The Heritage Paper by Derek Ciccone

Author:Derek Ciccone [Ciccone, Derek]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: General Fiction
Published: 2012-11-24T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 46

Veronica read the signs.

Jamie bouncing off the walls. Maggie whining.

She knew exactly what this meant—it was nine o’clock and they hadn’t eaten since lunch, which according to Veronica’s watch, was three lifetimes ago. They needed to eat or this was going to get ugly.

Zach remained behind the wheel, and had his own parental radar working. Without prodding, he suggested they grab a bite at “the best restaurant in New York.”

Veronica was surprised when he drove off the island of Manhattan. She was expecting a swanky uptown eatery Zach might have frequented when he worked for Newsbreaker. Twenty minutes later they arrived at the Palisades Mall in West Nyack, and Zach announced they were going to the Rainforest Café. This was a big hit with Maggie and Jamie, whose surliness instantly turned to glee. It was their favorite.

Zach explained that he often took TJ here, and Maggie once mentioned her fondness for the themed restaurant on one of her visits. Veronica was impressed.

They moved past all the typical mall stores until they arrived at the restaurant, where they were greeted by trumpeting elephants, squawking birds, and erupting volcanoes. They were seated beside a robotic, chest-pounding gorilla that Jamie thought resembled Eddie. They ordered a “Paradise Pizza” for everyone to split, but Maggie had to be different and got an order of “rasta pasta.”

Shouting over the simulated thunder, Maggie and Jamie asked if they could check out the large marine aquarium built into the back wall. But before Veronica was able to instruct them that they wouldn’t be allowed out of her sight until they turned fifty, they were already halfway to the fish tank.

She began to order them back to the table, but Zach encouraged her to let them go.

Veronica gave in. But that didn’t mean she wouldn’t keep one eye on them at all times. They did look like they were having fun, though.

Zach sipped on his fruity drink, and intently viewed the landscape.

“What is it?” Veronica asked.

“Nothing Nazi related. I just see all these young families and couples, and it makes me think how simple things were back then.”

“If it makes you feel any better, I went on my first date last night since Carsten died, and it was one big awkward mess.”

“Wow—congratulations.” He caught himself. “On the date part, not the mess.”

“Thanks, but I didn’t get promoted to department manger, I just took in a film festival with a guy I met in one of my classes at Pace. I went back to school to get my masters.”

Zach tried to hide his reaction, but he wasn’t a very good actor, so she answered the question he wanted to ask, “He’s twenty-three.”

He smiled. “You gotta be young to keep up with you. I don’t think I’ve had a day this crazy since, well … I don’t think I’ve ever had a day like this.”

“Just a typical day in the life of a single mom,” she said, returning the smile. She appreciated his demeanor. Eddie would have made a clawing motion, including sound effects, and called her a cougar.

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