by Zoey Thames
She flushed with pleasure. The menu at the Highland Grill had been the same for thirteen years until she’d finally convinced Jim that they should shake things up a little. She’d come up with a bunch of new dishes and improved a lot of the “classic” ones, hitting it out of the park with hearty food most everyone seemed to love.
“Nothing new today, I’m afraid,” she said. “Just the usual assortment of culinary heaven.” She grinned, amused by that fancy description, and she was pleased when they grinned back at her.
“Good to see you, Josie,” Lucas said. His deep voice seemed to thrum right through her, sending a thrill from her brain straight to her pussy. She could listen to that voice all day and all night. She could fall asleep to that voice and wake up to that voice and still never get tired of it.
“Great to see you guys, too,” she replied, a little awkwardly because she didn’t want them to know just how much she looked forward to seeing them every Friday.
It made her night, every week.
She led them through the restaurant to the deck. Plenty of customers glanced their way and waved, but even though neither of them lived in Junction Falls, people around here had grown used to seeing them every week. Even though she knew some of the women were throwing blatantly admiring glances toward the two men, she certainly couldn’t blame them. And she had no right to petty jealousy. She had to work to keep from drooling herself. Besides, she felt powerful in a way, knowing the two men were in a relationship and also knowing none of the other people in town realized it. Knowing the secret made her feel special. True, they didn’t hide their affection for each other, but to her knowledge, they had never kissed inside the restaurant. Only that one time she’d caught them kissing in the side parking lot, fueling plenty of marathon erotic fantasy sessions for her.
This area wasn’t exactly the big city either, with the big city familiarity with alternative lifestyles. The people here were generally good folk, but there were always a few bad apples anywhere you went. Although even the most bigoted redneck would have to be out of his mind to mess with either man for being gay. Dan and Lucas were big and heavily muscled. Lucas especially. He looked like he could easily bench press that huge motorcycle he rode.
Soon she had them seated, gave them a couple of menus, and headed back inside for to fill their drink order. Two beers. A Dale’s Pale Ale for Dan and a Guinness for Lucas. As she headed for the cooler, Christie touched her arm to get her attention.
“I told you!” she said. “Didn’t I tell you? Dark, mysterious strangers! Tonight is your night!”
“Christie, they sure as heck aren’t strangers. They’ve been in here every Friday for half a year. And Dan isn’t even dark. He’s as blond as a field full of wheat. And—” She snapped her mouth shut so fast she nearly bit off the tip of her tongue. She couldn’t reveal the fact that Dan and Lucas were in a relationship together. That wasn’t her right, and it wasn’t a right thing to do. She wasn’t a gossip. Besides, it was too disappointing to say aloud.
Christie was staring at her, looking confused. “And? And what? And you have to work? Girl, we’ll be off a little after eleven. If they invite you somewhere, then there’s still plenty of time to go and have the time of your life.”
“And I have to close tonight. I promised to count out the tills and do the bank drop and the books and everything for Jim. He has to take his daughter and granddaughter to the airport at some ungodly hour so they can fly back home.” She shrugged as she opened the cooler, took out the longnecks and a couple of frosty mugs. “I already promised. I don’t go back on promises.”
Besides, even if they weren’t gay, those two men were so far out of her league it wasn’t even funny. She was doomed to having men like Dennis in her life. A compulsive liar with scraggly chest hair and feet like a sasquatch who gave her grief because she had big thighs and more ass than most girls. Grrr!
But instead of dwelling on her past hurts, she lifted her chin and marched off to deliver those beers. Which was her job. And she was good at it. She even managed to sway her hips to the live music and the catchy bass line. Take that universe! She might be bigger than average, but she could dance to the beat without batting an eyelash. Besides, she was already looking forward to seeing them again, and it had only been a few seconds. Crazy, but there it was. Every time she was around Dan and Lucas, she ended up smiling and laughing so much her cheeks started to ache. Her spirit lifted. She had fun. And even though she could never admit how attracted she was to them, it was always a physical rush to see them.
Outside again, she made her way to their table with the beers and mugs. Dan was looking at Lucas and laughing at something he’d just said. When Dan laughed, his entire face lit up with warmth. She could see the love he felt for Lucas in those blue eyes. Her throat tightened, and her smile froze a little because she wanted that.
She wanted a man to look that way at her.
By the time she’d reached their table, she had herself under control again. Time to focus more on her job and less on her love life.
Her pathetic love life. Such as it was.
* * *
Lucas had to bite his lip to suppress a groan of pure lust as Josie walked away from their table, swaying her hips to the music coming through the open windows as she moved. What was it they said? That girl had some junk in the trunk. He’d always found that phrase more than a little silly and crass, but it was certainly true that Josie had wonderful curves.
“Admiring our server for the evening, are you?” Dan said, winking at him. He glanced after Josie himself, and there was no mistaking the flash of desire in his eyes.
“Yeah. I was. I love the way she moves. And did you just wink at me?”
“What? A guy can’t wink?”
“I didn’t realize that was still a thing. I thought it went out in the forties or something.”
