Chandra took the keys, looked at them, and then back up at him. “Sorry.”
“It’s okay. In a few weeks, you’ll get some time off. Maybe you can take a vacation for Jason’s spring break.”
She nodded. “That would be something. It’s been a very, very long time since I had a vacation.”
“I don’t know anyone who deserves it more.”
The compliment hung in the air. Neither of them walked away. Nor did either of them move.
Mike felt his fingers twitch to reach out and touch her. Her tired eyes looking up at him made him want to pull her to him and hold her against him. He told himself it was for her comfort, but he wasn’t sure about that.
Finally, he took a step back. “I’ll come back through the back and meet you upstairs.”
Chandra watched him walk away as she locked the door and lingered there. She wasn’t one to worry about having made an ass of herself in front of people. So why did it matter, at that moment, that she’d thought he was making a move on her. Perhaps because she’d hoped he might.
She threw her hands in the air, in silent protest. She was stupid. With all the things going on in the world, and she was looking for a little ego boost. Letting out a growl, she crossed the restaurant and walked to the door that would lead up the steps to Mike’s apartment.
Letting herself in, she took a moment to look around. Last night she hadn’t noticed how homey it was. Mike only had what her mother had brought him, but somehow, just with him in it, it felt warm.
Walking toward the fireplace, she noticed he’d added a photo to the mantel. Chandra reached for it and pulled it down. It was a picture of him and his son. His son looked just like him. Oh, and the smile on Mike’s face said just how proud he was of him.
She replaced the photo and looked at the picture which Gabe had left there when he moved. This one she was familiar with.
It was a picture of him and his first wife on a ski trip. They looked so happy. But she’d been killed in a car accident, and moving to Colorado and taking over his uncle’s bar had been Gabe’s salvation. He’d mended his broken heart right there in that apartment.
She looked around and smiled. Maybe it was a good place for new beginnings she thought as she replaced Gabe’s photo.
Chandra decided if she didn’t stop messing around, Mike would be back and she’d still be standing there. She continued to the bedroom and stopped.
His bed was rumpled, and that brought a smile to her face. She would have taken him for a neat freak when it came to making beds. But the twisted sheets and the unfluffed pillow made her feel a bit more at home.
Chandra walked into the bathroom and closed the door. The set up there made her think back to him being more of a neat freak. Everything was lined up just so, and the towel wasn’t just wadded up on the bar, it was neatly placed.
Well, for a moment she’d thought he was in her league, and she laughed as she turned on the water.
Chapter Twelve
The lingering scent of warm water and soap filled his apartment and made his stomach knot just a bit. Just in the next room, Chandra was naked in his bathroom.
Mike could feel his cheeks fill with heat. Well, all that meant was he was a healthy functioning man. She was a looker, and it was perfectly normal to think of her then, he decided.
He pulled out a few paper plates and a couple of forks. He’d found a small diner a few blocks away and ordered them a few different things. It would be a private buffet of sorts, he humored himself with the thought.
When his bedroom door opened, he couldn’t help but quickly look up. Chandra moved through the doorway. She had on her regular uniform, but he supposed the perk was that there were clean ones downstairs. Her hair was damp and laid over her shoulder. He’d never seen her with her hair down. It gave her a softer look.
It took his breath away.
“You can stop gawking,” she said as she walked toward him. “I’m not naked.”
“You know any normal man would wish the woman in the other room would come out naked. I’m just normal,” he said lightly, hoping she’d find humor in it.
She smiled, and he decided that was a win.
“Okay, so I have us a little buffet. Pancakes, eggs, bacon, hash browns, biscuits and gravy, toast, and an orange juice we could share.”
The corner of her mouth lifted into a slight smile. Ah, he’d melted the frigid off her.
“I’m starving,” she said. “I think I want a little of everything.”
That brought a smile to his face. He’d never much cared for his ex-wife’s lack of eating. Oh, he knew she binged when he wasn’t around. But after twenty years of marriage, he’d have thought she’d have gotten over not eating in front of him. He hadn’t been only in love with her body. How shallow had she thought he was?
He tensed when he realized he’d suddenly been bothered by it. That was then, he thought. Now he had a new start. There was no reason to dwell on the past.
Chandra pulled out her chair and sat down. She immediately dove into the carryout containers and filled herself a plate.
She looked up at him watching her as she bit down on a piece of bacon.
“Are you just going to stand there?” she asked and he smiled.
“No.” He pulled out his chair and sat down across from her. “It’s nice to have breakfast with you again,” he said.
“Yeah.” She bit off another bite of bacon. “You’re the only guy I’ve eaten breakfast with more than once and haven’t slept with,” she said with a snort, and then horror took over her face. Her eyes grew wide and she began to cough from choking on the bacon.
He pushed her orange juice toward her.
She waved her hand in the air as she drank. “I didn’t mean that. I mean, yes I meant it, but not like that. Oh, shit, you must think I’m some crazy slut.”
