Page 17 of Honey Bee Library
I wanted to know the trajectory of my life. I wanted to know where I was going and what I was going to find when I got there. I wanted to feel confident in my decisions. I wanted my sister to trust me to make those decisions. I wanted to start living again. For me. For Samuel. For Abigail.
I wanted the past to stop haunting me like it did every single day when I opened my eyes and made an effort to get out of bed. I wanted to know without a doubt that I was going to have a satisfactory and productive day.
But I wasn’t there yet, and I feared that I was never going to get there. No matter how badly I wanted it, it just wasn’t in the cards for me.
And it was never going to be.
6
WILLOW
It wassurprising how relaxed I was when Cole was gone. Things felt normal without him around. I was able to move through the diner with ease. The fear of running into him when I least expected it was gone, and I found myself being able to walk through the swinging kitchen door without bracing myself for whoever was on the other side.
The lunch rush came and went. I only had to take a break once to call Ralph, the local mechanic. He’d been able to tow my car and was in the process of diagnosing what was wrong.
When I finished the call, I joined Patricia and Breia, who were sitting at the far table, wrapping silverware. Just as I pulled up a chair and sat, Cole returned. Stress found its way back into my shoulders the moment I saw him walking up to the diner through the big front windows. My entire body tensed as I waited for him to pull open the door.
I studied him as he stood in the entrance, his gaze sweeping over the room. There was nothing in his expression or appearance that gave me any clue as to where he’d been. My cheeks heated the moment his gaze landed on me. I couldn’t break the connection between us. He held my gaze for a moment before heading into the kitchen. Once he was gone, I slowly let out my breath.
I glanced over to see Patricia and Breia watching me with their eyebrows raised. I frowned. “What?”
Breia shook her head. “Nothing,” she and Patricia said at the same time.
That response felt a little too choreographed. Then I realized what was going on. Breia had said something to Patricia, and they were now analyzing my reaction to Cole.
“You two,” I said, shaking my head as I reached over to grab a clean fork. “You’re looking for something that’s not there.”
“He invited you to stay at his house,” Patricia said, slowly emphasizing each word.
I glanced up at her. “Yeah, he’s nice.”
Patricia shook her head. “Guys like Cole aren’tnice. He either wants something orwantssomething.”
I almost choked on my tongue as I whipped my gaze over to stare at her. It had been a long time since a man hadwantedanything from me. Harold never made me feel beautiful, and I had started to believe the rest of the male population felt the same.
“He does notwantanything from me,” I said, my voice low as heat rushed to my cheeks. “He just felt guilty that he’s been a jerk to me. And when he found out I was sleeping in the diner, he stepped up.” I sighed. “I guess he has a lot of guilt from his grandmother. He said something about her never letting him live it down if he didn’t act like a gentleman.”
My heart warmed at the thought. There was something so sweet about a man who respected the women in their life, even if that man was Cole Watkins.
“Mark my words, he wants something from you,” Patricia said as she leaned back in her chair and folded her arms.
“Who wants something from you?” Cole’s deep voice startled all of us.
We whipped our heads in his direction in perfect synchrony.
“The produce guy,” I blurted out. From how hot my face felt, I was certain it was bright red. The last thing I wanted was for Cole to suspect we were talking about him.
Cole glanced from me, to Patricia, to Breia, and then back to me. He looked confused but, thankfully, decided he wasn’t going to push it. “Can I talk to you?” he asked as he raised his eyebrows and nodded toward the kitchen door.
I glanced in the direction he’d motioned. “Me?” I asked as I pointed to my chest. I just wanted to clarify so I didn’t feel like an idiot when I stood up, assuming it was me, only to find out that he actually wanted Breia.
He nodded but didn’t say anything else. Once we were in my office, he turned to face me. His expression was unreadable. We stood there in silence. I wasn’t sure if he wanted me to speak first or if he was going to start. I decided to wait. After all, he was the one who had asked to talk to me.
“Are you planning on staying at my place tonight?” He dropped his gaze as soon as the question left his lips.
“What?” I asked, not sure if I’d heard him right.
“Are you coming back to my place tonight?” he asked again. This time he brought his gaze up to mine and held it there long after his question was over.