“Listen to you. Busting my balls,” Dan shot back. “Lucky for us, Josie is my type and yours.” His easy smile crossed his face. “It’s like it’s meant to be. Like we were.”
Lucas paused to consider. “I didn’t realize I had a type.”
“In women you do. Curves and smiles. And kind eyes. In men, it’s all me. And if I catch you leering at some other guy, it’s on, mate. We’ll be fist-fighting in the parking lot.”
He laughed. “I always suspected you were the jealous type.”
“Only when it comes to other cocks between those fine lips of yours.” Dan took a sip of his bottle of beer. He always drank from the bottle, never poured out into a mug. “I’m no poet, but Josie has a smile that goes right through me. When she smiles, it lights up her eyes like wow. And the chest on that girl. It makes me want to pray my thanks to whatever divine power created women.”
All Lucas could do was shake his head. “You’re right. You are no poet.”
“Oh is that right, Mr. Perfect Gentleman? As if I didn’t just catch you admiring her ass.” Dan shrugged. “But you and I know it’s more than that. She fits with us. Does that make any sense?”
“Yeah. Yeah, I think it does.”
Ever since they’d stopped in here on a whim after a day riding North Carolina’s back roads and Josie had served them, they’d been coming back. Not every week at first. But soon enough it was every Friday. If they knew she was working, sometimes they’d come in on Saturday after lunch hour, when the place was empty. That way they had a chance to talk with her. That’s how they’d found out Josie had created their favorite dishes on the menu. How they’d learned Christie, the other waitress, was obsessed with New Age stuff and really wanted to take her daughter to the Harry Potter theme park. That Jim, who owned the place and manned the kitchen, wanted to retire and buy a sailboat he could live on, sailing up and down the coasts. Those lazy Saturday chats were where they’d really come to know Josie…and had cemented how much they wanted to bring her into their lives.
Dan took another sip of his beer and sighed. “Don’t mind my chatter. I’m just trying to psyche myse
lf up. Hate to admit it, but I’m a little nervous.”
“You’re nervous? I feel like a kid about to ask someone out to his first prom.” He shook his head and laughed. “Never thought I’d feel that way again.”
He’d never felt this nervous around Dan, even during those supercharged months when they’d first been falling in love. He grinned. Although he certainly was no poet, the man made him laugh, cooked wonderful meals, and had a kindness streak as wide as the Mississippi. He was also one of the most attentive, patient lovers Lucas had ever experienced, taking his time, making each time they made love something special. He’d never felt this on edge around Josie before either, even as strongly as he was attracted to her.
It was the coming change that had him on edge. After tonight, nothing would be the same. For better or worse.
He poured more of his beer into the cold mug. “Guess we both have it bad for her, don’t we? I feel like I’m starting up negotiations for a billion dollar deal.”
Dan shook his head and flashed a grin. “Exactly. One thing’s for sure. I still have it bad for you.”
“Don’t I know it.” He made sure his answering smile told how pleased he was at Dan’s words. “I am a great kisser.”
“And you suck cock like a god.”
His smile widened. “And I do suck cock like a god.”
“And you have the sexual stamina of ten men.”
He lifted an eyebrow. “Okay, now we’ve drifted into crazytown. And who says ‘sexual stamina’? I prefer the term ‘fuck like a horny mink.’”
“Are minks known for fucking or horniness?”
He tilted his head as if carefully considering it. “I thought I read something like that once. It doesn’t matter. We’ve drifted off topic. And that topic is our big night where we go all in. We didn’t come into this with a plan. And as a mildly successful businessman, that makes me a little nervous.”
Dan gave a snort at his use of the words “mildly successful” and leaned back in his seat. He turned to stare off toward the river downslope from the deck. The breeze set the tree branches to swaying, but they couldn’t hear it over the music. That was fine, though. Later this evening, after the band packed up, he would enjoy the sounds of nature. All things in their time.
A good philosophy, except he wanted Josie Smith. And he wanted her now.
“The dinner rush will be winding down soon,” Dan said. “We can wait out here on the deck. When we have the chance, when the time is right, we invite her somewhere.”
“That’s the start of a plan. Where do we invite her?”
“Maybe when she’s off shift, we invite her to go dancing at a club in Raleigh. You know she likes to move by the way she swings those beautiful hips. Imagine her dancing between us. Hell, I’m already hard thinking about it.”
“I suppose that’s one of the only options. For tonight anyway. It will be too late to treat her to fine dining…if she’s even hungry. Most other places will be closed up. The theater. The symphony. Or maybe we could go to a coffee shop. Sit down and chat awhile.”
Dan raised his eyebrow. “We could do that easily enough right here without having to drive all the way to Raleigh.”
“Yeah, but the ride is half the fun.”
“I hear that,” he replied with a grin. “It’s a plan then.” He raised his beer bottle to Lucas. Lucas gently clinked his mug against the bottle, and they both took a drink.
“You two look like you’re up to no good,” Josie said as she swung into view with two plates heaped with food.
“That’s us,” Lucas said easily, although his heart was pounding from the start she’d given him. That had been close. He hadn’t noticed her come out on the deck.
