Whatever the reason, Gabriella couldn’t be happier with the day so far. “I’ll make a note of that, but only chocolate sauce on pancakes? Not chocolate chip pancakes? No whipped cream? Sprinkles?”
“You know, I’ve never asked him.” Flo thinned her bright pink lips. “Colt drives Parker to school because Talon, who used to work here, Parker’s mom, drives to Bozeman each day for vet school.”
“She must be very smart. Vet school is tough to get into.”
“Yes. Colt comes in on Fridays after Parker has sports practice—not sure what he plays—and they get dinner to go.”
Wiping down the counter, Gabriella switched out two half-full salt shakers with two full ones. “Do they get anything in particular?”
“Nope, Parker gets to pick so who knows what the kid wants. He probably doesn’t even know until he comes in.”
A warmth wrapped around Gabriella’s heart as she watched Parker and Colt. The giant of a man obviously had a soft spot for his stepson. He helped him cut up his pancakes and made sure the youngster didn’t spill his milk.
They come in for the food and stay for the conversation.
“Looks like a sweet family. Glad we can help their day go easier.” Gabriella restocked the napkins as she made mental notes. “Talon come in at all?”
Prying Flo for information about the locals had been a godsend. With the exception of tourists, it seemed the woman knew everyone and everything any of them had ever eaten. “You getting all this or am I throwing too much at you at once?”
“Making sure I have this right. The Scott brothers are here on Wednesdays, the Wright sisters come in after their movie night, which can be any day of the week. The Ewing family comes in on Fridays to pick up dinner. Freddie comes in on Wednesdays because his mom works a double at the hospital.”
“Exactly. See, you’re getting the hang of it.”
“Casey! Order up!” Merlin, the cook, yelled over several plates of food.
Casey held up her index finger as she took an order from a table of out-of-towners who appeared to be taking their time looking over the menu.
“I wonder if she needs me to run this order.” Watching, Casey flashed a stressed smile at one of the women, who kept pointing back and forth to the two sides of the menu. Watching the second hand of her watch, Gabriella counted fifteen seconds. Too long. “I’m going to take this.”
“I’ll get the coffees covered.”
Scooping up the plates, she delivered the meals, refilled their drinks, and cleared plates from another table.
Adrenaline coursed through her veins as she moved about the room, anticipating when customers needed something.
A clean fork to a woman who dropped hers.
A small stack of napkins to the couple with the toddler wrist-deep in pancakes.
Another refill on the judge’s coffee as his booming voice hovered above the rest of the conversations.
Working the diner gave Gabriella purpose, joy to see everyone happy, fed, and satisfied.
A lovely redhead with blue eyes sat at the counter as a seat opened.
Gabriella quickly cleaned the area before the woman even put her purse on the counter. “Good morning. What can I get you?”
“I’ll start with coffee.” She extended her hand. “I’m Lucy, in case you forgot.”
“I met you and your friend yesterday, right? Nice to meet you, again.”
“Used to live here. Knew Harry and his family.”
“You grew up in Marietta?” Sliding a coffee mug in front of her latest customer, Gabriella guessed that Lucy had to be about her age. Lucy talked about coming back and visiting friends including Keely Anderson.
Gabriella enjoyed the conversation with someone who knew the town as well as Flo did. “Sorry if I have to ask your name a few times. Still learning everybody. Your friend’s name is Kelly?.”
“Keely. She’s great. Smart as a whip. Working on her doctorate in rocks.”
“She sound interesting. I look forward to seeing her, again.”
“Great. She’ll be here shortly. She has a weakness for Griffin’s pancakes.” She looked around Gabby. “Isn’t that right, Griffin?”
“Yep.” The cook nodded as he place to more plates full of food in the window.
As Lucy and Gabriella talked, multiple customers came and went.
By the end of the shift, Gabriella had been properly updated on the most recent town gossip, learned that Lucy could put away the coffee by the gallon, and Keely could eat her weight in pancakes.
