Taken Hard (The Hard Boys 2)

She saw the woman who’d been avoiding them and waved her closer. Whatever the woman said made the waitress pale and scurry away. Joanne took the notepad and pen and came toward them.

“Sorry about that, Caleb. Consider dinner on the house,” Joanne said.

“I don’t mind paying,” Lilly said. She didn’t want to get special treatment or be rude.

Joanne pointed toward the back wall. “See that sign?”

Lilly looked in the direction and at big bold letters that read the words, served in five minutes or you don’t pay.

“Oh,” Lilly said.

“Ever since I took over this diner from my father, I prided myself on customer service. No one can rival me. I’m that good. A little wounded waitress isn’t going to set me back the years I’ve taken to build this reputation up. Caleb knows this. He used to work here and was one of the best damn waiters I knew. Now, what can I get you?”

Lilly was surprised.

Caleb ordered first, and she decided to have the same as him.

“You worked here?” Lilly asked.

“For three years. During high school, the year after, and I’ve been a regular ever since. If I notice she’s swamped, I’ll grab an apron and get to work. Joanne’s a good woman. I like her. Always have.”

Within minutes, their food arrived, and Lilly got stuck in.

****

This was a date.

Lilly didn’t know it.

Caleb felt like the biggest fucking loser on the planet.

Taking her to the diner for a date. The food was amazing, and he didn’t want it to be so obvious he was asking her on a date. Of course, Tiffany, the clinger, had to be working tonight. He hadn’t chased her.

Tiffany had come on to him, and he’d been with her a few times, but she’d initiated everything. He never asked for her.

Damn.

His mother was right. She’d always warned him that his carefree attitude would get the better of him.

“So, why don’t you have a car?” he asked.

He watched as she took a large bite of the burger, and something was clearly wrong with him because he found it to be the most erotic thing he’d ever seen. Not if those teeth were wrapped around his dick, but just watching her eat, seeing her relax, it meant something to him. It aroused him.

When they’d entered, he’d seen the people’s judgment. The way they stared and glared. Lilly wasn’t a spectacle, and he refused to allow her to be treated as one. Joanne was a good woman, and when he’d asked her for a little help, she’d come right out for him.

“I used to, but I didn’t have the money to repair it. I sold it back to the garage where I got it and just walk.”

“You didn’t even think to come to me?” he asked. “I would’ve given you a discount.”

She wrinkled her nose. “With gas and everything, I just don’t want the expense. I’m saving to apply for some college courses. I can’t afford to go away to college, but I want to further my education.”

“You do? What would you like to study?” he asked.

“English language. I love to read and … write.”

“You write?”

“Badly.”

“Can I read it?”

“No.”

His brows went up. “No?”

“No one reads what I write, besides me. It’s nothing personal.” She winced. “I sound so rude.”

“It’s fine. You know I wouldn’t judge you. I was curious.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. Do you write romance?” he asked.

She nodded and looked away.

“Don’t be embarrassed.”

“How can I not?”

Caleb smiled. “Okay, how about I tell you an embarrassing thing about me.”

Lilly stared at him. “You want to tell me something?”

“Something that no one knows. Curious?”

“I hate to say this, but yeah, I am.”

Caleb put his burger down and leaned closer. “I used to spend hours reading my mom’s romance books, gaining tips. I love me a good romance.”

Lilly’s mouth opened and then she smiled. “Really?”

“Yeah.” He’d never told anyone. Only his mother knew his secret obsession with romance books, and as he got older, erotic books.

“I find that hard to believe.”

He began to list some of the authors he’d read, his favorite books.

“You’re telling the truth.”

He held his hands open. “I love romance. Not good with the whole horror thing. I’ll watch the movies to save face, but I’ll never willingly watch them on my own.”

“You’re a surprise, Caleb. What I’d love to know is why you’re telling me.”

He picked up his burger and took a bite. “I’ve got a good feeling about you. Besides, isn’t that what friends do? They share personal parts of their lives with each other.”

“Yeah, but I didn’t know we were on a friends level. At least not yet.”

He put a hand over his heart. “You wound me. You’re going to have to make it up to me.”

She rolled her eyes, and he couldn’t take his gaze away as she bit her lip. Damn. It made his dick harden instantly.