She drops her head in defeat. “He’s cheating. Weirdly enough, I had hoped it was you because it would make sense. I find receipts all the time, and his calendar is filled with the initials BP so when my sister saw you at dinner the other night, I figured it was you and I asked him.”
“Annie, I’m so sorry . . . but I can promise you I’m not that type of woman.”
She nods and walks toward one of the stalls. “How is he?”
“Brett? I wouldn’t know I—”
“No, Hawk. How is he?”
“Oh . . . um, fine I guess.”
“Don’t hurt him, okay?”
Before I can respond, she steps behind the wooden door and locks it. I don’t want to leave her but staying in the bathroom to wait seems like an odd thing to do at this point. “Ann, if you need to talk, call me,” I say out loud. “I know what it’s like to be married to an adulterer.” With that said, I walk out and back to the table, bumping into Hawk on the way.
My eyes scan the restaurant for any sign of Brett. If Ann is here, surely, he is as well. The restaurant is packed, and the lighting isn’t the best so it’s hard to see.
“Who are you looking for?” Hawk asks.
“Brett,” I tell him. “Ann came into the bathroom, accused me of having an affair with her piece of crap husband.”
“Annie’s here?”
My steps falter and Hawk turns. “What’s wrong?” he asks.
“Nothing, just . . .” I sigh. “She told me not to hurt you.”
“We were good friends growing up, but she’s always been in love with Brett. I took her to senior prom after he cheated on her. I guess some things never change.” He reaches for my hand and pulls me alongside of him.
When we get to the table, the boys are already stuffing their faces and I’m pleasantly surprised to find Chase with some salad on his plate. For some reason, I find myself making Hawk’s plate. He doesn’t say anything but smiles so big that I assume he appreciates my odd and overly friendly gesture. Still, while we’re eating, I can’t get Ann off my mind. More so, that Hawk seems happy she would make a comment like she had. As much as I hate thinking this, I’m going to have to ask Karter for the lowdown on them. They’re younger than me and were in high school long after I left Richfield.
Every so often, I look around the restaurant and tune out what the boys are talking about to see if I can see or hear anything. Mostly, I’m looking for Brett. I want to be prepared if he decides to interrupt us or plan what I’d say to him if he stopped by our table. Every time I scan the area, Hawk’s watching me. He probably thinks I’m paranoid or looking for an escape route to get away from him. Truth is, this is the best night I’ve had in many, many years. I don’t even care that we’re in a busy restaurant with rambunctious children all around. I’m fairly sure I like the man sitting across from me, even if it’s not something I’m ready to admit to anyone but myself.
The boys polish off a large pizza by themselves and both claim to be in a food coma and say they’re having food babies. Hawk suggests they go back to the arcade until we’re ready to leave and hands Nolan some money.
“Let me pay for this round of tokens,” I say, as I dig through my purse for my wallet. By the time I have a twenty out, the boys are gone. I glare at Hawk. “You can’t pay for everything.”
“Why not?” he asks, shrugging.
“Because, I’m not someone who takes advantage.”
“I never said you were.”
“Well, I don’t want you to think I expect it because of who you are, either, so you’ll just have to let me treat you to dinner or lunch sometime.”
Hawk smiles and damn it if it doesn’t twist my insides. “Do you cook?”
“Yes.”
“Do you have a grill?”
“I do.”
“Tell you what, I’ll bring the steaks and use your grill. You do everything else and we’ll have dinner at your place tomorrow.”
“Um . . .”
“Too forward?” he asks. “I think you bring it out in me. Normally, I’m a really mellow kind of guy.”