Casey handed over all her tickets. “Thanks for helping me back there. Those ladies couldn’t decide if they wanted to be naughty and get something fried or stay with their wheat toast and cups of fruit.”
“Glad to do it. How’d you do?”
Counting out her tips, Casey folded the bills in half and stuffed them in her pockets. “Wow. Busy morning. I could get used to this.”
“So could I,” a deep voice mumbled.
A shiver ran up Gabriella’s spine as Kyle’s words danced across her skin.
She turned to find him sitting at the counter. “Good morning.”
“Got your boys’ orders cooking, Kyle,” Griffin yelled through the kitchen window.
“Thank you, sir.” Kyle saluted before his eyes rested on her. The sultry stare made her feel all sorts of naked…and she liked it.
“What can I get—”
Casey pulled Gabriella’s arm before she finished her sentence and took her to one side. “Hey, don’t get your hopes up on that one.”
“Oh?”
“I mean he was nice to show you guys around on that first day, but Kyle hasn’t dated anyone since he’s been in town. A real loner.”
Seems she’s been talking to Flo. “Thanks for the update.”
“My brother, Brett, said Kyle doesn’t do much except work and work out. I’m pretty sure he’s taken a vow of chastity or he’s got some super secret past, like a spy or something.”
Biting her lip, Gabriella suppressed the urge to contradict. “Thanks, Casey, I’ll keep that in mind.”
As she returned, the corner of his mouth mischievously curled up. “Good morning, Miss Marcos. Who do I have to know to get some service around here?”
“I might know someone. What would you like?” Placing a coffee mug in front of him, she filled it.
He raised an eyebrow. “What do you have?”
Tingles danced along her body and settled between her thighs. “What are you hungry for?”
Right in the middle of the restaurant, he placed his hand on her wrist, pulled her forward, and kissed her before answering, “You.”
“Oh.”
It was as if the world was on pause. Almost everyone in the diner stopped moving and stared wide-eyed at them. With Kyle’s back to the room, he didn’t see a thing.
But Gabriella immediately felt all eyes on her. “Everyone’s looking at us.”
He gave her a quick kiss before sitting down and grabbing a menu. “Let them look.”
“Is kissing outlawed in Marietta?”
A sly smirk spread across his face. “This isn’t Footloose.”
Lucy and Keely hummed the catchy movie song and gave her a thumbs-up before they shared a healthy slice of orange-glazed cinnamon bread.
Smoothing out her apron, Gabriella mumbled, “Am I missing something?”
Out of the corner of her eye, Casey stood with a pot of coffee in her hand, slack-jawed.
Casey’s words of caution replayed in Gabriella’s mind. “Oh, I see.”
Flo rolled her eyes. “Come on, people, back to yourselves.”
As if someone hit play, customers returned to their regularly scheduled programs.
Nestling the coffee pot, Casey fanned herself. “Wow. Nice job.”
“Thank you.” Heat spread across her face as she tried to subdue a nervous giggle.
Lucy leaned back in her chair and gave Kyle a once-over. “You’re new in town?”
It to
ok a second for him to notice Lucy had asked him a question. “Me? Been with the fire department about a year. Came in to pick something up.”
“You knew Harry?”
A quick flicker of sadness drifted across his face. “I knew him. Good guy.”
“The best.” She dabbed the corner of her mouth with her napkin. “Sorry, but you look so familiar. I know I’ve seen you somewhere.”
Without looking at her, he shook his head. “Don’t think so.”
“You sure?”
He slid his hand over to rest on Gabriella’s. “Yes. I’m sure.”
As endearing as the gesture was, his immediate rebuttal hit her strangely. Before she could ask him anything, the sweetest word tickled her ears.
“Mom.”
Mom? A tapping on the counter yanked Gabriella out of her bliss. “What?”
Trinity smiled at her. “Mom.”
