Page 9 of Yes to The Holidays
“Yep, but it’s a Southern thing. Especially here in Georgia.”
“When in Rome.”
As I went for the menu, standing against the napkin holder, a server in a yellow and brown uniform came over. In a very Southern accent, she asked, “Can I get y’all some drinks?”
Janie answered, “I’ll have coffee and a water, please.”
“Same for me.” The server went to get our drinks, so I looked over the menu. “What’s good here?”
She rolled her eyes. “Waffles, duh. But the All-Star Breakfast is huge with a little of everything.”
I settled on that, and when the server came back, Janie ordered a waffle with bacon, and I ordered my huge meal. The stools had a bit of space between them, but we still held hands as we waited and nursed our coffee.
“So, you won’t tell me where we’re going?” I asked.
She grinned over her mug. “I could, but you wouldn’t know some of the places anyway.” She took a sip, then set her cup down. “How long are you in town?”
“Supposed to be about two weeks. But I may be back and forth a bit over the next couple of months.”
Her brows shot up. “Really? Business?”
“Yeah. Not 100% sure yet, though. I’ll know more in these next two weeks.” I sipped my coffee, working up to a question I wanted to ask. I decided against it since it was the beginning of our date and only the second time we’d been together.
Before I had time to think much about that, the server was pushing plates in front of us, then refilling our coffee with the speed of four people. She even threw in a wink at the end but aimed at Janie, not me. Janie winked back as she spread butter across her golden-brown waffle.
I had three plates full of breakfast items. It all looked and smelled amazing.
“Eat up. I have a long day planned for you,” Janie said, pointing her fork at my food.
After we finished eating with very little conversation, I made sure to handle this tab before she could, and she rolled her eyes at me.
“Should we call for a rideshare?” I asked.
“Oh, that car is ours for the day. I knew we’d have a few stops, and it would be crazy to keep getting one at each place.”
“Wow. You really thought this out.” I took her hand and led her back outside to the car.
Her cheeks flushed before the cool air even hit. “Sorry if it’s too much. The idea of shenanigans had me excited.”
“Shenanigans. I like that. It’s not too much. I can’t believe you went to all this trouble. And in an hour no less.” I had girlfriends that wouldn’t even choose a restaurant but get upset with me for the choice I made. A woman who would take charge was refreshing. “I’m excited to see your home through your eyes. Let’s go.”
Chapter 7
Janie
After breakfast, we went to a farm with a pumpkin patch; even though Halloween was over, they still offered several varieties for fall decor. They also had stands with arts and crafts, fresh veggies, homemade jams and jellies, an apple cider booth, and of course, a small concession stand with coffee, hot cocoa, and various snacks. There was also a petting zoo.
We spent hours lazily walking the whole farm, hand in hand, enjoying our cocoa to stay warm. We bought pellets to feed the animals. His interactions with the goats and lambs were adorable. There was even a donkey who gobbled the whole handful of pellets in one swipe of his tongue across Odin’s hand.
We both doubled over laughing, losing the rest of our pellets. “Oh no! We dropped them!”
I was still laughing hard but finally upright when Odin stepped in, cupping my face and pulling me in for a kiss. It was sweet but still sent a rush of wetness to my panties. My ex was never affectionate in public. Here I was with a man I just met, locking lips in a petting zoo before lunch.
He rubbed his pink, cold nose against mine. “C’mon,” he said. He took my hand and led me to where the food for the animals was. He paid the few bucks to refill both cups.
“Oh, shoot. If we don’t hurry, we’ll be late for our next outing,” I said, looking at my phone for the time.
“No problem.” He took my cup of pellet feed to a family at the goats’ pen. The kids squealed and took the small plastic containers as the parents smiled and nodded. I pumped hand sanitizer on, and he did the same once he came back over.