Mike lifted his cup to his lips to sip his tepid coffee, and perhaps hide his grin. “You don’t have to apologize for anything you say around me.”
“Well, that was out of line.” She cleared her throat. “I don’t just sleep around.” She snorted out another laugh. “I guess that was pathetic too. All I do is work.”
“You’ve been pretty busy raising a great kid too.”
That eased the tense look on her face. “Yeah, he’s great.” She finished her piece of bacon and then took in after the scrambled eggs with her fork. “So that job offer you got last night. Are you going to take it?”
He smiled as he took a bite of the biscuits and gravy. “Thinking about it. It’s an opportunity, that’s for sure.”
“You don’t seem convinced.”
“No, it’s just something your mom said to me.”
She lowered her fork and looked at him. “My mom?”
“Yeah, yesterday when I was at your house. She invited me in, gave me a plant, and offered me cookies.”
“Right, you told me that.”
“But I was telling about the house that I had seen. It would make a nice B and B.”
“Like what your parents had?”
“Yeah.” He took another bite. “It’s just a dream. Not very practical. But she said not to give up on my dream.”
Chandra nodded. “That sounds like her.”
He sat back. “It’s only been a few days that I’ve been here. I haven’t even gotten out of downtown. Maybe I don’t want to be locked into another office. Maybe I want something new.”
Their conversation was interrupted by his cell phone ringing. The storage unit company was on their way. “Looks like I’ll have my own coffee pot tomorrow.”
She lowered her fork. “Yeah. Kinda disappointing.”
“How’s that?”
“This was nice.”
“Tomorrow, I’ll have coffee too. I’d still love to have you for breakfast.”
Her cheeks pinkened. “Until Gabe gets back, I’d take you up on that offer.”
“Consider it a date then.”
She lifted her glass of orang
e juice. “Considered and accepted.”
Maybe downtown life would be just right, he thought.
~*~
The container delivery happened at the same time as Chandra’s produce delivery arrived. Somehow they managed to make it work, and finally, everything Mike owned was in his possession.
He unlocked the container and looked inside. He’d moved out of a house, and now was moving into a one-bedroom, furnished apartment. What in the hell was he going to do with all of his stuff?
The unfortunate part was, he would have to move it all out to find all the things he needed.
He supposed he could rent a storage facility, especially since he wasn’t paying rent on his apartment. It sure was becoming more difficult to enjoy having his things there.
Mike heard the door behind him open, and he turned to see Chandra standing there looking at the storage unit with a bit of horror.
“What are you going to do with all of that?” she asked and he chuckled.
“I was just thinking the same thing. I don’t need the bed or the furniture. Some of these personal items don’t need to be dragged out if I’m only going to be living upstairs for six months.”
“Are those your terms?”
He shrugged. “Gabe thought we’d be caught up by then and then could discuss it. I don't think it'll take me that long. And it's suited for someone just getting their footing. I’d like to think I’d have mine by then.”
“Can you fix sprinklers?”
Now he laughed. “It’s thirty degrees, and you need your sprinkler fixed?”
“No,” she huffed and stuck her hands in her back pockets. “My sprinkler at home needs to be redone. It hasn’t worked for years, and I haven’t shelled out the money to fix it. But I do have a two car garage that you could store your stuff in if you fix my sprinkler.”
He nodded thoughtfully. “You’ve saved my ass a lot this week.”
“Yeah, well, I guess you’re rubbing off on me.”
There was a compelling need to move to her. Somewhere between him walking into that bar four days ago and now, they’d forged some kind of friendship. Not just acquaintances, but a deep friendship.
He stood there, not quite a foot taller, looking down at the woman who at perhaps five foot carried a lot of confidence and attitude. Her eyes grew wide, and she crossed her arms in front of her, but she didn’t back away.
“You’ll let me store my things at your house?”
She shrugged. “What’s the big deal? You’re going to help me out.”
“You’ve known me four days.”
“Yeah, so? And in four days you’ve managed to get yourself a job here, an apartment, and a job offer with a startup. My kid likes you. So does my mom and my boss. You must be okay, huh?”
“I must be,” he said inching even closer.
She narrowed her eyes on him, and he actually thought she might punch him if she had to. “When does Jason get home from school?”
“Three.”
“I’ll sharpen my math skills and offer up dinner for the family. Is he still coming to help me move in?”
“Yes.”
Now he moved and pulled her into a hug, her arms still in front of her pressed into him. “You are a great friend. Thank you.”
When he let go, she rocked back to get her balance. “You’re a softy.”
He smiled. “I am. I’m a big ole softy, and I can’t help it.”
“I’m not soft.”
“I won’t argue, but quietly I’ll disagree.”
The corner of her mouth turned up into a slight smile. “How old are you?”
Mike laughed. “You think we’re good enough friends you can ask?” She raised her brows and waited for an answer.
“Forty-seven,” he replied
Her lips pursed and she turned and disappeared back into the kitchen.
