Page 54 of Cold Hard Cash

“Okay. We’ll find something nice and easy for you.” Rowena giggled, patting his feet. “Now, come on! Get some damn clothes on! We’ll grab breakfast, and you can tell me how a sweet little thing like you got tangled up with Maury the fuckin’ Mouth!”

“You got it.” Jimmy waited for Rowena to go downstairs so he could poke through his purchases to find something to wear. Since he had no idea what kind of work Rowena was going to choose for him, he opted for an outfit that was somewhere between dressy and casual.

Jeans, vintage sneakers, T-shirt, with a gray plaid button-up.

He fixed his hair, lamenting the absence of his toothbrush, but he did manage to find some mouthwash. Grabbing his wallet and keys, he almost forgot his new phone before he hurried downstairs to find Rowena.

Jimmy nearly got lost trying to figure out where she was, but he found her in a posh kitchen appointed with stainless steel appliances and marble countertops. She sat at a center island outfitted with a stovetop and leather stools, where a very tall and spindly man was scrambling eggs. There was a large pitcher filled with something slushy and orange, and Rowena had just finished pouring two drinks.

“Aw, look at you, pretty!” Rowena whistled, offering one toward him.

“Thanks! Eh, isn’t it a little early?” Jimmy laughed as he realized that there was a lot of alcohol in the mix.

“Nah,” Rowena argued. “They’re mimosas! They have vitamin C, it’s good for you. Jimmy, meet Jerry.” She gestured to the tall man.

Jimmy recognized him as their limo driver from yesterday. “Good morning!” He waved with a little smile.

“Bonjour,” Jerry greeted in a deep, rough French accent, smiling politely as he began to plate the eggs.

Rowena patted the stool next to her for Jimmy to join her.

“So, are you serious about maybe not exactly being at the club by noon?” Jimmy asked, sipping his drink.

“Mm, why?”

“Would it be okay if we made a few stops?”

Rowena shrugged. “Like what?”

“Well, I guess I need to get all those clothes back to my place, right? And Maury wants to see me—”

“Give me your keys.” Rowena wiggled her fingers at him.

Jimmy frowned but reached into his pocket and offered out his keyring.

Rowena took it and smiled sweetly at Jerry. “Hey, Jerry? Could you be a dear and get somebody to take Jimmy’s stuff back to his place? Maybe wash it, hang it up and stuff too?”

“Of course, Mademoiselle Legrand.” Jerry nodded as he accepted the keys and tucked them in his pocket.

“Holy crap.” Jimmy looked between them worriedly. “You guys really don’t have to do all that!”

“Jimmy, your apartment is really depressing.” Rowena sighed. “I’ll be honest, I don’t wanna go back there. Unless it’s to burn all your old clothes. Then maybe.”

“It is no problem, monsieur,” Jerry assured Jimmy, smiling warmly as he offered them each a plate of eggs and fresh fruit. “You’re the Legrands’ guest. It’s our pleasure.”

“Jerry, baby, you’re amazing.” Rowena blew Jimmy bunches of kisses before digging in. Between bites, her eyes danced over to Jimmy. “Mm, where else did you want to go?”

“Mostly just to see Maury.” Jimmy took a big bite and groaned. They were the most amazing eggs he had ever tasted. Jerry was indeed incredible.

“So, how did you meet Maury? Come on. It’s story time.”

“It’s all because of the phone company.” Jimmy smiled fondly. “See, it started when my mom used to work in the jewelry store next to the pawn shop. She worked there a few days a week, you know, cleaning jewelry and doing repairs. The phone in the store kept going out, like, all the time! The phone company kept fixing it, and it would still go out, like, at least once a week.”

Jimmy knew his face was lit up like a Christmas tree. He always loved sharing memories of his mom.

“So, she kept going over to Maury’s to use the phone to call home. Don’t let him fool you, he’s a sucker for a damsel in distress. He let her come over to use the phone, and soon, they became friends. Maury told her dirty jokes, loved to make her blush, and then she introduced my dad. He’s a doctor and he’s been taking care of Maury’s kids since before I was even born.

“Maury has three sons, and the two youngest were always getting sick,” Jimmy went on. “Especially Junior, he had really bad asthma. They couldn’t afford to go see a doctor or any of the medication, so my dad would sneak it over to the shop with my mom. Said it was payment for letting her use the phone.”