Josie set the entrees down in front of them. A steak burger, baked potato with the works, fresh, steamed broccoli dripping with butter, and fried pickles for Lucas. Pulled pork, hushpuppies, and collard greens for Dan.
“Another beer?” she asked, looking at each of them in turn.
“Please,” Dan said.
Lucas nodded, but as she turned to go, he reached out and caught her hand. She turned back to him, her eyebrows raised, but damned if he didn’t notice the slightest pink flush to her cheeks. He kept her hand in his, loving the soft feel of her skin.
“Maybe you can come talk for a while,” he said, “after things slow down a bit.”
“I’d love to chat. Later though. Right now there are too many fires and not enough water buckets.”
He let her hand go, and she hurried back into the restaurant.
Dan was watching him closely. “That went pretty well.”
He nodded. The blush was a good sign. A good first step, anyway. But he had to stay laser-focused on their plan. The plan to make Josie a part of their lives.
He suspected they would only have one chance at doing this right.
Good thing he never sweated under pressure…
* * *
Jim tossed his apron in the basket kept by the back door for dirty towels and aprons and the like. “I’m real sorry to have to do this to you on your Friday night, Josie. You know I wouldn’t if there was any other way. Christie has to get home to her kids. And…”
The big cook trailed off, looking at her unhappily. Jim was sixty-four, large as a construction worker, and had a completely bald head she found strangely fascinating. Mostly because it reflected the fluorescent lights. It was distracting sometimes…like right at this moment.
She struggled to focus her scattered, tired thoughts. It had been a busy night. The dinner rush had lasted longer than usual. The band played an extra set. More people stayed later, making things busier for her and Christie. Which also meant better tips, but right now she was beat. Christie’s shift had ended fifteen minutes ago. She’d left with a suggestive eyebrow waggle and made Josie promise not to fight destiny. The stars had spoken!
Josie had only laughed it off. The only destiny she had in her future was counting a bunch of pennies to balance the till. “Go on and get out of here, boss,” she said, gently pushing one of his meaty shoulders to urge him toward the door. “You know I’ve done this before. You just need to focus on getting well-rested enough to drive your daughter and granddaughter to the airport at the crack of dawn.”
“I know it,” he said with a sigh. “I really appreciate this.” He jerked his head toward the empty restaurant interior. “Everything’s cleaned up inside. I’ll go tell those city boys it’s time to scoot.”
“No,” she said, fighting to sound casual and mostly succeeding. “I’ll tell them to hit the road in a few minutes. They’re already all paid up. But they aren’t harming anything out there.”
“Good tip?”
She couldn’t help a grin. “Like always.”
“One of those boys might be sweet on you,” Jim said, frowning and glancing toward the French doors leading to the deck.
Her heart started pounding at the thought. If only that were true. The tiki torches were still going, and the rest of the light came from decorative electric lanterns strategically placed around the railing. She could see both men sitting at their table. Lucas had stretched his long legs out and was leaning back in his chair. His arms were folded across his chest, and his head was tilted as he listened closely to what Dan was saying. For Dan’s part, he was leaning on the table with both elbows, showing that charming grin as he talked. Usually they stayed late, sitting on the deck under the stars and talking. Sitting under the stars with a full belly, good company, easy conversation, and a cold beverage of her choice seemed unbelievably appealing to her right then.
“No,” she finally said to Jim. “They’re sweethearts, but they aren’t sweet on me. I’ll show them the door in a few minutes, promise. Then I will semi-professionally math your accounting program. And I promise to use the adding machine and not count on my fingers.”
Jim still paused, giving her a searching look. “Look, maybe this isn’t a good idea. I can stay a couple hours and do the books. I’ll just do
uble load up on coffee tomorrow morning—”
“Jim, will you go on home? You fret worse than a woman. And I should know, since I’m a woman.”
His frown deepened. “I don’t fret.”
“Of course you don’t. Now head on home and get a few more minutes with your daughter before she has to fly back to Sacramento. I’ll be fine.”
Jim eventually relented. She watched as his beat-up old Chevy rumbled out of the parking lot, turned onto the highway, and headed toward town. It was very quiet in the restaurant with Jim, Christie, and Vinnie gone, the kitchen shut down, the dining room sparkling and empty. Empty rooms like this always made her feel strangely sad. It was weird, but places usually filled with sound and motion always seemed forlorn when the people went away.
Tired, her feet hurting a little, she made her way out onto the deck. But her sudden case of the blues vanished the moment she stepped outside. Both men turned to her, and from the look in their eyes and the language from their incredible bodies, they were genuinely pleased to see her.
“Let me guess,” Dan said easily. “Last call. Then you’re kicking us out.”
Lucas grinned. “Long past time too. We’ve been bringing down the quality of the ambiance for hours now.”
She laughed. “You two are terrible. You don’t need to leave yet. I just wanted to apologize that I didn’t get a chance to come out here and chat.”
“Busy night,” Dan said, his voice strangely flat.
“It was. I’m about to head inside and finish up the books. Jim had to leave a little early tonight. So I thought I’d see if there was anything else you needed before I disappeared into the back.”
“Thanks for letting us stay so late,” Lucas told her. His deep voice was even more serious than usual. “It’s a beautiful night.”