Being the daughter of a high-up Navy man, I’d learned some things about responsibility and respect. Dad was strict and protective, but he also just wanted me to be happy.
We shared that goal for one another. I wanted him to be happy, too. Keeping my nose clean and my grades up at college was a small price to pay for everything he had given me.
Dad smiled and reached out to squeeze my arm. “I’m proud of you, sweetheart. I’ve missed you. I understand why you haven’t been home since Christmas, but it’s been too long.”
“Yeah. Definitely.”
His head dropped to the side as he took a step back. “Are you going to be taking any summer courses?”
“No, I wanted to come home so I could be with you for the retirement.”
He sighed, shaking his head. “You didn’t have to do that. I’m fine here by myself.”
“I know, but this is a big deal, Daddy,” I said cautiously. If I made him feel like I was back because I was worried about him, he’d drive me to UCLA and enroll me in that program himself. Big, tough Navy men didn’t like being fussed over. “It’s important for you to have support.”
He blew out a breath between his teeth. “Sounds like an excuse to me, but it’s your life. I need to spend a little more time with Olive this afternoon. The boys and I are taking her out in the morning. Why don’t you get unpacked and we’ll have dinner together later?”
“Sure. I wanted to go say hi to Haley anyway.” I walked backward, waving to him as he watched me go. “See you later.”
Haley’s deli wasn’t too far away from our house. It was a small shop near the beach with a few tables inside, a long counter, and a blackboard with the menu scrawled on it. Soft pop music played on the radio, and it smelled like cinnamon and grilling chicken.
My mouth watered almost as soon as I walked in. Some customers lingered after the lunch rush but not many. I found Haley in the kitchen. Her back was to me and her ass swayed along to the music.
I paused for a second, then let out a whistle. “Yeah, girl. Shake what your mama gave you.”
She froze before spinning around with a scowl darkening her pretty features. When she saw it was me, the scowl faded, and a bright smile took its place.
My best friend was my opposite in every way. She had long blonde hair to my short, pitch-black bob, bright blue eyes to my green and gold version of hazel, a figure like a runway model to my softer, curvy one.
If I was the life of the party when I wasn’t studying, she was the one reminding me that we had to be up early in the morning. Despite that, she’d chosen to open a deli with no formal schooling while I had run headfirst into one of the most strenuous degrees that existed.
While I wasn’t in any rush to start my career too soon, she had been working on her business plan pretty much since she’d learned to write. She’d also put that plan into motion as soon as she had been able to.
Haley and I were living proof that opposites not only attracted, but that when friendships between them worked, they worked for life.
“Sofia! When did you get home?” Her skinny arms wrapped around my neck, and she crushed me to her. “It’s so, so good to see you in real life. Screens just don’t do you justice.”
“Same to you.” I returned her hug with as much fierce enthusiasm. “I just got here less than an hour ago.”
“What? How did you convince Instructor Dad to let you come here so soon?” We let each other go, each taking a step back.
I shrugged. “He was busy with Olive. It didn’t take any convincing.”
“Ah.” She flashed me a knowing smile as she hopped up on a countertop in her industrial kitchen. “Good ol’ Olive, huh? How’s she looking?”
“Good. As always.” I grinned, planting my hands on the counter behind me and climbing up myself.
Haley had rented this space just about a year ago. In the early days of the deli, when I’d been home last summer, we’d spent a lot of time in here just like this. Except it had been empty then. A shell that had now been filled with appliances, kitchenware, delicious smells, and so much love. “How’s business?”
Her smile slipped a little. “It’s been okay. Tough but okay. I even hired a waitress to help, but things could be going better. Mom says I need to do more promotions.”
“Anything I can help you with?” I frowned. “Why didn’t you tell me before?”
Waving her hand, she slid to the floor and moved back to the grill. “It’s nothing serious. I was just hoping to have built up a bit more of a buffer before I had to hire someone. It didn’t work out that way, and it’s stressing me out.”
“When you say ‘build up more of a buffer,’ how big is the buffer you’ve already built up? Is it, like, ‘you’d go bust after a day’ small, or ‘a pandemic could hit and you’d be okay for a couple of months but not longer’ small?”
The tips of her ears flushed red. Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail at the top of her head, allowing me to see the telltale reddening of her ears and the back of her neck.
She sprinkled some spice into a bowl, humming as she avoided answering my question. “Well, you know, we’d be fine if we had to close for a day. Or a month or so.”
“I knew it.” I threw my hands up in the air, wiggling my butt on the counter. “You’re fine, but if your mom says you
