Page 10 of A Package Deal

But that was the Monday routine. On this snowy Thursday afternoon, she was in the Galley’s kitchen handing plates to Ava, who’d just finished her homework, intending to show her how to prep the side salads while Piper sat in the corner practicing her spelling.

“Hi, sunny,” Gus said, smacking his hunter orange wool cap against his thigh, dislodging the snow that had settled there. He ambled toward her—slower than usual, and Nelie wondered if his arthritis was acting up again—and dropped a kiss on her cheek. He smelled of Old Spice and his bright eyes hinted at trouble. Nelie went on alert. “Thought I’d come check on you and meet the urchins I’ve heard so much about.” Nelie relaxed. Her dad had a soft spot for kids, so of course he’d want to meet them, just as long as he didn’t expect to keep them as grandchildren.

“We’re not urchins,” Piper said. “Are we?”

“Nah. On closer inspection, you’re more like pixies.”

“Girls, this is my father, Mr. Peterson. Dad, this is Ava and Piper. Chet’s girls.” The girls shook his outstretched hand, and he nodded his approval, sniffling at the end.

“Are you getting a cold?” Nelie asked, frowning. She didn’t need him bringing a cold into her kitchen, not when she already had a line cook out with one.

“Just been a while since you said Dad.” He gave her a sweet smile.

“Guess my habit of calling you Gus at work slips into my life outside of here”—she shrugged—“I’ll do better.”

“Hard to do when work becomes your life.”

Nelie rolled her eyes. Gus knew how much work the Galley took. He shouldn’t be surprised at the amount of time she invested in its continued success. Gus had no one to blame but himself.

“Aren’t you old to be a dad?” Piper asked, staring up at him. Ava elbowed her, and Piper’s exaggeratedooffilled the air.

“Our dad’s old too, so shush,” Ava said. Gus laughed and wiped his eyes.

“Oh, Nelie-girl. These two will keep you on your toes.” He picked up one of Nelie’s frosted cookies. The ice castle company had placed a large order—oversized, decorated, snowflake cookies—for their concession stand. “These look too pretty to eat. I’d better test one to make sure it tastes okay.” He winked at the girls.

“We already did, and they are yummy!” Piper said, tossing her hands in the air and twirling. Gus broke his cookie into four pieces to share.

“And Ava, your dad’s not old. He’s just the right age. I was a bit younger than him when we adopted Nelie.”

“Gus is actually my great-uncle. He and my mom adopted me when my parents died,” Nelie said at Piper’s confused expression.

Piper’s eyes filled with tears. “They died?”

Nelie perched on a chair and pulled Piper into her lap. The little girl smelled like strawberries, smelling better than anything coming out of the kitchen. “It was an accident. Right after I was born. I never knew them.”

“Her parents were coming to the hospital to get her—”

“I thought they were leaving,” Nelie said as Gus continued.

“And a truck ran a red light and hit their car.”I thought it was night, and they’d hit a tree.

“Why were you in the hospital?” Ava asked, standing next to Nelie and rubbing her shoulder, as if the accident was fresh and not a forty-year-old event she had no memory of.

“She had a hard time breathing, but boy, could she cry.” The girls giggled.I thought it was jaundice.

“Anyway, once we heard about the accident, we drove to Chicago and picked up our little girl.”

“Mom always said they lived in Grand Forks.” Nelie needed to get this story back on track. He’d told the story all wrong, and she didn’t like it.

“What’d I say?”

“You said Chicago.”

“Did I?”—Gus scratched his head—“Not sure where that came from. But getting you was the greatest gift Stella and I ever had.” Nelie looked at Gus. His memory was slipping, but he rarely got old facts wrong, just new ones, like the STOP sign at the bottom of the hill. Although she’d once heard Gus say her parents’ car had hit a patch of ice, but her birthday was in May. She’d never questioned it, but… Should she call his doctor for an appointment?Making it won’t guarantee he’ll keep it, plus he’ll pitch a fit in the meantime.Nelie didn’t want a confrontation yet, but in the meantime, she’d track his memory slips in the Notes app on her phone. “Well, I just wanted to stop in and meet these two pixies. Best get out of your hair now.”

“Or you could stay and help?” Nelie asked. Gus raised his bushy eyebrows. “Ava finished her homework, and we were going to do some salad prep. And Piper is working on her spelling. She signed up for the elementary spelling bee in March.”

“Well, I was never very good at making pretty salads, so I’ll help Piper with the spelling, if that’s okay with you?” Piper nodded eagerly.

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