Perhaps she was disappointed in his age. But he laughed it off and went back to digging through the container in front of him.
Chapter Thirteen
Mike spent most of the day weeding out what he needed and what he didn’t need in the storage container. He was grateful, as well, for the use of the restaurant’s dumpster to throw away the things he’d held on to. He shook his head as he dug through yet another box of items he should have thrown away when he’d packed them. What possessed him to keep recipe cards that he’d never used? If he wanted something he looked it up online. He grunted as he threw another stack of items in the dumpster.
When the door to the restaurant opened, it was Esther with a large travel mug of coffee. “Chandra said you’d been out here all day. You must be frozen.”
“Well, don’t want to pay more for this unit than I need to. Might as well get it done.”
He pulled off the gloves he’d borrowed from Gabe’s office and held the cup between his hands. “Can I offer you a seat?” He motioned to the sofa, inside the container, and Esther laughed.
“Don’t mind if I do.”
They sat together in the storage container and Esther looked around.
“What all do you have in here?” she asked.
“I’ve come to the conclusion, nothing.”
Esther laughed. “Nothing important, huh?”
“Not a bit of it. You know you spend all that time wrapping things that you later think you should have just gotten rid of. So why the hell keep it?”
“I know what you’re talking about. When I moved in with Chandra, I purged most of my life. And it was worth it. It was time to start over and think fresh.”
“Yeah, that’s what I think I’m going to do.”
“She said you’re storing some of it in the garage for a bit.”
“Until I get a place. Then I’ll need the bed, and sofa, and table.”
“Jason will be happy not to have to help carry that all upstairs. At least dumping it into the garage will be easier.”
“Sure, once we put it in a truck and take it back out.”
Esther laughed again. “We won’t tell him that part.” She stood. “He’s inside with his mom. She had a plate of something made for him for a snack. I hear we’re having dinner at your place.”
“You are if you’ll come.”
“Oh, if I’m not cooking, I’m there.”
“I figured with moving and tutoring we might have to go simple. You don’t mind pizza delivery do you?”
“I’ll bring a six-pack.”
“Sounds like a plan. Thanks for delivering my helper.”
“Anything to get him off that video game for a few hours.” She waved and went back into the restaurant.
Mike sipped his coffee again. He hadn’t realized just how cold he was until the coffee warmed him. Well, he’d be done with this task soon enough, and then he could move on to the next great thing.
Chandra wiped down the bar and filled another order while Jason picked at the plate of fruits and vegetables she’d had prepared for him. She hadn’t expected anything less, but he’d survive.
Her mother walked back into the restaurant from the kitchen. “Mike’s making progress,” she said placing her hand on Jason’s back. “But you get to eating so you can help him.”
“That doesn’t sound like fun.”
“Well, you’ll be happy to know he doesn’t plan on moving the big stuff upstairs.”
Jason’s head popped up. “Good.”
“Yep, and he’s ordering pizza for dinner.”
“Perfect!” Now he was smiling.
“I knew you’d be okay with that.” Esther kissed him on the head and looked toward Chandra. “Need anything on my way back?”
“I think I’ll be fine.”
Esther walked behind the bar and hugged her daughter. “Want me to bring you some clothes for tonight?”
Chandra pulled back and narrowed her gaze on her mother. “What is that supposed to mean?”
Esther smiled. “You didn’t come home last night. I’m just putting two and two together.”
“Right,
and I texted you and told you that Gabe and Holly had their baby in the middle of the night.”
She nodded. “So you were at the hospital all night?”
“No.”
“You showered and got ready today,” she said taking a handful of Chandra’s hair, which hadn’t been pulled up, and tossing it over her shoulder.
“I used Mike’s.”
“And I’m not supposed to think something has happened?”
“I slept in Gabe’s office,” Chandra said turning her back to Jason. “Mom, why would you think like that?”
Her mother kissed her cheek. “Maybe I was just hopeful.”
She walked back around the bar and kissed Jason again, who shrugged her off. Then with a wave, she left the restaurant.
Chandra stood there, deflated. Her mother was putting way too much stock into something she knew nothing about.
“Are you almost done playing with your food?” she snapped at Jason.
“Yeah.”
“Get your gloves on and go out back and help Mike.”
“I have to?”
“You promised.”
He jumped down from his stool. “No, you promised. This sucks,” he said as he walked out of the restaurant and through the kitchen.
Chandra rested her hands flat on the bar. She needed to wrap her head around all of this Mike stuff. She could admit, she moved too fast in giving him a job. It was Gabe’s fault he lived upstairs. And what was with that hug earlier?
The printer to her side began to print. Thank goodness someone needed a drink. She knew she sure did.
~*~
Mike laughed every time Jason picked up a box and groaned. He couldn’t blame him. The feeling was mutual.
“How much more do we have to do?” Jason asked as they trudged up the stairs for the hundredth time.
“Just a few more. I’ll put the rest of the storage container in your garage.”
He turned and looked at him. “You’re putting it in our garage?”
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