Total pages in book: 81
Estimated words: 74730 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 374(@200wpm)___ 299(@250wpm)___ 249(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 74730 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 374(@200wpm)___ 299(@250wpm)___ 249(@300wpm)
“True.” Tammy’s lips stayed pursed and her forehead crinkled. Despite her agreement, she was sadder than a piece of old aluminum foil. Luckily, we were nearly empty, only a pair of older truckers nursing the last of their coffees over empty platters. I fetched Tammy a piece of her favorite cheesecake from the dessert cooler.
“Here. Eat this. You’ll feel better.”
“You’re a sweet one.” Her face finally relaxed into her usual smile, but I was careful not to mention the fate of Honey’s again. Sunday nights were almost always slow, and this one was more painful than most. I was nursing yet another cup of coffee and counting down the hour or so until I could put my feet up when the door jangled.
“My favorite fellows!” Tammy was first to greet Sean and Caleb, who were both fresh-faced and in street clothes. Instead of heading right to the counter like always, they grabbed a booth near the door.
Shit. Was this a date? Had I missed my chance by not being more direct? Or maybe Sean was more ready to sow some of those wild oats than he’d thought. Whatever it was, I didn’t like it one bit. I scraped the already-clean grill with a vengeance as Tammy brought them their coffee and menus.
“What’ll it be, bright eyes?” Tammy asked Sean. He didn’t look especially bright to me though. His shoulders had a pronounced slump, and his mouth was bracketed by deep lines. He was undoubtedly short on sleep but seemed more weary than usual.
“Just a cheese omelet with a side of hash browns, extra crispy.” No cheerful request for a surprise. He didn’t even glance in my direction. Damn. Cold. Either this was a date, or he was that exhausted, and either way, my hand flexed with the urge to touch him.
“You got it, love.” Tammy did what I couldn’t and briefly patted Sean’s shoulder before turning to Caleb. “And, Mr. Meat?”
“Hey, what can I say? I like my life spicy…and meaty.” He winked, whether at Tammy or Sean, I wasn’t sure. His usual flirty antics grated like sand on a sunburn. “My usual plus a cinnamon roll. Damn hungry after that shift.”
“Yeah.” Nodding, Sean stared off into space. If this was a date, it wasn’t a very cheerful one, a fact that brought me unwarranted relief. I wasn’t a petty or possessive dude. As long as Sean played safe, I had no reason to stake a claim, but hell if I didn’t want to hang a big Hands Off sign around his neck.
And the more he sat and sighed and stewed, the more I simply wanted to hold him like I had after the sex Friday morning. Falling asleep with him in my arms had been unexpectedly wonderful, and I wanted that bliss again, wanted to see him that relaxed and happy, wanted to give him whatever it would take to get his cheerful self back.
“Here, sugar. You look like you need a refill.” Tammy brought Sean a fresh cup of coffee as I worked on their orders. I tried to keep from staring, but when Caleb touched Sean’s hand and murmured something, I damn near saw red.
Hell. This was a date. And maybe Sean felt guilty to be having it in my presence. A better guy than me would undoubtedly smile at him, give the ol’ thumbs-up, let him know it was no biggie.
But it was, and I damn near torched my first effort at his hash browns. Extra crispy went to extra burned went to the garbage as I fought the urge to march over there. As I was redoing the hash browns, the door jangled again, and the younger dark-haired EMT who’d patched me up the other day strode in, going right to the booth and sliding in next to Sean.
“Hey, I’m late. Sorry.”
Not a date. The EMT had been in a couple of times with his long-haired hippie lawyer boyfriend. No way was he signing up for a three-way with Sean and Caleb. My hand finally relaxed on the spatula, and my movements became free and easy again. No more feeling like I was cutting through concrete and making stupid mistakes.
“Drinking anything other than black coffee? How about some water? Gotta keep hydrated after your night.” The EMT motioned Tammy over. She handed out water glasses to all three guys as my gut churned. I’d been so busy being jealous that I’d forgotten who Sean was.
He was many things, but he was a firefighter first, down to his DNA. He could have seen any number of tragedies on his shift, and his exhaustion was likely emotional as well as physical, but me being a dumbass, I hadn’t let myself see it. I put extra care into plating his food as the EMT rubbed Sean’s tense shoulder.
“You did everything you could.”