章 31: Chapter 31

“Please, just a small piece for me,” Bess said, coming back into the room with some bowls and spoons.

“Thank you,” Barry told her. “I’d forgotten all about bowls. Good thing you were here.”

She smiled and shook her head.

Cake served, Barry returned to his seat next to Rory.

“Are these blackberries?” Jimmy asked.

“Yes,” Barry told him. “Grown right here on the Double J.”

“Wow.”

Barry then answered questions from Bess and the others about what other things he’d put in the cake.

“It’s a spice cake. I used blackberries and cream cheese frosting for the filling. Then I added blue coloring to the rest of the frosting for the top.”

To Barry’s relief, everyone pronounced the cake excellent, the best they’d ever tasted.

Jimmy asked, “Mom, do you want to take the rest of the cake home for Dennis, Gary, and…”

“Probably best not, dear. Your father, he…”

“Yeah.” Jimmy’s head dipped.