Silver Mayor: The Silver Foxes of Blue Ridge by L.B. Dunbar

Author:L.B. Dunbar [Dunbar, L.B.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: L.B. Dunbar Writes, Ltd.
Published: 2020-06-03T23:00:00+00:00

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There’s been no change in Papi’s status, so Mami suggests I check on Vega and Charlie. She takes her job seriously, and she wants to make certain Charlie and Lucy are surviving without her.

“Janessa?” Sheepishly, I look down at my feet when Charlie opens his front door. It seems strange to enter this way, but then again, it’s how I exited the other morning.

“Mami wanted me to check on you and Lucy. She thought you might not be eating well without her.”

Charlie slowly grins at the statement as he steps back, allowing me into his home.

“You know, I do know my way around the kitchen.”

My brow arches in question before I follow him to said kitchen and find a large pizza box on the island.

“Know your way around the kitchen, huh?”

“Yep, it’s called delivery, and dinner is served.”

I can’t help the smile gracing my own lips. It’s so good to see him after this afternoon’s phone call.

“I bet you’d really like to know how Vega is?” He tips his head and calls out for the girls. Feet thunder from the second floor, and then I see Vega.

“Baby,” I hiss as she leaps for me. She’s too big for me to pick up, but the feel of her arms around my neck settles me. There’s nothing like the hug of a child. I turn and kiss her cheek. “I’ve missed you.”

It’s only been a few days, but the whirlwind of my father and then Richard’s return makes me wish we could just curl into those two twin beds in the coach house.

Vega separates from me. “How is Papi?” She calls my father by the same name as I do.

“He’s doing better, I think. The doctor said he can come home tomorrow.” I don’t know what this means for Charlie. My father shouldn’t be tending his yard and gardens until he gets the medical all clear, and even then, it might be time for my father to slow down.

“Speaking of home, we should probably get going,” I say to Vega. It’s late, and Charlie needs to work tomorrow.

“Did you eat?” he interjects at the same time that Lucy whines, “I thought you were spending the night again.”

Lucy has really taken to Vega and vice versa. At first, I worried that Lucy’s friendship was a reminder of all Vega left behind, and she’d resent her. In some ways, I think Vega likes to hang out at Charlie’s for the same reason—it’s a reminder of what we left behind. The pool. The large house. But the two girls have really formed a bond, and although Vega was angry that Lucy spilled her secret, she quickly forgave her. It’s more fun sleeping in twin beds across from your best friend than your mother.

“I don’t want to impose again,” I state because Vega’s already been at Charlie’s mother’s house and now here.

“It’s not an imposition,” Charlie says. “Pint enjoys the company. I’m boring.” It’s so sweet that he has a nickname for her, and I’ve been meaning to ask about it.

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