I was amazed when we walked into Jacob’s restaurant, Bro’s Bistro. It was so cool to see how Jacob turned his life around. When we were younger, we used to smoke weed and joke about how we both wanted to be chefs and to own restaurants. It was cool to see his dream live in action.
“Well I’ll be damned! Look what the cat dragged in,” Jacob exclaimed from behind the large bar. “Logan Silverstone. I didn’t ever think I’d see you back in these parts of town.” His hair was buzzed short and he had that same big, goofy smile that he always showcased in the past.
I smiled. “It’s been a long time, man, that’s for sure.”
“You look good,” he said, hurrying over to me, giving me a bear hug. “Healthy.”
“Trying man. Trying. This place is amazing, Jacob.”
“Yeah, yeah. It’s still early,” he said. “I’ll get a bit of a rush closer to seven or eight. And tomorrow is open mic night, where you’ll find your brother performing.”
I cocked an eyebrow. “Seriously? I haven’t heard you play the guitar and sing in a long ass time, Kellan.”
“Yeah. I’m trying to go back to the things I love, ya know? Life is too short to not do what makes you happy.”
“That’s the truth. This place is real cool though, Jacob. It’s not every day that someone has a dream and makes it come true,” I said as he walked me through the whole place, showing me everything. “You’re doing it, though. You’re living your dream.”
“Trying to,” he laughed. “Turns out running your own restaurant is really fucking hard.”
“Just thinking about it is tiring.”
“Rumor has it you got your culinary degree while you’ve been in Iowa?” he asked, leading Kellan and I to the bar.
“I did indeed. I didn’t think I could, but…” Alyssa always knew. “But I did it.”
He smiled wide. “Shit. That’s awesome man. Who would’ve thought two fucked up kids like us would’ve made it to college? What can I get you two? Beer? Girly martinis?” Jacob asked, wiping down the bar.
“I’ll have a water,” Kellan said.
I laughed. “Still the wild party animal that I knew you to be, brother. I’ll have a Bud Light,” I told Jacob.
Kellan arched a brow. “I see you’re just as wild and crazy as I am.”
Jacob grabbed the drinks and set them in front of us before he placed his elbows on the countertop. He clasped his fingers together, resting his head on his fists. “So, Iowa, huh? What the hell is there to do in Iowa?”
“Absolutely what you think there would be to do. Nothing. Work, sleep, women, and weed. Wash, rinse, repeat.”
Kellan grimaced at the mention of weed the same way Alyssa did. “Give me a break, Kellan. I’m not using anything else. Just a little pot here and there.”
“I just don’t want you to slip up, that’s all.”
“I haven’t in years. I’m good.” I cleared my throat. “By the way, thanks for helping me with last month’s rent. And the month before that…” My words faded off into a whisper. “And the month before that…” Even though I had a degree, finding a real job had been quite the struggle.
“Anytime,” he smiled, knowing I was changing the subject, but he allowed it. “But let’s make sure we never mention that to Erika, all right?”
Jacob laughed. “That must be weird, Kellan.”
“What’s that?” he asked.
“Having your balls gripped that tight by a woman.”
I snickered. “I’m surprised that he still has any balls.”
“Fuck you guys. So Erika is a bit of a…” Kellan scrunched up his nose, looking for the right word.
“Control freak?” Jacob offered.
“Pushy?” I said.
“Dramatic?”
“Extremely dramatic?!”
“Mothering?”
“Belittling?” I joked.
“Stable,” Kellan said, drinking his water. “Erika is stable. She’s everything that keeps me grounded. She’s a handful, yeah, but I would choose her hand to hold any day because she’s strong. She’s my anchor.”
Jacob and I went silent, a bit stunned.
“Wow,” Jacob breathed out a heavy sigh. “That’s just…” His eyes watered up. “That’s just so fucking cheesy.”
I laughed. “The ultimate cheese.”
“It’s like gouda and brie had a baby and Kellan popped out.” Jacob smirked.
“Screw off. I wouldn’t expect two single dumbasses to understand anything about relationships,” Kellan said. “So you like the place?”
“Like it? It’s amazing. I bet the food tastes just as good as it looks here. If I lived here, I’d be in this place every day.”
A wicked grin found its way to Kellan’s face, and it wasn’t long before Jacob’s face had the same look of pleasure. “It’s funny you should mention that, because Jacob and I were talking… If you were to stay in town, you’d have a built in job. He’s looking for a chef,” Kellan offered.
“It pays well. I mean, the head boss man is a total dick, but it’s a good job,” Jacob added.
I laughed, because it was a ridiculous idea. I stopped laughing when I saw how serious they both were. “No offense, Kellan. But seeing how there’s no wedding happening any time soon, I’m on the first train back to Iowa.”
“Yeah? Can you afford a train ticket back?” Kellan asked me.
I cocked an eyebrow. “What? You said you would cover the ticket.”