Page 25 of Blame It On Midnight

“Chowder?” Surprised, Collins glanced up.

Lana smiled. “Our cook is from Maine, and he gets real sentimental about his soup.”

“Well, I’m having some of that, but first I need the biggest cup of coffee you’ve got.”

“And you?” Lana directed her question to Kip.

“Definitely.” He cracked a grin. The man was an insufferable flirt, and Collins relaxed a bit.

“You’re Kip Lafferty,” Lana said, taking a step back.

“I am.”

“I heard you were friends with Ivy Wilkens. I’m not a Yankee fan, prefer the Toronto Blue Jays, but I sure hope you heal up fast.”

“The Blue Jays?” Kip grinned. “Lana, you surprise me. I thought you were more patriotic than that. They’re not a part of the good old US of A.”

“That might be true, but they sure have some nice Southern boys on the roster.” She winked at Collins. “I’ll make a fresh pot and be back in a few.”

“Do you flirt with every woman that crosses your path?”

“Can’t help it.” Kip raised an eyebrow. “Grams did say I was touched by an angel the day I was born.”

“She was nearly blind and mostly deaf, so I wouldn’t take that to heart.”

“Doesn’t matter if it’s true.”

With a smile, Collins eyed up the menu and was trying to decide between a burger or the hungry man breakfast, when Kip leaned forward and grabbed the menu from her.

She opened her mouth to protest.

“Really? We both know you’re going for the burger.”

“Why do you have to be right all the time?” she scowled.

“Because big brothers always are.”

“So you think Duke is smarter than us.”

“Except Duke.” He cracked a half smile. “Obviously.”

Lana appeared with a steaming hot pot of coffee. Once she poured them each a cup and set down a bowl of milk and cream, she stood back. “You two ready to order, or do you need more time to decide on eats?”

“I’ll have the hungry man, eggs over easy, whole wheat toast, and pancakes instead of a waffle.”

“Ham or bacon?”

“Both.”

“Sausage?”

“Yep.”

Collins was tempted to order the same thing just to be sassy, but didn’t. Who was she kidding? She handed Lana her menu. “I’ll have a cheeseburger with extra pickles and mayo. And a bowl of that chowder.”

“Sounds good.” Lana smiled. “God, I envy youth. Being able to eat whatever you want and not worrying about weight gain.”

“I have a high metabolism,” Collins replied with a smile. Truthfully, she had an issue keeping weight on.

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