The rest of dinner was uneventful. Jimmy refused to give Cold any further satisfaction about the wedding planning by avoiding the topic entirely. He chatted with his father about his work down at the prison, asked Dario what new sort of musical numbers he was planning for the club, and gossiped with Maury over anything of interest that had been pawned lately.

The evening concluded with lots of hugs and promises to visit again soon, especially from Rowena, who was beyond thrilled for tomorrow’s brunch. Jimmy forced a smile and remained congenial all throughout, even when he said goodbye to Charlie.