2
Ihand the order ticket to the cook and wipe the sweat from my brow with the sleeve of my uniform. The diner gets insufferably hot during the lunch rush. It doesn’t help that we’re understaffed, forcing us to run our asses off.
Crystal steps up next to me with a goofy grin on her face. “This man just asked to be sat in your section, and he is fine as hell.”
I groan. “Please tell me you didn’t. I’m already waiting on too many tables. And it doesn’t matter how fine the man is, I’m not interested.”
She gives me a pouty look. The girl is in high school, still in love with the idea of love and happily-ever-after. She probably thinks it’s romantic that some dude wants me to wait on his table. But I find it disturbing. And annoying.
“A little male attention might do you some good,” she huffs. “Maybe it’ll turn that perma-frown upside down.”
I flip her off, turning my back to her.
“Table seven,” she calls after me as I walk away.
I immediately recognize the man sitting at the table, and my stomach drops. He looks out of place in this run-down diner, wearing his fancy three-piece suit. Crystal isn’t wrong though; the man is good looking. Too bad he’s an arrogant, rich prick.
“Dallas? What the hell are you doing here?”
More importantly, how the hell did he find me? And why? It was pretty clear what he thought about me at his house. It isn’t the first time someone made me feel like trash, but he managed to do it in a matter of minutes.
He smirks, his gaze heating my skin as it trails over me. “Do you greet all your customers with such pleasantry?”
I scoff. “That’s rich coming from the asshole who slammed a door in my face.”
He takes a deep breath, a glimpse of remorse flurrying across his features. “Sit down. We should talk.”
The guy seriously has some nerve. He refused to hear anything I had to say at his house. Now he shows up at my job, demanding to talk to me.
Unreal.
“First of all, I’m not a dog you can command. Secondly, in case you haven’t noticed, I’m working.” I gesture at my uniform with a huff. “Sitting is not an option for me. I’ve got tables to wait on.”
“Fine. When do you get a break?”
“Not until after the lunch crowd clears out.”
“All right, we’ll talk then. I’ll have a cheeseburger and a chocolate shake while I wait.”
Not having the time or energy to argue with him, I merely jot down his order and hurry back behind the counter to drop off his ticket.
“Oh my gosh,” Crystal quietly squeals. “He was looking at you like he wished you were on the menu.”
I hate the way her comment makes my stomach flutter. The notion that he’s attracted to me is absurd. In his eyes, I’m nothing more than some lying whore trying to trap his brother. Even if that weren’t the case, I don’t exactly look my best at the moment. My uniform is covered in various stains from the day, my hair in a messy bun, not a stitch of makeup on my dewy face.
I sigh. “I promise you that’s not the case.”
“How do you know? What did he say? Do you know him?”
“Not really. It’s complicated.” I grab some plates from under the heat lamp. “Once I deliver these, all my tables will be set. Do you mind bringing his order out when it’s done and covering for me while I take a quick break? He isn’t going to leave until we talk, and I want him gone as soon as possible.”
Her lips curl into a bright smile, her head eagerly bobbing as I glide past her.
I take the order to the booth in the back corner and check on my other customers before heading back over to his table, my heart hammering in my chest. There’s a satisfied grin on his face by the time I plop down in the booth across from him, as if he knew I’d cave.
“You’ve got fifteen minutes,” I clip. “What do you want to talk about?”
“Your son…he’s a spitting image of my brother.”
“Yes, well, like I said before, Jackson is his father.”
“Did he know?”
“Oh yeah, I told him. Jackson just didn’t give a damn. He completely disappeared, bailing on me and his child. The bastard can’t even be bothered to show up here now.”
He runs a hand through his hair. “Jackson’s dead. He’s been gone for six years.”
The air in my lungs comes out of me in a whoosh, like someone punched me in the gut. Jackson has been on my shit list for years, but the idea of him being gone forever is too sad to process. I suppose there was always this small hope that he’d come for us some day, that Kellan would eventually know his father.
Now, he never will.
“You almost seem legitimately saddened by the news.”
I narrow my tear-filled eyes at him. “My son will never get to meet his father.”
“And you won’t be able to extort him for money,” he sneers.
“Wow,” I say, as Crystal steps up to the table with his order. “You truly are a total asshole.”
“Um, here’s your shake.” Her smile is tight with her unease as she places it front of him. “Your meal should be out shortly.”
He doesn’t even acknowledge her before she scurries away, his hard glare pinned on me. “So, you didn’t show up at my house yesterday looking for some money?” His lips press with condescension when I don’t respond.
Arrogant prick.