Forever RiverCreek

Chapter 24 - Time to Move On

Things begin to settle down after Rick, Janet, and the kids arrive and move into her apartment not far from Rick. In the five weeks since settling into her new life, Janet spends her early morning at the bakery inside of Foodland International, and Rick makes sure the kids are up and ready for school and drops them off. After she's home and gets a nap, Janet spends her afternoons getting more familiar with the area. Still, one of the things she notices when she's out cruising around are the signs and construction crews all around RiverCreek as the city begins to grow and new industries build.

"Wow! All of this is happenin' so fast! Oh, there's something you wouldn't expect to see here," Janet says to herself when she comes across a sign for a new restaurant.

In the middle of a collection of buildings, workers come in and carry items such as stoves and industrial ovens. She's blown away at the sight of a southern-themed restaurant making its way to the area, "Now, that should be a place Tara should run. Who else knows about soul food and the comforts of the soul? I'll have to call her."

Parked along the curb, Janet reaches for her phone but stops when she sees Tara's Kia Sportage pull up with the owners parked in front of her. Shocked, Janet turns off her car and then jogs over to her best friend, "Hey chickadee, is this your new place?"

Stunned for a second, Tara looks over her shoulder, "Hey! Yeah, this is the new restaurant. Hopefully, it'll be up and running before winter sets in," Tara says when she sees her boss staring at her, "Oh! Where are my manners? Cheryl, Harry, this is my best friend, Janet Elkins. Janet, these are the owners of Rocco's Little Italy and now Southern Soul Café, Harry and Cheryl Rocco."

"It's a pleasure to meet y'all," Janet says with a handshake to both Harry and Cheryl.

"No, the pleasure is ours, and any friend of Tara's is a friend of ours. She's been such a Godsend," Harry says, embarrassing Tara.

They move aside so the delivery of booths and tables can be carried inside. However, Janet can tell they need to get inside to start setting things up more and excuses herself.

"So, I wanted to stop and say hi. I was out and about learning my way around. But, when I saw the banner here, I wanted to stop and call you, and low and behold, here ya are. So, I won't hold y'all up any longer. Call me later, okay, Tara?"

"I will; we need to discuss some stuff and get the kids together again soon. I love ya, girl; I'll holler at you later," Tara tells Janet with a quick hug, then turns her attention to her bosses as they make their way inside.

With the sun shining bright, Janet takes her time walking back to her car, enjoying the brisk autumn winds. She feels at home with how welcoming everyone has been since her initial visit. After a couple of deep breaths, Janet begins to think about Rick and how patient he's been. They've avoided the mistake of rushing into having sex, but the urges exist. The kids are happier than they've ever been, and Janet feels the rush of living on cloud nine for the first time in her life. However, the rush ends when she finally sits in the car, turns the key over, and realizes a pile of smoke billowing from under the hood.

"NO!" She screams and rushes from the car, taking her phone, "Rick! Honey, my car blew up. I'm on Delta Street off Bellvue Drive," she waits and listens to Rick, "Okay, I'll sit tight, but I'm not getting back in my car. God, I was having such a good day. I can't afford not to have a car! What am I going to do?"

"Give me a few minutes; I'll get one of the wreckers there and tow your car here. I'll take a look at it, and we'll go from there. Be patient; it won't take me long, I promise," Rick says before he hangs up the phone.

Rick arrives in his truck in a rush, and one of his employees is driving the tow truck. They get out and pop the hood to assess the damage, but when they lift the hood and see that coolant has soaked everything, Rick frowns at Janet.