Page 39 of Romancing the Rumrunner
“Oh, I’m sorry to hear that. Has he been gone long?”
“Two years.”
“And your mother?”
Tony came in from the kitchen, wiping his hands on a towel, and sat down on the couch beside his mother. He grabbed a handful of cookies and settled back, waiting for her answer.
Jessie squirmed. They hadn’t ever spoken of personal things. Nothing real. They danced around the real issues each was trying to find out about the other, flirted a little. More than a little. But most of that wasn’t genuine. Except maybe that episode in the car…it had been fast, spur of the moment, but surely the heat and emotion that had been palpable behind it hadn’t been faked.
She looked away from him, trying to keep her damn cheeks from betraying her feelings yet again.
Mrs. Solomon was waiting for her answer.
“My mother’s been gone since I was little.”
“Oh, my dear, that’s such a shame. She must have been young when she died.”
Jessie shifted on her chair and put her cookie back on her saucer. “She didn’t die. She just left.”
The sudden silence in the room made Jessie look up. Mrs. Solomon looked as though she were trying to come up with something to say. Tony was staring at her with an intensity that made her squirm.
“It’s all right,” she assured them. “Dad and I did fine together. I helped him run the shop and he taught me everything I needed to know. We took care of each other.”
Mrs. Solomon reached over and patted her on the knee. “You’re a strong one. Got a good head on your shoulders. I like you,” she declared, settling back against her cushions again.
Jessie couldn’t help but smile at her.
“And now you are singing in Anthony’s club.”
“Ma,” Tony said.
“Oh, you hush. You never tell me anything fun. What’s it like getting all dolled up and singing onstage, Jessie? I always wanted to be in one of those vaudeville shows. Is it like that?”
Jessie laughed and answered as many of Mrs. Solomon’s questions as she could. When Tony finally stood and said it was time that they left, Jessie was surprised to find an hour had passed.
“Thank you for the tea, Mrs. Solomon. I enjoyed meeting you.”
“Oh, it was my pleasure, my dear. You come and visit me again, you hear?”
Jessie smiled shyly. “I’d love to.”
“And you, bring me more cookies next time you come. You’ve about cleaned me out again.”
She swatted her son on his arm, but he laughed and leaned down to kiss her cheek. “I’ll see you later, Ma.”
Mrs. Solomon waved them off. Once they were outside, Tony offered Jessie his arm and she didn’t hesitate before taking it. She didn’t know his reasons for meeting with Jameson, and she knew she’d be a fool to trust him completely, but she just couldn’t believe that a man who loved his mother the way Tony obviously did was that bad.
“I’m sorry about all that,” Tony said. “My mother can be a bit…eccentric.”
“And how.”
Tony laughed.
“Honestly, though, I enjoyed myself.”
“I’m glad,” Tony said, smiling down at her. He pulled her a little closer and steered her down the sidewalk back toward the diner.
They walked in companionable silence for a few minutes and Jessie found herself wishing they were two normal people. Just a normal couple, maybe going on their first date. No speakeasies, no Agent Jamesons between them. Just Jessie and Tony.