Mom. One word couldn’t sound more melodious. She swallowed her joy to remain casual. “Yes, T? How’s it going with Miss Collier?”
“She offered to take me to school today. With two other students: Tia and Frederick.” A blush of red colored her cheeks when she mentioned the young man’s name. “Freddie said they’d show me around. Eat lunch with me.”
“Hello, Miss Marcos.” The dark-haired young man extended his hand to shake. “Nice to see you again.”
Returning the gesture, Gabriella smiled. “Frederick.”
“And I’m his cousin, Tia.” The chestnut-haired girl stepped forward. Her blue eyes were a beautiful compliment to her olive-colored skin. “I’m a freshman and Freddie’s a sophomore. We’d love to show Trinity around. She’s amazing.”
Wringing her hands together, Trinity’s eyes twinkled with excitement. “They said they’re putting together an art display with the metal shop students. Said I could help since I know how to use basic tools.”
Seeing the hope in her daughter’s eyes caused excitement to lodge in Gabriella’s chest. She had to clear her throat a few times before she could answer. “Yes, of course you can go with them, T. I’ve already done all the paperwork online. You should be registered, but please call me if I need to do anything else.”
“If there’s a problem, we’ll just sign her in as a visitor today.” Miss Collier handed over her ticket for the meal with two twenties. “High school’s out at four-thirty. I’d be glad to bring her home or here.”
Gabriella handed her money back. “No, no, this one’s on me.”
“You sure?”
“Please, let me do this. You have no idea how happy I am you came by. Oh, and I’ll pick her up. Thank you for the offer.” Pulling Trinity into her arms, she hugged her tight. “Have fun.”
“Thanks, Mom.”
Mom. Tears pricked the backs of her eyelids, but she kept them at bay.
With a skip in her step, Trinity walked out with her new classmates, giving her mom a wave before they exited.
“Thanks for the heads-up.” Miss Collier patted Kyle on the shoulder before giving Gabriella a wink. “She’s a smart girl. She’s gonna be a great fit at Marietta High School.”
As soon as the diner door closed, she tapped the counter in front of Kyle. “You did that?”
He lifted a shoulder. “I might have mentioned it when I saw Chelsea at the hardware store yesterday.”
Leaning forward, she whispered, “You’re gonna get so lucky for that.”
Chapter Fifteen
You can’t sleep with her.
The idea whipped around in his head like a flag in high winds.
All during his twenty-four-hour shift, he kept telling himself that, but neither his heart nor his cock would listen.
You’re going to get so lucky. The way she’d said it had been so damned sexy that he wanted to pull her into her office and show her a proper Marietta welcome.
Once he arrived home, he noticed her house was dark. “Probably at the diner.”
With the storm, they’d been plenty busy at the station going out to help with car accidents and people needing hospital transport.
Before he could even get out of his clothes, he flopped down on his bed and fell asleep.
Several hours later, his phone went off. Rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, he glanced at it. The name on the screen woke him straight up. “Dean?”
“You rang, Cavasos?” A deep voice asked.
“I need a favor.”
“What is it?”
As Kyle explained the situation, his concern about the property decreased.
Dean had always been a good friend and a better listener. “You want me down there, when?”
“As soon as you can get there.” Groggily, he made it to his desk and scanned the documents his mother sent him. The low hum of the scanner filled the room. “I’m going to send you the information. Tell me what the hell this is saying and if there’s a way I can do what I suggested, because I don’t know any of this crap.”
“That’s why you pay me the big bucks, right?”
As he tried to feed his photo shoot pictures into the scanner, he stopped and laughed at his fatigue. He tossed the photos on the same pile as the contracts. “I know you’re busy, but I want to stay here. It’s good people and away from all that shit.”
“I hear ya. If anyone deserves a life of peace, it’s you.” Dean hummed one of Mumford & Sons’ latest songs. “I can be down there by tomorrow. How long did you want me to stay?”
