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“Says the man who has been so busy lately, he has hardly made it to Sunday dinner,” I stated.
We were sitting in the back of JD’s restaurant. The place was just about ready to open, and I could see all the progress he had made, but there was still a lot of work that needed to be done. He had invited Walker and I to come and join him for a meal. He was too busy with the restaurant to leave, but he was more than willing to see us if we were able to come to him. Walker and I had gladly agreed. We had just finished our meal and were lingering over the last of the wine while we let our food digest.
It had been a little while since we had sat down just the three of us. It wasn’t something we did normally, and we certainly didn’t do it when we were younger. Since JD had come home and Walker and I had started to get along better, there had been a slow shift among all of us.
Family had always mattered to us, but it seemed even more now that JD was back and we were getting older. I loved my brothers, was proud of them, and everything that they had accomplished, and I wanted to be close to them. Having a meal with them occasionally offered me the chance to do that.
“I’m making time now. Rosie knows not to bother me unless it’s an emergency,” JD said.
“Rosie is more than capable of taking care of anything you throw at her. The issue is going to be if you will let her,” Walker said.
“I can let go,” JD stated, none too convincingly.
“No, you can’t. Neither can Walker nor I, it’s part of what makes us Bennett’s. It just took you a little longer to come around to it. You’ve done well, really well.Bennett’sis coming together nicely. There’s a lot of buzz being generated about the opening. I even had a few people call me to see if I can use my connection with the owner to get them a reservation,” Walker said.
“And will you?” JD asked.
“I didn’t know I could.”
“If you need to for the company, or for yourself, let me know. I would be more than happy to help you out. I mean I get my liquor at a great rate. It’s the least I can do,” JD said.
“We give him a discount on liquor?” I asked Walker and took a sip of my wine.
“I didn’t think we were. He must be mistaken,” Walker replied with a smile.
“You’d better be giving me one. I’m buying enough of it,” JD stated.
“As do all our other accounts. Just because you’re family doesn’t mean you get special treatment,” Walker teased.
“I’ll remember that the next time you call for a reservation,” JD replied.
“Well, in that case. Really, it’s only fair that we start giving him the friends and family discount,” I offered.
“Start?” JD asked.
Walker laughed. “Do you really think you weren’t getting it?”
“I hoped so. I figured I was, but I wasn’t sure. Now, I really don’t know.”
“You’re getting the liquor at cost. Probably even a little bit of a loss as we have to pay the drivers to deliver it and all. We’re happy to do it. You know, you being family and all, and it helps us get reservations in what is going to be the hottest restaurant in town,” Walker said.
“I don’t want you losing money over me, but I’ll gladly take a little discount if you can give it. I’m not looking for a handout.”
“No one is saying you are. We were giving you a bad time. It’s fine,” I said.
JD didn’t say anything but looked between Walker and me. Slowly, he smiled.
“It’s good to see you two laughing and teasing each other. I haven’t seen that in a long time. Or ever,” JD said.
“We joke,” Walker said.
“And laugh at each other,” I added.
“At. Not with. I won’t make it a thing. It’s just good to see.”
JD was right but he hit a bit of a nerve with his comment. Walker and I were working on our relationship, but I felt like all it would take was one wrong comment from one of us to lose the progress we made. It didn’t help that JD called us out on it.
“As is you doing so well,” Walker said, clearly wanting to get off the subject as much as I did.
