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IRISH COMFORT
     
     
    Nikki Prince
     
    Copyright © 2013
     
     
     
    Chapter One
     
    Boxty on the griddle, boxty on the pan; if you can’t make boxty, you'll
never get a man’. –Irish Folktale
     
     
    “Girl, do you even know how to make Irish food?”
    Imani looked over at her sister Sonia and laughed.
Sonia had the most skeptical look on her face. “Yes, Soni, I can make Irish
food. Besides before Sky’s mother passed away she’d sent me her recipes for
everything that I’ve made for him tonight.”
    Sonia crossed her brown eyes and made a silly face at
her, and Imani could not stop the laugh that escaped.
    “Do you think I’d try to pretend I knew how to cook
it? If I did that this whole plan could backfire.”
    “What are you planning on making him?” Sonia took a
deep breath. “Least it smells good in here, so I guess you do get what you’re
doing.” She chuckled.
    “I’m making bangers and mash, along with corn beef and
cabbage and boxties.”
    “Okay, I’ve heard of the first two, but what the heck
are boxties?”
    “Basically an Irish potato pancake.” She couldn’t stop
the smile that spread over her face as she perused her sister.
    “So tell me your plan again?” Sonia questioned.
    “Basically, Soni, Skylar has been feeling homesick. I
plan to show him some Southern California comfort via the Irish way.”
    “Ah, so the whole ‘the way to a man’s heart is through
his stomach’ deal?”
    “In a nutshell, yes, that’s exactly my plan. Sky
hasn’t been himself lately and the closer we got to today, which is Saint
Patrick’s Day, it’s gotten even worse. I want to show him that home is wherever
he lays his head and that I can take care of him and give him what he needs. I
want him to smile again.”
    “Is he always like that? I mean I don’t remember him
always being so sad when we all used to hang around together.” They’d all grown
up together so Sonia was just as familiar with Skylar as she was, though Sonia
had been a few grades ahead of them.
    “No, he isn’t always like this. I mean I recognize it
has a lot to do with his mother having died last year and very close to Saint
Patrick’s Day. It made him homesick and understandably so. He was able to go
home before she passed, but it was hard on him. I just want to give him a taste
of what he was used to having when she was alive. I can’t bring her back, but I
can give him a bit of comfort that he was used to.”
    Her sister settled back on the leather couch crossing
her legs and looking as if she were in deep contemplation. “Are you prepared
for what could happen if it doesn’t work?”
    Imani paused for a few minutes before she answered her
sister. Playing with one of the tiny braids in her hair she thought of Skylar
Magee, the man she was gambling everything on, and his deep green eyes, closely
cropped red hair and Irish good looks,. Her next words were easy, and she hoped
they sounded confident.
    “I’m as prepared as I’m gonna get. I want him, Soni. You
of all people can see how long I’ve waited to have him.”
    She thought she heard her sister mutter, ‘too long and
it’s about time.’ Sonia nodded her head and then stood. Imani got up as well
and followed Sonia to the door of her small apartment. Opening the door Sonia
looked back at her.
    “Then I am one hundred percent behind you. Go get your
man.”
    Moving forward Imani hugged her sister tight and gave
her a kiss before pulling back. She stayed at the door until Sonia left. If
there was one thing she appreciated about her older sister, it was that she
always had her back no matter what. She closed the door and made her way back
to the kitchen. Everything was almost ready for her dinner with Sky. She needed
this to work; if it didn’t there was the potential of losing Skylar as a
friend. She could only hope that she’d been reading the signals he’d been
giving off correctly. Otherwise, her plan was going to fail.
    The food was prepared and