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I need to call Tony and shove this onto his shoulders.
Before I can do anything, I look up from my phone to take a breath.
And I see Piper walking toward me.
“Hmm, I ordered a pizza, not a lifeguard,” I say.
Nice icebreaker… all things considered…
“I’m not here to chat, Cutter.”
“I figured. You’re with your son.”
“You saw us.”
“As soon as I walked in.”
I see the hesitation in her eyes. She wants to ask me why I didn’t approach her first.
But she’s not going to do that. That would be some kind of vulnerability and defeat to her.
Piper is certainly one interesting woman, that’s for sure.
There’s fire in her eyes, yet a subtle hint of desperation.
“Don’t mind me,” I say to her. “I’m just here to grab a bite to eat and go back home. Nothing more.”
I reach for my drink and sip from the straw, lifting one eyebrow.
Maybe I’m trying to be extra cocky tonight. Maybe.
“I’m not here to talk to you or to get to know you, Cutter. I came over here to give you something. I was hoping to run into you one more time before you leave.”
“Before I leave? Here? Or town?”
Piper purposely skips answering that question.
She reaches into her back pocket and pulls out a folded up check.
She flings it to the table.
I point to the check. “I’m okay touching that?”
“Excuse me?”
“I’m just asking, Piper. It was just in your back pocket. You’ve got this obsession with me getting into your pants and here you are with a check in your back pocket. Seems a little weird, right?”
“You are way too full of yourself, Cutter. Just take the check, okay? And, yes, I’ll admit it and say it - thank you for helping me with my car. You didn’t have to do that. But I’ve paid you back. So now we all move on.”
“Is that so?” I ask.
“Yes.”
Piper starts to turn.
That’s when I jump up.
There’s this sudden urge inside me to not let her go. I can’t let her just slip away like this. What is she going to do? Just vanish? Avoid me at all costs? And I’m supposed to…
