today.
After reading through Al’s letter, we decided to re-open the bar for a few weeks and let the town come in and share in his memory. We actively planned out the renovations and got it on the calendar, and today is day one of what should take no longer than three days.
I’m a businessman now. I can’t shut down my main source of income.
We had a family meeting and decided I was going to run the bar full time for now. I want to make sure it’s at a point I’m comfortable with and at a point Al would be proud we’re taking it to. I’ll keep my barback and hire a couple more bartenders to cover shifts, but for the most part, I’ll be spending my time here.
