Page 103 of Axe Backwards
Tess reached over my carefully cut pieces and clutched an entire chocolate chip pancake, then smashed it against her wide-open mouth.
“She’s got a Hebert appetite.” Finn laughed.
I rolled my eyes. Thor was on his fourth slice of bacon. If he was anything like his dad and uncles, there probably wasn’t enough food in the county to feed him.
Graham scanned the diner with his lip curled up on one side, as if he was afraid he’d catch some kind of infectious disease from the place. Thoughts like that were high treason in Lovewell. The diner was sacred.
Yes, it was the quintessential small-town diner, and yes, the menus were plastic the booths were vinyl and there was abeautiful pie case on the countertop featuring the daily specials, but Bernice and Louis kept the place in tip-top shape.
When Bernice appeared with a coffee carafe in hand, the smarmy fucker glared up at her over his menu. “I’ll have the eggs Benedict.”
Bernice took his menu with a grimace. Oh shit, she was not pleased. The guy was fucked. Everyone knew not to get on Bernice’s bad side.
“Sorry, hun. That’s not available today.” Her tone was so friendly, only someone who’d grown up here would know how much trouble they were in.
He huffed, his brows pulled down. “Eggs Benedict.” He spoke loudly, enunciating each syllable, as if she was hard of hearing.
“Not available,” she replied slowly, mimicking his tone. “How about an omelet? We make great omelets.”
“I don’t want an omelet.”
The omelets really were good, but Louis’s eggs Benedict was next-level. Comparing the two was unfair. Finn and I exchanged a glance. This guy had no idea how thin the ice beneath him was.
“Have you run out?” he asked.
She shook her head and gave him a polite smile. “No. Benedict’s not available.”
“If you have the ingredients, go and make it. What kind of place is this?” He scoffed.
“Sir, this is Lovewell, Maine,” she said, pulling her shoulders back. “And I know you’ll love your omelet.”
I almost laughed. Beside me, my brother’s face was split in a grin.
Graham stood and surveyed the surrounding tables. He pointed to Father Renee, who was almost finished with his breakfast. “That guy has it.”
Looking offended, Father Renee speared the last piece of his Benedict and shoved the massive chunk into his mouth, thus hiding the evidence.
“Is there a problem here?” Mayor Lambert, wearing his patented smile, approached the table.
“Who are you?” Graham hissed, looking around as every person in the diner blatantly stared.
“I’m the mayor, and I’ve been frequenting this fine establishment since before you were born, so how about you calm down and enjoy an omelet? The eggs are farm fresh and the coffee is excellent.”
Looking chastened, Graham sat back down and took a sip of his coffee.
He grimaced, his cheeks puffing out, and when he swallowed, it looked painful. “Ugh. This coffee tastes like swamp water.”
Finn leaned forward, his face lit up with glee. “Bernice gave him the out-of-towner coffee.”
“Out-of-towner?” I didn’t follow.
“The coffee here is good,” he said. “Not excellent like Lambert promised, but good enough.”
I nodded.
“But if someone shows up and rubs Bernice the wrong way—usually an out-of-towner, especially if they’re some rich prick from Boston in golf clothes…” He peered over at Graham who was red-faced and holding his paper napkin like it was a live grenade. “She breaks out the gross stuff. I doubt the machine they use for it has been cleaned in a decade. It’s really bad. Like prison quality. It’s the perfect way to fuck with people she’s not thrilled to be serving.”
I chuckled, the sound rumbling deep in my chest. “That’s savage.”
