Page 9 of Hot Chicken

Suddenly, Ellie is standing at her full height, giving me a questioning glare over the case.

Good grief. Am I having a stroke?“I’m sorry. It’s been a rough morning.” I lift my cup for added effect. “I haven’t had enough coffee yet.” Taking a sip, I wince. God, this stuff is really bad.

“Would you like one biscuit or two?” She says each word clearly and deliberately as if speaking to a child.

Biscuits. Not tits. How many biscuits would you like, asshole?

“Heck, give me everything you’ve got.”Yeah, that didn’t come off pervy at all.“I’ll try to bribe the crew to forgive my tardiness.”

She giggles, and my dick jumps to life again.Seriously?

“Oh. My. God. Is that you, Matthew Hightower?” The familiar high-pitched voice behind me equates to having a bucket of ice water poured over my body.

My eyes land on Ellie’s. They’re trained over my shoulder, and the playful expression from moments ago is now replaced with a death glare.

Rotating to face the uninvited female, I try to keep my cool. We don’t need a scene in the middle of Salty Jo’s. “Hey, Jenn. How’ve you been?”

“I’ve been good. It’s been forever,” she says as she comes in for a hug. She’s dressed to the nines in a navy and white pantsuit and shiny stilettos.

“You’re awful fancy for this time of day.”

“I’m a realtor. We have to be fancy whenever the phone rings.” She tries to giggle flirtatiously, placing her hand on my bicep, but it just comes out like a witch’s cackle. “I had no idea you’d come back to town. We need to catch up.”

Why?She’s overly dramatic about the entire interaction. But then again, she always was over the top. But I can’t help wondering if she’s putting on a show. Does she realize this is Ellie? I glance back at Ellie and realize she’s retreated to the far corner, busying herself. What am I thinking? Of course, she does. By the looks of it, neither girl has left Candy Cane Key since graduation. I only hope Jennifer hasn’t continued to torture Ellie as an adult.

I try to come up with a way to get rid of Jenn so I can return to Ellie when Jo steps up with a large paper sack.

“Tell the guys it’s on the house.” He smiles.

Wait. What? I try to get Ellie’s attention so I can at least say goodbye, but she’s gone.

What the hell just happened?

Chapter 11

Ellie

“You okay, doll?”

I turn to find Jo handing me a cup of the good coffee he brings from The Gingerbread Man bakery for the two of us each morning. I’m not much of a baker. I can whip up a pie or something simple, but Jo knows that if he wants a sweet treat, he must grab it while he’s there. I’ve also struggled with my weight my whole life. So it’s probably better I avoid easy access to baked goods. I’m happy with my figure, but it wouldn’t take much for me to tip the scales in the wrong direction if I’m not careful. Not to mention, my grandpa is diabetic. Given how his health has deteriorated, it’s best I stay on top of mine early.

“I’m good. Why?”

“Come on, Ellie. It’s me.”

“Awe, Jo. I’m twenty-seven. I don’t know why I still let her get to me.”

“Because you’re human. She’s a snake in the grass. Everyone knows it.”

I take a sip of my coffee and fiddle with my apron. I don’t want to think about her. As much as I don’t understand why Matt returned this morning, it was nice to have something to get excited about. Even if it was only for a few minutes. But the jury is still out on him. It’s best if I don’t think about him either.

“How’s Pops?”

“Not good. He just gets weaker and weaker. There was a time he could get by without the oxygen. He only needed it if he was exerting himself or at night to sleep. But the cardiologist said his heart failure is getting worse, and he recommended wearing it twenty-four seven.”

Pops has terrible heart disease. His diabetes and fatty food choices have paid a toll. But I can’t ignore I probably haven’t helped. It had to be stressful raising me all on his own. Once Grandma Joan died, it was just the two of us. He’d worked hard, farming the land our mobile home sat on for years. But time hasn’t been good to local farmers in the area. He could no longer afford help. And he physically couldn’t do it on his own.

Thank God for Grandma Joan’s recipe book. I’d cooked alongside my grandma as a child, and Pops teased that if anyone could cook like her, it’d be me. Out of the kindness of his heart, Jo offered up the hot food area in the gas station, rent-free, and I started cooking up all of the Southern foods I grew up on. And I was shocked when we’d sell out, day after day. I was able to close up in time to go home and get Pops fed and off to bed. It was a win-win. And Jo said my cooking was bringing more customers to his station than he’d had in years. It was worth providing the food counter rent-free.

---