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Chapter Two
Sadie
“So, why the early Sunday morning meet-up?” Lottie asks once she’s finished complaining about her hangover. She’s on the opposite side of the booth and resting her head on the vinyl back as if she’s going to take a nap.
I raise my chin, suck in a breath, and proclaim, “I’ve decided it’s time.”
Her back straightens. She looks around at the half-filled booths in the Easy Eggs Diner and leans forward. We’re just off the highway, and some people might recognize us, but most of the customers here are people traveling through. “For real?”
I nod, biting down on my smile.
“Miss!” Lottie waves at the waitress passing by. “We’re going to need some mimosas.”
The waitress raises both eyebrows. “The best I got is vodka from my flask I can put into your orange juice.” She starts to walk away.
“Pancakes with whipped cream?” Lottie smiles wide.
The waitress stops but doesn’t turn around. “I’ll add chocolate chips.”
“Perfect.” She turns back to me. “We’ll celebrate with champagne after you tell my cousin how you feel, and he confesses his undying love for you.”
“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves.” I slip my chai tea bag into my cup so it can steep.
“Oh, stop it. The two of you have loved each other forever.”
She’s wrong about that. I’m not sure how Jude views me. Sure, I’m his best friend, but there have been times I swear I’ve caught him looking at me. But he’s never crossed the line. Ever.
“So, what gives?” Lottie perks up from her earlier complaints about a hangover.
“What?”
“Why now?”
I shrug. “There wasn’t really a catalyst per se. I was over there last night—we’ve been bingeing this crime show—and he drove me home. The moon was full, and the stars were out. He dropped me off on my porch, and we stood there for a moment. Something passed between us, I know it did. But then he stuffed his hands into his pockets and left.”
“And?” I hate how well Lottie knows me.
“I went up to my old bedroom and saw him stop at his mom’s gravesite.”
She slaps the table. “I knew it.” A few people turn and look at us, and she holds up her hand. “Sorry. We just have some exciting news over here.”
A few old men grumble, turning back to their conversations—most likely about the land and their crops and harvest time.
“Continue.”
I sip my tea. “That’s it. He stopped and talked to his mom like I’ve seen him do a thousand times. Then he got up and disappeared into the darkness.”
The waitress is a welcome distraction when she places the pancakes with whipped cream and chocolate chips on them in front of us. There’s even a sliced strawberry for a nose. It looks delicious.
“Can I actually have two egg whites with spinach and parmesan cheese? And a side of fruit?” I ask with a grimace.
“So she’s the only one celebrating?” The waitress’s expression says that she’d rather have her legs in stirrups for her annual exam than be here serving us.
“She’s just a pessimist,” Lottie says over a mouthful of pancake.
The woman walks away without a word. Jeez, she’s grumpier than Jude.
I look back at Lottie. “I’m a realist, there’s a difference.”