Relief spread through Kyle’s shoulders. “As long as it takes to get the info I need.”
“I’ll read through these and get you an answer.”
“Thanks, man. I knew I could count on you.”
“But it’ll cost you.”
That made Kyle freeze in his tracks. “What do you want?”
“What’s her name?”
For the next hour, Kyle told his best friend everything.
“Her family works there? You want me to get intel on them too?”
“Not intel, but I think they’d be good resources.” Although that idea didn’t sit as well. “Just treat them right, okay? They sound like good people, good at their jobs and if Riley’s screwing things up, I don’t want to lose solid employees.”
“I’ll see what I can do. I’ll let you know when I’m there. Talk to you then.”
Lying back on his bed, Kyle rubbed his temples. Within minutes, he’d fallen back asleep.
With her schedule and him working over at Harry’s House on Sunday, he didn’t see Gabby until Monday when she came back home after taking Trinity to school.
Even though it had been less than two days since he’d seen her, his gut twisted like it had been years. As casually as he could muster, he walked over as she pulled into the driveway and handed her a cup of coffee. “Morning.”
“Thank you.” She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. “How are you? It’s been a bit.”
“Good. Not working at the diner today?” His libido simmered below the surface.
“I have to be there later, but this morning, Flo has it handled.”
“So if you’re free this morning, I wondered if you’d like to do something.”
“Yes.” Her eyebrow cocked up. “What did you have in mind?”
Leaning in, he whispered, “Would you be interested in picking up where we left off the other night?”
The coffee mug stopped midway to her full lips. “You mean, alone time? Just us?”
“If that’s what you want to call it.” He stuffed his hands in his pockets as the chilly air did little to calm his lust.
At first, he thought she’d say no, but when she asked for a few minutes, he ran back home and brushed his teeth again.
When he heard her quick footsteps up his front stairs, Kyle couldn’t open the door fast enough.
Without a word, he pulled her into his arms and kissed her without restraint.
She tasted like spearmint.
He smiled. “Cheater, you brushed your teeth.”
“So did you.” A slow
smirk spread over her face as she ran her finger along his lower lip. “Your peppermint mouthwash makes my lips tingle.”
“Maybe I could make other things tingle, too.”
Her eyebrows hit her hairline. “Oh my! That would be…um…um…”
“Yes it would.” He captured her mouth again as his mind raced with the things he wanted to do to her. How he wanted to touch her. Taste her. Bring her to climax and hear her scream his name.
He slid his hands down the gentle curves of her hips and back, pushing her sweater up. With tender strokes, he ran his thumbs along the sides of her breasts.
She moaned into his mouth before she pulled away and helped him remove her top layer.
“I’ve been dreaming about getting you out of that sweater for days.” He growled as he tossed it across the room and marveled at her black lace tank top. His mouth watered at her perfect cleavage, the gorgeous swell of her breasts. “Did you want to take this somewhere else?”
“What?” Uncertainty flashed across her eyes.
“Or we could stand in the hallway if you want, but I think there are more comfortable places to sit.”
“Sit. Sure.” Her hesitation only intrigued him more. He’d dated enough wannabes to know when someone had ulterior motives. Gabriella’s lack of confidence was a far cry from those who wanted sex for the sake of sex.
“How about the couch?”
Relief washed across her face. “Yes. Much nicer than standing.”
Taking her hand, he led her to his sectional and let her choose where she wanted to sit.
She sat in the middle. Immediately, he joined her, kissing her neck and inhaling whatever that subtle vanilla scent was she used. “You smell like a cookie.”
A giggle escaped her. “I should have you know, I didn’t bring anything and I’m not on the pill.”
Disappointment momentarily slowed his momentum before he answered, “I don’t have anything either, but—”
“Really?” She pulled back, her eyes wide with surprise. “A guy like you doesn’t have a stock of protection hanging around?”
“What do you mean a guy like me?” He traced his finger along her collarbone as he relished the softness of her skin.
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